Day: 17 July 2024

From jewels to watches and sculpture to sporting memorabilia, Artcurial’s summertime Monaco Auction Week presented bidders in Monaco and abroad with a truly diverse array of stunning collections and collectors’ items that ultimately generated just shy of €10 million in sales. 

The spectacular Hôtel Hermitage in Monte-Carlo hosted this year’s Monaco Auction Week between 6th and 10th July.

Among the prize categories that went under the gavel of Artcurial’s finest auctioneers, such as Matthieu Lamoure, Stéphane Aubert, Geoffroy Ader and Francis Briest, were luxury handbags and jewellery from a broad spectrum of designers, watches from creators the world over, highly coveted sculptures and a nostalgic collection of memorabilia from the Principality’s much-loved and missed Stars’n’Bars.   

Stars’n’Bars era 

The items put up by the famous former Quai Antoine 1er venue, which closed its doors after 30 years in 2022, were among the highlights of the Summer 2024 edition of Monaco Auction Week.

See more: ’30 Years of Idols & Champions’: Artcurial to auction Stars’n’Bars memorabilia  

Held on 8th July, big-ticket lots included the replica helmet worn by Ayrton Senna during the 1994 race season. It fetched €3,280, while a David Coulthard Arai helmet by West McLaren Mercedes was sold for an impressive €6,560. 

A Mika Hakkinen replica helmet by McLaren was also sold for €4,198, and his racing suit from the 2000/01 seasons went for €2,099. Another notable racing suit was Johnny Herbert’s from the 1998 Red Bull Sauber Petronas season, which sold for €3,280. 

See more: César’s ‘Fanny Fanny’ among the big-ticket items to feature at Monaco Auction Week

The legendary Michael Schumacher’s Benetton Formula 1 gloves were sold for €787, the same price, coincidentally, as Charles Leclerc’s Freem gloves.  

The most expensive sale from the Stars’n’Bars portion of the auction was a Pinarello racing bike from the Banesto team, associated with Miguel Indurain, which fetched €22,304.  

Other major sales 

Notable sales also occurred at the other auctions.

In the Joaillerie auction, a platinum ring by Guillemin & Soulaine, with its 9.7-carat sapphire and diamonds, was sold for a whopping €249,280.  

In the Horlogerie de Collection auction, a 2007 Patek Philippe Nautilus Geneva Seal fetched €74,784.  

Meanwhile, a unique 18-carat yellow gold and lapis-lazuli piece from Piaget, dating from 1973, was purchased for €120,704 at the special Le Temps est Féminin célèbre Piaget auction. 

In the Hermès & Luxury Bags auction, a 2020 Hermès Mini Kelly Sellier in smooth cassis alligator leather sold for €33,456.  

On the last day of Monaco Auction Week, Manolo Valdés’ Reina Mariana Blue sculpture from 2022 achieved an unparalleled sale price of €1,042,400, making it the most expensive piece of this year’s event.  

To see some of the action from Monaco Auction Week, watch the Monaco Life Instagram reel below:

 

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Monaco Auction Week returning in July with exquisite accessories and rare collectors’ items

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Photo by Monaco Life

The Jimmy’z nightclub, perhaps Monaco’s most famous nightlife hotspot, has celebrated its 50th anniversary with a party attended by some of the biggest names in the Principality today.

Prince Albert II of Monaco, who would have been just 16 years old when Jimmy’z opened at the Monte-Carlo Sporting Club on 22nd June 1974, joined a host of other Monegasque figures and celebrities at the nightclub’s grand anniversary celebrations on 11th July.  

Among the other partygoers who joined the Prince in raising a toast to this “temple of clubbing” were: F1’s Charles Leclerc and his girlfriend, Alexandra Saint Mleux; Camille Gottlieb, the daughter of Princess Stéphanie of Monaco; Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer’s Chairman and CEO Stéphane Valeri; and the club’s long-standing director, Antonio Ierone. 

Leclerc’s appearance at the party will come as no surprise to fans of the driver who watched him bask in the glory of a home win at the Monaco Grand Prix in May. As he sailed over the finish line, the Monegasque pilot was heard telling his team, “I hope Jimmy’z is ready!”

The story of Jimmy’z actually goes back a little further than 50 years, back to 1971. At the time, it was found just below the Sporting d’ Été and went by the name of The Jimmy’z. It was a vibrant nightlife hotspot even then, ruled over by the Grande Zoa of Régine. 

Following the demolition of the complex, Jimmy’z was reopened anew in the Monte-Carlo Sporting Club on 22nd June 1974, the anniversary of which was celebrated earlier this month.

Jimmy’z has kept flowing with the times over these past five decades. It was fully renovated in 1986, bringing its style and vibe into line with the changing trends of the era, before additional transformations in 2000, 2004, 2012 and 2017.  

Despite its evolving look, which has even included a name change to Parady’z at one point, the nightclub has always maintained its status as a staple feature of Monaco’s vibrant party scene, a place adored as much by locals as by the millions of international partygoers who have hit its dancefloor over the years.  

To see more photographs from the celebrations, click on the images below:

Monaco Life is produced by real multi-media journalists writing original content. See more in our free newsletter, follow our Podcasts on Spotify, and check us out on Threads,  Facebook,  Instagram,  LinkedIn and Tik Tok.  

Photo credits: Monte-Carlo SBM

After 10 long months of renovation works and upgrades along the Promenade de la Mer, Menton’s private beach restaurants and clubs have finally begun to welcome back their loyal customers.  

With the summer season now in full swing, beachside restaurateurs in the French Riviera city of Menton are breathing a sigh of relief following the reopening of the beaches along this stretch of the coast.  

See more: Les Sandays pop-up beach party brings a retro vibe to the French Riviera

The Promenade de la Mer project began towards the end of last summer, but the beach clubs and restaurants were forced to end their season early, causing uproar among many of the owners and management companies who cited a loss of income and disruption to clients as their principal woes.

The ensuing legal claims put the city at odds with these businesses, who were asked to make final contributions to the project, but the €6.8 million renovations were nonetheless carried out.

Unfortunately, the projected finishing date of mid-June came and went, and it was only on 15th July that the new-look Promenade de la Mer was officially inaugurated, bringing much relief to the teams behind the bars and restaurants.  

Decked out in wooden walkways, palm trees, plentiful planting and vastly improved access for disabled visitors, it has revived the city’s aesthetic and made the area infinitely more accessible to a greater range of beachgoers and tourists.  

Fernando Usai, the manager of La Pergola, told France 3 he was “happy to have gotten [his] beach back”, but lamented the extended timeframe of the project, adding that he and his fellow restaurateurs had “seen the season wasting away before our eyes”.  

So far, four of Menton’s private beaches have been able to welcome back the public, with more expected to follow over the coming days and weeks. The final two will only be able to reopen, likely under new names and management, next year.  

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Monaco Life is produced by real multi-media journalists writing original content. See more in our free newsletter, follow our Podcasts on Spotify, and check us out on Threads,  Facebook,  Instagram,  LinkedIn and Tik Tok.  

Photo source: Ville de Menton