A piece of history is what you can take home with you, now that Parisian auction house Artcurial will be conducting a sale of 10,000 emblematic items from the Ritz Paris. Entitled ‘Once Upon a Time,’ the sale occurs after the legendary hotel has undergone an extensive renovation. After all, since opening its doors in 1889, during the heart of the Belle Epoque, it has become the ultimate symbol of luxury, glamour, and elegance, epitomizing French traditional style, and evoking the concept of the Grand Hotel in its best. Everyone who has been to Paris, has a personal memory of the Ritz, whether staying, having a cup of coffee, or just looking at the historical façade while walking through the Place Vendome. It was founded by Cesar Ritz on a site of an 18th-century townhouse, and had instantly become the home of royalty, aristocracy, and some of history’s most stylish people. Coco Chanel famously lived at the Ritz for thirty years, and died at her white suite in 1971 at 87 (below); stylish author Ernest Hemingway; Britain’s king Edward VIII, who abdicated in 1936 made the Ritz his home for years; Diana, the princess of Wales, dined there just before her tragic death in 1997; Winston Churchill, Sophia Loren, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, just to name a few of those who helped turning the Ritz into a legend. The anticipated sale and exhibition which will be taking place at the headquarters of the auction house on the Champs-Elysées, staged by decorator Vincent Darré, a chance to take home a piece of history. All images of objects, courtesy Artcurial.
Image: Digital Colorization by Lorna Clark
