Fast cars, beautiful women and no less than six James Bonds over a 60 year span add up to exciting sales with much to entice and little not to like at Christie’s. If your taste runs to Aston Martin stunt cars, a gold-plated and Swarovski-encrusted prop egg commissioned from Asprey in the style of Fabergé, a Q Jet boat or a five night stay at Goldeneye, Ian Fleming’s Jamaican villa, then these are the auctions for you. Villains, temptresses and heroes don’t come cheap but it is all for worthy causes with no less than 45 charities set to benefit.
To mark the 60th anniversary of the James Bond films, Christie’s and EON Productions will hold an official two-part charity sale next month and into October. There will be 60 lots to mark the sale of Sixty Years of James Bond.The cream of the crop is at a live auction of 25 lots on September 28. This will be by invitation only to bid in person in the room with fans and collectors able to bid online or on the telephone. The auction will comprise vehicles, watches, costumes and props associated with the 25th film No Time to Die. The final six lots will celebrate each of the six actors who have played Bond: Sir Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Sir Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig. Each lot will be sold to benefit a charity chosen personally by the respective actor or their estates. An online sale opens for bidding on September 15 and will run until James Bond Day on October 5. This will comprise 35 lots from the 25 films including posters, props, costumes, memorabilia and experiences.
A silver birch Aston Martin DB5 stunt car, one of eight stunt replicas built for the film No Time to Die and fitted with ‘Q Branch’ modifications is the top lot. As the only DB5 stunt car to be released for sale this ultimate Bond collector’s prize is estimated at £1,500,000-£2,000,000 (€1.79 million-€2.38 million). Proceeds will benefit The Prince’s Trust in its work with young people and the Prince of Wales charitable fund support for former members of the three intelligence agencies and UK special forces.Two further No Time to Die Aston Martins come up, a 1981 V8 driven by Daniel Craig and a DBS Superleggera special edition. Two Land Rover Defenders and a Range Rover from the film will be offered along with a Jaguar XF featured in stunt scenes. Memorabilia includes Omega watches, Primo’s bionic eyeball, a Tom Ford dinner suit worn by Craig to a SPECTRE party, a Navy tactical costume worn by Lashana Lynch as Nomi.A clapperboard signed by Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Daniel Craig, Lashana Lynch, Léa Seydoux, Ana de Armas, David Dencik, Dali Benssalah, Naomie Harris, Linus Sandgren, Billy Magnussen, Hans Zimmer, Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell will be sold to benefit Medecins Sans Frontiers. It is estimated at £5,000-£7,000 (€5,952-€8,333).The online sale includes an otherwise unobtainable Champagne Bollinger experience celebrating a 40 year partnership of Bollinger as the official champagne of 007. Eurostar to Paris, lunch at the former home of Madame Bollinger hosted by her great nephew Etienne Bizot, an overnight stay at the Hotel le Bristol in Paris and a 1985 poster for A View to a Kill.There is sheet music signed by Sir Paul McCartney for Live and Let Die, a drax crew belt buckle from Moonraker, a cello case sled from The Living Daylights, a Michael Kors satchel used by Naomie Harris as Moneypenny, a Day of the Dead Aztec skeleton puppet from Spectre and a clock used by Judi Dench as M with a nuclear locator card. The last three official Christie’s 007 auctions have raised over €6 million for charity.
