Brigitte Bardot's ballet flats and diamond rings to be sold at auction
Many of the film star's personal items, on sale in Paris, are priced at under €100.
Brigitte Bardot’s ballet flats and diamond rings to go under the hammer
The personal belongings of the late actress Brigitte Bardot — from Repetto ballet flats and diamond rings to her copy of the Kama Sutra — will be auctioned on Monday, with the proceeds going to her animal charity.
Fans of the iconic figure, who died last December at the age of 91, have been arriving in large numbers to view the nearly 300 lots on display at the Drouot auction rooms in central Paris.
The objects come from Bardot’s two homes in Saint-Tropez as well as her Paris apartment, with sections of the display recreating parts of those interiors.
“Each item on sale bears the trace of an encounter, an involvement, a moment of happiness, a stage of her life. They tell the story of the woman as well as the legend,” said Frank Guillou, her secretary for many years.
Bardot is now regarded as one of the most significant female figures of the late 20th century. As a model and actress in the 1950s, she became a symbol of modern femininity and the sexual revolution before later devoting herself to animal rights.
However, later in life she was also criticised for homophobic slurs and was fined several times for inciting racial hatred.
Monday’s auction offers a chance to buy everyday objects that once belonged to her intimately. Alongside furniture, clothing and religious statuary, there are kitchen utensils, Le Creuset pans and cigarette lighters.
Other notable items include the manual typewriter she used to write her correspondence and autobiography, jewellery and classical guitars.
Her Peugeot bicycle is also for sale, along with two pairs of leather Repetto ballet flats. A trained ballerina, Bardot helped make the Repetto brand famous after asking the company to create a version she could wear every day.
The sale also includes a large number of portraits of the star, some of them erotic.
“Brigitte used to say that she didn’t want to have to look at her mug all day, so they weren’t up on the walls - but she did keep them, either because she knew the artists or because the pictures meant something to her. They were all gifts,” said Guillou.
Most lots have starting prices below €100 (£86), but bidding is expected to drive them up significantly, according to Cecile Dupuis of the auction house Millon, which is conducting the sale.
“[The sale] is for all those people who still live with her memory and who keep her cause alive. They are animal lovers and Brigitte Bardot lovers at the same time. The room will be full of all these fans,” she said.
Many of the items on offer reflect her love of animals, including a large collection of cuddly toys and collars that belonged to her dogs.
“Brigitte could not live without animals around her. When one of them died, she was totally wiped out with grief. They were all buried according to a strict protocol in the gardens, and their photographs had pride of place in her homes,” said Guillou.
When she died in December, Bardot’s estate was divided between her Foundation and her only son Nicolas-Jacques Charrier - who also benefits from the sale.