November Auctions at Drouot
The Kachinas from the Jean-Paul Morin Collection
Giquello - 6 November 2025
On 6 November, Hôtel Drouot will host the sale of the remarkable collection of kachinas assembled by Jean-Paul Morin — more than fifty Hopi and Zuni ritual figures, witnesses to the spiritual traditions of the American Southwest. A former Secretary General of Publicis and an impassioned collector, Jean-Paul Morin built over the years an exceptional ensemble notable for the high number of Zuni kachinas, far rarer on the market than those of the Hopi people.
Among the highlights, the Warrior of the Zenith, Salimopia Itapanahnan’ona (est. €25,000–40,000), dated to the 1890s, stands out for its dazzling polychromy. A protective spirit of the cardinal points, it guards the sacred kachinas and the ceremonial chambers of the sacred lake.
The Wine Cellar of Alexandre de Lur-Saluces
Daguerre - 13 November 2025
Some 2,500 bottles — including Château d’Yquem, Pétrus, Lafite Rothschild, Cheval Blanc, Margaux and Romanée-Conti — make up the private cellar of the Marquis de Lur-Saluces, a legendary figure in French wine, Grand Chancellor of Honour of the Bordeaux Wine Academy, and the emblematic president of Château d’Yquem for over thirty years.
The heart of the collection is a unique series of Château d’Yquem spanning nearly a century of vintages, from 1928 to 2019 — an unprecedented panorama of this mythical nectar’s history. Rare bottles from 1935, 1937 and 1946 stand alongside modern icons from 1989, 2001 and 2015. The most coveted lots include three half-bottles of Yquem from the legendary 1937 vintage, recognised as one of the finest of the twentieth century (estimated €350–2,000).
The Last Treasures of Princess Ghislaine de Polignac’s Wardrobe
L’Huillier – 18 November 2025
The L’Huillier auction house unveils a treasure of fashion and history: the wardrobe of Princess Ghislaine de Polignac. Carefully preserved by her children since her passing in 2011, this collection brings together dozens of couture and haute couture pieces, reflecting a life devoted to elegance and modernity.
Among the highlights: the Athènes gown by Pierre Balmain, from the Spring–Summer 1972 collection, in multicoloured silk organza with its matching long scarf (est. €2,000–2,500); a rare haute couture Chanel brooch with a parrot motif, 1991 (est. €2,500–3,500); an Yves Saint Laurent gown featuring antique Greek figures, from the 1971 Libération collection (est. €2,500–3,000); and a strikingly modern ensemble — gown and large pointed shawl — Glorieuse, by Jeanne Lanvin, 1938 (est. €1,200–1,500).
A Newly Discovered Drawing by Daniele da Volterra
Millon – 19 November 2025
On 19 November 2025, the house Millon will present at Hôtel Drouot a previously unknown drawing by Daniele da Volterra (1509–1566), Study of a Young Man’s Head Turned to the Right. This major rediscovery sheds new light on the genesis of the artist’s most important Roman commission: the decoration of the chapel dedicated to the Virgin in the Church of the Trinità dei Monti, completed between 1548 and 1553 (est. €400,000–500,000).
The church’s interior decoration reflects the artistic rivalry of the great Italian families — Borghese, Colonna, Farnese, Orsini and Della Rovere — who vied for the patronage of its chapels. Lucrezia Della Rovere, niece and adopted daughter of Pope Julius II, commissioned Volterra to paint her chapel devoted to the Life of the Virgin. Among the figures of the Assumption of the Virgin, the pensive young man — probably Saint John — appears prominently in the composition. The drawing presented at Drouot is believed to be one of the preparatory studies for this monumental fresco, joining a group of works now held in major public collections.
Pierre François Léonard Fontaine and His Era
Thierry de Maigret, 21 November 2025
On 21 November, the Thierry de Maigret auction house will hold a major sale at Hôtel Drouot dedicated to Pierre Fontaine (1762–1853), neoclassical architect and decorator. Nearly 900 drawings, grouped into 320 lots and originating from his studio, retrace the whole of his career and the birth of his distinctive style, revealing the diversity of his work and his central role alongside Charles Percier in shaping the Empire style.
Among the highlights are four collaborative drawings with Percier for Palais, maisons et autres édifices modernes, dessinés à Rome (est. €4,000–6,000), illustrating the influence of Italian classicism on their work. Other pieces depict imperial events such as the Grand Vestibule of Napoleon I’s Coronation and the Imperial Wedding Banquet (est. €3,000–4,000).
The sale also includes interior and furniture design studies, a Fantastical View with the Monuments of Paris (est. €8,000–12,000) — an allegory of Napoleon’s victories — and historical documents illuminating the architect’s life and professional network. This auction offers a rare opportunity to explore Fontaine’s prolific creative world and the refinement of a master of the Empire aesthetic.
A Rediscovered Work by Renoir
Christophe Joron-Derem, 25 November 2025
On 25 November, the Christophe Joron-Derem auction house, assisted by Pascal Perrin, art historian and consultant, will unveil for the first time at public auction a major work by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, depicting the young Jean Renoir with his nurse, Gabrielle Renard (est. €1–1.5 million).
Painted before 1910 and preserved in the same family since its creation, the painting captures a tender maternal scene and offers a rare glimpse into the childhood of the future filmmaker Jean Renoir (1894–1979).
The work belonged to Jeanne Baudot (1877–1957), Renoir’s only pupil and close friend, who set up her studio in her property in Louveciennes. In 1895, she became Jean Renoir’s godmother, alongside his godfather Georges Durand-Ruel. The painting was passed down to her spiritual heir, Jean Griot, Le Figaro editor and universal legatee of Marshal Joffre. Griot owned two versions of The Child and His Toys – Gabrielle and the Artist’s Son, Jean: one now in the National Gallery of Art, Washington (since 1985), and the other — the work to be offered for sale at Drouot on 25 November 2025.
