25th camera auction

Moon Hasselblad goes to Japan for 660,000 euros
After an extremely exciting bidding war, Mr Fujisawa, founder of the Japanese retail chain Yodobashi Camera, was able to secure the Hasselblad Lunar Module Pilot Camera Jim Irwin - Apollo 15 for 660,000 Euros. The top lot of the 25th WestLicht Camera Auction was called at 80,000 euros. It also proves the fascination for journeys to the moon. At 100 percent, the sales quota for the approximately 270 lots from Leitz/Leica was sensational. This shows the unbroken high demand for the cameras of this brand, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The top lot was a set of four M6 prototypes and design models sold for 192,000 euros, showing the development of the M6 from a wooden model to a working prototype (starting price: 40,000 euros). An "Ur"-Rolleiflex prototype, bid at 18,000 euros, fetched 78,000 euros and the two Lorenz Berlin Night cameras were secured by a buyer for 114,000 euros (starting price: 18,000 euros).

10th photo auction achieved the best result so far in the history of WestLicht
Two is better than one! This was proven at the 10th WestLicht Photo Auction on Friday by the photograph Io + Gatto by Wanda Wulz. In 1932, Wulz created one of the most famous double exposures in photographic history from a self-portrait and a photograph of her cat. Priced at 50,000 euros, the rare print from the early 1950s - only three other prints are known - achieved the price of 102,000 euros. A price that set the course right at the beginning of the auction: with a total result of more than 900,000 euros and a sales quota of 75 percent, the past auction was also the most successful photo auction in the history of WestLicht. The world-famous back nude of a woman in a corset, Mainbocher Corset by Horst P. Horst, which appeared in American Vogue in 1939, fetched 31,200 euros (starting price 12,000 euros). The fascination with Hollywood icon James Dean is also unbroken. The legendary photo by Dennis Stock from 1955, taken shortly before his tragic death, with a pig on his uncle's farm in Fairmount, fetched 12.000 Euro (starting price 1.800 Euro). The first edition of Man Ray's first book of photographs Photographs by Man Ray 1920 - 1934 was even worth more than three times the starting price of 7,000 Euros to a collector at 21,600 Euros. All prices are hammer prices including premium.

Photos: Peter Jakadofsky (WestLicht), Sandro Zanzinger