Sotheby's React to Type 64 Sale Confusion
By Jim Roller
On August 28, 2019 we posted an article and video piece about the confusion that took place during the Sotheby's Monterey Auction that resulted in the no sale of the Type 64 sportscar recognized as the first sports car penned by the legendary Dr. Ferdinand Porsche. The confusion generated some controversy and we reached out to Sotheby's for reaction. At the time of our publishing our story we had not heard from the auction house. This week we did recieve word from Sotheby's Director of Public Relations, Meghan McGrail about the confusion and in the interest of fairness we are pleased to publish it here.
"We have been honored to present a car that holds such significance to automotive history as the 1939 Porsche Type 64. It has been an incredible journey in the lead up to Monterey as we were given the opportunity to share the genesis of one of the hobby’s most legendary brands with the world and work with renowned enthusiasts in the Porsche community. It is difficult to put a price on such a unique and historically significant artefact, and despite interest from discerning collectors, we were unable to reach common ground between seller and buyer on the night.
As bidding opened on the Type 64, increments were mistakenly displayed on the screen, causing unfortunate confusion in the room. We take pride in conducting our world-class auctions with integrity and we take our responsibility to our clients very seriously. This was in no way intentional on behalf of anyone at RM Sotheby’s, rather an unfortunate misunderstanding amplified by excitement in the room. The car did reach a high bid of $17 million but did not meet reserve. We will continue making every effort to sell the car for our client.
Despite softening market conditions witnessed during Monterey car week, RM Sotheby’s did see several stand out prices achieved for exceptional collector cars over the course of the three-day Monterey sale, including new auction records set for the James Bond Aston Martin DB5 ($6.4 million), McLaren F1 ‘LM-Specification’ ($19.8 million), the Ferrari FXX offered as part of the highly successful Ming Collection ($3.535 million), and the Porsche 911 S ‘Rallye’ ($912,500 – estimate: $250,000/$325,000, alongside a strong result for the Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta at $8.145 million. Our complete Monterey results release is available here."
We appreciate Ms. McGrail response to our story and look forward to more news from Sotheby's in the near future.
