On November 17, David Rago Auctions established a new world record price of $216,000 for a Lalique perfume bottle, or any perfume presentation.
In 1939, a young man from New Jersey spent $50 at Saks Fifth Avenue, purchasing a Lalique Tresor de la Mer (Treasure from the Sea) perfume bottle as a gift for his wife. It was not inexpensive, as most Lalique perfume bottles were priced at under $10, but this was a special gift. Sixty-five years later, the original recipient of the gift decided to sell her precious Lalique.
“Before she contacted me, it was believed that only one complete Tresor de la Mer presentation existed, and it has no label,” commented Nicholas M. Dawes, Lalique specialist who organized the auction. Dawes added, “This one is complete, and in spectacular condition.”
The oyster shell-form box and pearl-form bottle containing the fragrance were created for a unique Lalique exhibit at Saks Fifth Avenue, and limited in production to 100 examples, though most collectors believe far fewer were produced.
Tresor de la Mer was offered, together with a selection of Lalique and other collector’s perfume bottles, which sold for more than $1.2 million, at the seventh annual Lalique and Perfume Presentation Auction at Rago Arts and Auction Center.
A complete review will appear in a future edition.
