Saturday Morning, February 7, 2026
Last Tango in Paris
The flames, visible for miles. The heartache, felt beyond infinity. April 15, 2019. The day history stood still. Flames leapt and danced atop Notre Dame's peaked wooden roof, teasing and taunting the gargoyles, jumping from one oak beam to another, moving ever closer. In time the 240-ton lead roof melted, a nightmare even for Quasimodo.
Good things come in small round boxes.
Russian .84 silver & enameled inkstand (sans well),
Moscow or St. Petersburg. ca. 1890's
The saving grace? The cathedral's vaulted stone ceiling just below the fire contained the molten mass from destroying the sanctuary. With blast furnace intensity, the flames kaleidoscoped. Red, orange, and yellow tangoed within the pyre, smoke billowing to the heavens. Cheek-heat over a mile away. In this column of color, the iconic wooden spire began teetering, then vanished into the inferno. A sacrifice to the Devil himself. France, and the world, had lost a noble symbol of faith. Please allow me to introduce myself...
If I had a Hammer
Before the embers cooled, the appeal for reconstruction funds echoed along the Seine. The request widened. Purists demanded repairs be completed with authentic material. Oak beams hand-hewn from old French forests. Restoration hardware peened to spec. Quarry stone cut and fashioned in the traditional method. No details spared.
Hermes silk scarf, Festival, in original box
Tradesmen were required to use pre-Renaissance skills. When completed in five years, the result was spectacular. The cathedral's makeover, power washed stone, restored paintings, even buffed sacraments, returned a glow to the structure. An international treasure. Tourists flocked to Our Lady's altar, donating money in boxes inside the bronze doors. Every bit helped. The restoration total almost topped one billion dollars.
Fancy Colours
France is fashion, an industry branding the city. From this, donations abounded. Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH, François Henri Pinault, chairman of Gucci, and Françoise Bettencourt Meyers, the face behind L'Oréal, stepped forward, together donating $500 million dollars. Such is the strength and love for Notre Dame. They put their perfume where their mouth is.
Salvatore Ferragamo silk scarf, with original box.
In arrive the Americans, sporting Stetsons.
As Hitler's troops were withdrawing from Paris in 1944, the Führer's demand was to destroy Paris. In fact, many structures were wired for detonation, waiting the command. In Larry Collins's and Dominique Lapierre's book, Is Paris Burning?, they detail Hitler's rage ordering Commandant Dietrich von Choltitz to blow up the city. But Dietrich disobeyed. The reason? History claims he did not want to be the man remembered for destroying Paris. Whether true or not, the decision illustrates the spirit found within these Arrondissements. Although a protectorate of France, Paris belongs to the world and always will.
Phoenix Rising
As the flames rose higher into the sky, with all the colors dancing a Devil's dervish, tears fell for Our Lady. But not for long. Those reds, oranges, and yellows blemishing the cathedral would return. This time to resurrect her, disguised as dresses, sweaters, scarves, and fashion accoutrements. Same colors, different applications. Wealth saved that which is priceless.
Silver & enameled bird, our version of Harry Potter's Fawkes.
It morphs metaphor. Do we desire peace and prosperity or war and poverty? Airplanes were invented. Do we want to fly to Paris for holiday or bomb it? Medical breakthroughs can save lives or, if misaligned, destroy them. It is an age-old dilemma, not soon to solve itself. For every step forward, humans seem to trip back. Implausible, it is a flaw we all carry. It is the price for being human. One must decide which way to turn. We know where you'll turn. Off 413 into our parking lot this Saturday.
Doors open at 8 AM. Auction starts at 9 AM. PA AU 1265L [bb]