This 1929 Duesenberg Model J Sport Sedan with coachwork by the Walter M. Murphy Co. made $792,000. Photo Credit Darin Schnabel Courtesy of RM Auctions.
A classic Duesenberg built in 1929 and a Riley from 1930 made for a transatlantic tale of two cars at auction this month. RM Auctions, the world’s largest collector car auction house, sold the elegant Duesenberg Model J Sport Sedan illustrated on the left for $792,000 at Hershey in Pennsylvania last week. In Ireland Mealy’s – best known for antique furniture and collectibles auctions – sold a 1930 Riley 9hp Special Sports Tourer for a hammer price of 22,500 euro at Castlecomer this week. It was the top lot in their two day auction.
The top lot at the RM sale of 120 cars was an exceptional 1931 Duesenberg Model J Dual Windshield ‘Barrelside’ Phaeton by LeBaron, J299. One of just seven built it was the winner of the epic 1932 race at Lake Muroc against the Marx brothers’ Mercedes-Benz. It made $1,292,500. Both it and the 1929 Duesenberg Model J Sport Sedan, J139, with coachwork by the Walter M. Murphy Company were from the Ray Bowersox Collection. The RM auction of 120 cars generated $10.7 million with 95 per cent of lots sold. There were bidders from 17 countries in the room, on the phone and on the internet.
The Riley at Mealy’s had a bespoke body, a copy of the James Flood design used by Jean Roberston in the 1931 Monte Carlo Rally. Mealy’s sold a 1969 Rolls Royce for 46,000 at the Mount Congreve auction in July. Click on any image to enlarge it. (See post on antiquesandartireland.com for October 10, 2012).
NO, these are not toys. They are more than $2 million worth of real. Click on image to see more clearly the two top selling Duesenbergs at RM Auctions in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Image Courtesy of RM Auctions.
This c1930 Riley 9hp sports tourer made 22,000 at Mealy’s this week.