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Sunken Brescia rockets to <br>Euro 260,500 (Update II: a sculpture of Genius & Nature)

Would you pay over a quarter of a million Euro's for a mere 500 pounds of Molsheim scrap? As expected the Bonhams Retromobile sale on Saturday 23 January showed an outrageous result for the undrowned Brescia. Which probably is close to today's price of a well documented & well sorted Type 22 like the one offered by Morris & Welford, UK.
This sale is a truly interesting pivot-point in car history. The Brescia’s remains have no other important history than having no history since 1936. The best what one can do with the con-corroded Brescia bits is to land those as a showpiece in the hall of a bank to remember the 2009 results in an arty way at the cost of 1 percent of a top manager's bonus.
So it’s only the current appearance and the fabulous story that make the value. Let’s start with an easy conclusion that a charity sale in the environment of Paris’ Retromobile, must have given an adrenaline shot to the bidder’s ego's. However we do not think that is enough to add up for this result. Another conclusion is that a good story plus a chassis number values higher than the same item in usable condition nowadays. Reality of course always made of more than all factors like the ones mentioned above. Not earlier a car's value surpassed so far its direct instrumental or historical value. Our final conclusion is that cars like these finally have entered to the realm of art collecting. Which is a milestone in itself. And gives an interesting perspective to at least a handful of other wrecks. To start with the 35HP Renault which is waiting for rescue in Titanic's belly.
Feel free to send us your thoughts.
UPDATE III by Jack Braam Ruben:"The story behind our Bugatti Brescia “Lakefind” is a simple and fabulous one. Ever since the Brescia came out of the water I was determined to buy it either for myself or for a museum that would go along with my philosophy. I called the foundation more than ones but they were reluctant to part with it. Selling it during Retromobile was a brilliant idea.The market would dictate the price and the result was for a good cause. There was no doubt what-so-ever in my mind that I would take the “Bugatti from Atlantis” home. Had the car brought a mere E.100K or less there would have been no fun at all.No it had to bring a lot. Too bad it did not even bring more. What do we have here ? To start with we have a 1925 Bugatti created by the “Michelangelo of Automobiles” the genius constructeur, createur Ettore Bugatti. Then we have the story of the man who, afraid for the officials, decided to put the Brescia in the Lake. Followed by the mythe of the sunken Bugatti, discovered in the 70’s by the divers of Ascona and the tragic death of the student Damiano Tamagni. The foundation against violence founded by his father and the idea to rescue the Bugatti and give the proceeds to the good cause resulting in the auction in Paris.We now have the ultimate,the world’s number One Automotive Sculpture.It started with Ettore Bugatti and during 72 year’s the greatest and most mysterious artist in the world “Mother Nature” finished this Piece of Art. No artist in the world, be it Rembrandt, Rafaël or Dali,worked on his masterpiece this long. It created more publicity than any other “Automotive piece of Art” ever. So to me it is priceless and I am exhited that it can be enjoyed by all in a museum dedicated to French Automobiles, that also houses the largest Collection of Bugatti’s outside the Schlumpf Museum in Mulhouse, the Peter Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard (near LA) which will be opening later this year." Jack Braam Ruben
UPDATE II by David Lobb:"Hmmmmmm, do I buy the wreck or do I buy that 200 year old undrinkable wine? Its a tough (choice)."
UPDATE I by Raoul E. San Giorgi: "The rescued bugatti, sold for 260K ,will go to Peter Mullen,for his new museum. The only thing I can say is the following. There is a strong tendency in appreciating more and more authentic and non restored cars.If I look at the amount of this type of cars we now see each year at Pebble,it is a clear development.Morale:untouched material is in high demand. This Brescia is off course a bit over the top if you look at it as a restoration project ,but it should be looked at as a piece of art,which will have a great impact on the innocent visitor as it is now.From that perspective it was well bought. But I know of a very big european collector who was impressed with the price achieved. I tend to agree that 260K in euro is over the top for this object of art.Especially since it is a modest model and has no " important" history. But,still,it will an impressive item to show.Also,it is good to see the result,since the net proceedings will go to a very good destination!"