Now where did I park my 60 cars? Incredible treasure trove of rusting classics worth £12MILLION is found languishing in a French farm garage after 50 years
- Ferrari and a rare Maserati are among dozens of rusting classic cars found on farm in western France
- The astonishing collection, left on the farm since the 1970s, is thought to be worth up to £12million
- Classic cars owned by Egyptian King Farouk and sat in by Jane Fonda and Shirley MacLaine are for sale
- Owner of the collection Roger Baillon died more than 10 years ago, passing the cars on to his family
- They did not realise the classic cars were worth so much, calling in auctioneers who delivered the surprise
A £12million treasure trove of 60 rusting classic cars left languishing on a French farm for 50 years has been discovered.
The
haul of motors, which includes dozens of vintage sports cars, was found
gathering dust under piles of newspapers in garages and barns on a farm
in western France.
Among
the vehicles up for sale are a Ferrari once sat in by Jane Fonda and a
Talbot-Lago previously owned by extravagant Egyptian King Farouk.
The Ferrari (left), once sat in by
Jane Fonda, was found under newspapers in an outbuilding on the French
farm, alongside a Maserati A6G 200 Berlinetta Grand Sport Frua - one of
only three in the world
The £12million treasure trove of cars,
including this Ferrari 250 GT California SWB, was left languishing on a
French farm for 50 years before its discovery
The collection has sat dormant in
makeshift corrugated iron shelters and outbuildings on the farm since
the 1970s. Pictured: Facel Vega (left) and a Talbot-Lago (right)
Some of the vehicles may be too rusted to be restored, but many of the cars are worth hundreds of thousands of pounds
The
cars were collected from the 1950s to the 1970s by entrepreneur Roger
Baillon, who dreamt of restoring them to their former glory and
displaying them in a museum.
However, his plans were dashed as his business struggled, forcing Mr Baillon to sell about 50 of the vehicles.
Since then his collection has sat dormant in makeshift corrugated iron shelters and outbuildings on the farm.
Mr Baillon died about 10 years ago and his son, Jacques, who inherited the collection, died last year.
Mr
Baillon's grandchildren had no idea of the extent of the collection,
calling in car specialists Matthieu Lamoure and Pierre Novikoff of
auctioneers Artcurial Motorcars to estimate its value.
They
found a 1956 Maserati A6G Gran Sports with coachwork by prominent
designer Frua, one of just three in the world, which is estimated to
sell for just under £1million.
But
the auctioneers' greatest discovery was that of a 1961 Ferrari 250GT
SWB California Spider with covered headlights, which was hidden beneath
piles of newspapers.
The
car was previously owned by French actors Gerard Blain and Alain Delon,
who was photographed in it with Jane Fonda and Shirley MacLaine, and is
expected to attract attention from Ferrari collectors with an estimate
of £9.5million.
The cars were collected from the 1950s
to the 1970s by entrepreneur Roger Baillon, who wanted to restore and
display them in a museum
A Talbot-Lago T26 Cabriolet owned by Egyptian King Farouk is also among the vast haul of classic cars found on the farm
King Farouk was known for his extravagant lifestyle, which included owning dozens of expensive cars such as the Talbot-Lago
The family of Mr Baillon, who died
around 10 years ago, had no idea the collection was worth so much.
Pictured: Hispano Suiza H6B Cabriolet Millio
Mr Baillon's grandchildren had no idea
of the extent of the collection, calling in car specialists Matthieu
Lamoure and Pierre Novikoff of auctioneers Artcurial Motorcars to
estimate its value
John
Collins, from Ferrari dealer Talacrest in Ascot, has spent the last 12
months trying to find the car, which hen thinks could sell for
£10million.
He
said: 'I have known about the car for years and I was gutted when I
found out about three weeks ago that an auction house had got it.
'Apart
from a few people, not many knew the Ferrari still existed. It is a
phenomenal car and the best barn find in more than 20 years.
'I
am sure it will go for an eight-figure sum and I will be one of several
people looking to buy it. It is really great - people are going to be
fighting over it.'
A
Talbot-Lago T26 Cabriolet once owned by King Farouk of Egypt was also
found. The Egyptian King's extravagant lifestyle included owning
hundreds of prestigious cars.
While some of the cars are in a rusty and decrepit state, others have been well-preserved.
Mr
Lamoure said: 'These sorts of finds do not happen often. I think you go
into this profession for discoveries like this; it really is a treasure
trove. No doubt a once-in-a-lifetime discovery.
'We speak about 'barn finds' as cars that are intact, that have remained untouched for years, and are found again.
'On
entering the gates of this property, we had no idea what we would find.
We had to go in through the gardens at the rear of the property, to get
a first look. Across three hectares, we could see different makeshift
structures. From there, we realised that this was something big.
'We
realised that there were dozens of cars parked underneath. We soon
realised that some of these had been put there 50 years earlier and left
untouched.
'Wooden
posts, between the cars, supported the fragile roofs. The sides were
open to the elements. We still didn't realise exactly what we were faced
with; the number of cars, the marques, their condition.
'When we discovered the extent of the collection we found ourselves overcome with emotion.
'Probably
much like Lord Carrington and Howard Carter, on being the first person
for centuries to enter Tutankhamun's tomb, it really was a case of
waking up sleeping beauty.'
Some of the cars were bought by Mr Baillon, an entrepreneur, in the 1950s and have been parked on the farm since
The collection will be sold by Artcurial Motorcars in Paris on February 6 next year, with hopes of raising more than £12million
Auctioneers and classic car experts Matthieu Lamoure (left) and Pierre Novikoff (right) found the haul of motorcars
Speaking
of the rare Ferrari, Mr Lamoure added: 'Ferrari is a legendary name in
the automobile world. And this car is unique. Only 37 examples of this
model were built making it extremely rare.
'Every example has been carefully documented by historians and this one was thought to be lost. We have found it.'
Mr
Novikoff said: 'I'm not sure I have ever seen so many exceptional cars
together in one collection; Bugatti, Hispano-Suiza, Talbot-Lago,
Panhard-Levassor, Maserati, Ferrari, Delahaye, Delage. Roger Baillon
saved these cars and succeeded in his task - to trace the history of the
automobile through the finest examples.
'A
collection like this can't fail to arouse the passions of those who
love automobiles, as well as art and history enthusiasts. Never again,
anywhere in the world, will such a treasure be unearthed.'
The collection will be sold by Artcurial Motorcars in Paris on February 6 next year.
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