Three Early Michelin Guides Fetch Over $30K at Auction

A set of three Michelin guides dating from 1900 to 1902 recently sold at a French auction for a whopping $33,700 or €25,000 Euros, easily surpassing its €17,000-€19,000 pre-auction estimate. L'Argent & Vous Boursier reports the three guides (including a 1900 edition in "near-mint condition") were just one item of a large Michelin collection to hit the auction block: Another set, featuring a collection of French guides dating from 1900 to 2000, went for €26,000 Euros and featured a "1939 guide published by the War Department" for use by American troops. According to L'Argent & Vous Boursier, the numbers set a new price record for a lot of the culinary guides at auction; the single-guide auction record, set last year, still stands at €15,800 Euros.

According to the complete auction list (warning: .pdf), the event also auctioned off German guides from 1910-1914, a Swiss guide published in 1908, and Belgium guides from 1904 and 1905, all representing the founding years for each country's respective guide. Smaller ticket items included Michelin-branded T-shirts, mouse pads, and magnets — at the more-affordable starting auction price of 10 Euros.

· Michelin Guides Break New Records at Auction [Boursier via @ElizabethOnFood]
· All Michelin Coverage on Eater [-E-]