Pierre BALMAIN, Haute Couture collection, Autumn-Winter 1986. Evening jacket in black silk velvet. Artistic director: Erik MORTENSEN - Fashion show prototype Fully embroidered with tubular beads, round neckline, clam back over bare back, long sleeves. Missing label Provenance: Pierre Balmain archives, Poulain-Le Fur sale, Drouot Richelieu, Thursday, October 19, 1995 Footnotes: Pierre BALMAIN, Haute Couture collection, Fall-Winter 1986. Evening jacket in black silk velvet. Artistic director: Erik MORTENSEN - Fashion show prototype. Fully embroidered with tubular pearls, round neckline, cowl back on open back, long sleeves. Missing label. Provenance: Archives of the Pierre Balmain house, Poulain-Le Fur sale, Drouot Richelieu, Thursday October 19, 1995. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

Composed of several subsidiaries, the Drouot Group is a major player in the art market. Hôtel Drouot, located in the heart of Paris, has been the world's largest public auction center since 1852. 15 salerooms are available to more than 70 auction houses. The emulation generated by an annual offer of 230,000 artworks from 21 major specialities - from Antiquity to street art - attracts some 3,000 visitors every day. The Group's digital platform, Drouot.com, offers digital sales - Live auctions (live broadcasting and participation in auctions), Online-only auctions (dematerialised auctions) and Buy Now sales (sales of lots at fixed prices). Nearly 2 million items are offered annually by 600 auction houses. Auction news is reported every week in La Gazette Drouot, the leading weekly magazine for the art market and culture published by Auctionspress.