Transatlantic treats consigned for RM Sotheby's Miami sale

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For the first time ever, RM Sotheby's is hosting a sale at the Biltmore Hotel, a palatial 1920s venue at the prestigious Miami resort of Coral Gables. Set to take place on March 2nd, it contains a splendid assortment of consignments which encompass both the pre-war and post-war periods and hail from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Enthusiasts for Packard and the Cord Corporation are especially in for a treat, for there are no fewer than four Packards and four models from the sister companies of Auburn, Cord and Duesenberg, all from their 1930s heyday. Those with more Continental tastes are not going to be left out, with Rolls-Royce, Lagonda, Delahaye and Mercedes-Benz among the European marques which are set to feature.

1930 Duesenberg Model J 'disappearing top' coupé by Murphy — $3,500,000-4,000,000 (£3,245,000-3,710,000)

One of the headline lots is chassis 2369, the Duesenberg Model J ordered by the 62-year-old Esther Fiske Hammond, a well-known and respected character in American high society whose fortune came from the retail industry—her grandfather had founded a department store chain in New England, and her husband had done the same in Boston. Since 1910, she had resided on California's sunny Pacific coast, on the acres of land she owned near Montecito. When not enjoying her leisure there or throwing Gatsby-esque parties, she was likely to be found at her second home in Pasadena. The coachbuilding house of Murphy was also a Pasadena resident, so it's likely that Mrs. Fiske Hammond admired the various Duesenbergs she saw emerging from its works and duly placed an order for one of her own, one of 25 made in the coveted 'disappearing top' coupé style, although notably equipped with twin rear-mounted spare wheels as opposed to the customary side-mounted arrangement.

The epitome of sporting elegance, 2369 was a remarkable car for this 'little old lady from Pasadena' to use for travelling between her two homes, and she enjoyed it until 1934, when she sold it to her neighbour, Margorie Butler, heiress to the Butler Paper Co. She in turn sold it in 1935 for $500 to her chauffeur's son, John Foray, who kept it until 1938. Via Chicago Duesenberg specialist John Troka, it was sold to a local enthusiast, Ken Griffen. In 1953, Chicago radio announcer Charles Allen assumed custody of it, and from 1955 to 1974 it was kept by Paul Birthesel. It proceeded to change hands several times until 1979, when it was acquired by Texan collector Richard Burdick, who arranged for it to go on display at the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum, where it remained until his collection was sold off in 2017. On emerging from the museum, it was subjected to a comprehensive restoration by a well-regarded marque specialist. It had suffered a previous alteration whereby the spare wheels had been moved to a crude side-mounted configuration, but once restored it was a picture of perfect beauty, looking just as it did in 1930. It made its post-restoration début at Pebble Beach, where it won First in Class and the CCCA Trophy. More awards have since followed, and 2369 appears today as one of the finest examples of a Murphy 'disappearing top' to be found anywhere.

Remarkably, 2369 is to be joined in the sale by the 1929 Model J dual-cowl phaeton bodied by LeBaron for Philip K. Wrigley of the famous chewing gum family, the significance being the Wrigley's family home in Pasadena was next-door to Mrs. Fiske Hammond's! He kept the phaeton until 1936, and it is heading to auction with an estimate of $2,650,000-2,850,000 (£2,455,000-2,655,000).

1930 Mercedes-Benz 770K Pullman cabriolet by Voll & Ruhrbeck — $2,500,000-3,000,000 (£2,320,000-2,780,000)

A particular favourite is the imperious Mercedes-Benz 770K, not just for its appearance and condition, but also for its fascinating history. Of the 107 770s manufactured, many remained in Germany, with quite a few being used in an official capacity by the Nazi régime. Consequently, when war spread its dark wings across Europe, a large proportion of the 770 population was wiped out of existence. Happily, this beautiful example, chassis 83807, was not among them, it having been despatched new to King Faisal I of Iraq, who used it as a State car, including on his first visit to Shah Reza Pahlavi of Persia. Faisal died in 1933 aged just 48, but the Mercedes continued to be enjoyed by his son, King Ghazi I, until his death at the tragically young age of 27 in a sports-car accident in 1939. Ghazi's four-year-old son became King Faisal II, and on his coming of age, he awoke the magnificent supercharged 770 from its slumber in the royal motor-house, and after having it overhauled in Stuttgart commenced driving it himself in 1958. Come 1966, it was being offered for sale in Baghdad. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum was, at the time, collecting important cars and took delivery of this diamond of the Orient, which remained on display in the museum until 2022, being partially restored and kept in running order for events and parades. The Indianpolis Museum relinquished the Mercedes having decided to focus its collection more on competition cars, and its appearance on the market gives enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire one of the most superb examples of pre-war Teutonic engineering and an invaluable royal jewel.

1939 Delage D8-120 Cabriolet Grand Luxe by Chapron — $950,000-1,200,000 (£880,000-1,110,000)

Being one of the very last D8-120 chassis manufactured before hostilities interrupted production, this Delage was not completed until after the Second World War, but it was worth the wait, for master carrossier Henri Chapron turned it into a work of exquisite elegance. Evidence indicates that it was built to turn heads at the 1946 Paris Salon, although it appears that it was not actually shown there and was instead despatched to a private buyer in Egypt. What it did in Egypt, or whether it really went there at all, is not known, but by 1953 it had been bought by Bob Grier, an American photographer and great enthusiast for French cars and coachbuilding. Grier is understood to have kept it until the late 1960s, after which it spent 15 years in storage. On resurfacing in the 1980s, it underwent a restoration with slight modifications, in which guise it won an award at Pebble Beach in 1995, but it was then returned to its blue and red livery and won its class at Pebble Beach in 1999. Further restored in the early 2000s with the 1980s alterations reversed, it reappeared at Pebble Beach for the Delage centenary in 2005 and was crowned Most Elegant Convertible.

1933 Twin Coach delivery van — $100,000-125,000 (£93,000-116,000) — and 1911 Sears Auto-Cycle — $40,000-60,000 (£37,000-56,000)

Away from all the high-end automobiles, the Miami sale also offers a chance to get your hands on something slightly different. If you've a taste for commercial vehicles or motorcycles, the 1933 Twin Coach and the 1911 Sears will both really stand out in their respective fields. The Twin Coach was originally built as part of a fleet for the Helms Bakery of Culver City, California, which, like most city bakeries at the time, conducted its business via door-to-door deliveries rather than in shop premises. To buy some Helms bread, one only had to place a large 'H' in the window of one's house, and the 'Helmsman' would pull over to do business. Though the Helms Bakery ceased trading in 1969, its legacy is well-remembered thanks to the surviving Twin Coach vans, of which this example is one of 148 built in the first style. Fully restored in its original livery in 2008, it survives as a fascinating, interactive piece of Californian social history.

Sears began selling "postively the best motorcycle in the world" in 1909, although its original single-cylinder machine was actually produced by the Joerns-Thiem Motor Co. of St. Paul, Minnesota. The Sears Auto-Cycle was its second model was actually a rebadged Thor IV produced by the Aurora Automatic Machine Co., and it utilised a single-cylinder of larger capacity. Sears stopped selling motorcycles in 1914, making this beautifully restored example a very rare survivor.

That's just a few highlights from what promises to be an excellent sale. Why not soak up a bit of Florida sunshine and head to the RM Sotheby's auction on March 2nd? Follow this link to view the rest of the catalogue.
 

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