You want a piece of the Eiffel Tower?
It will be possible if you have a minimum of 40,000 euros (the price is estimated between 40,000 and 60,000 euros) and will participate in the next ArtCurial's auction in Paris on November 27th.
This section of helical staircase from 1889, from a Canadian collection, is made of 24 steps and 4.3 meters high and used to connect the 2nd to 3rd floor.
"This is a historic piece of a French monument that everyone knows, the Eiffel Tower," says Cécile Trajan, Artcurial Art Deco specialist, to AFP.
And this is not the only part that has been subtracted from the iconic French monument; during the construction of a lift in 1983, between the last two floors, a staircase had cut into 24 pieces ranging from two to nine meters.
Three of them are now exposed at La Villette, the Orsay Museum and Nancy at the Museum of Iron History.
Others are scattered in private collections and prestigious places in the world.
In 2009, another piece of 2.70 meters is sold 550.000 euros to an American and in 2013 ArtCurial sells another piece of the Eiffel Tower for a value of 212.458 euros.
Une partie d'escalier de la Tour Eiffel mise en vente (AFP/Le Point) Source: AFP/Le Point
The last one to have bought a part of stairs of 14 steps is an Asian who had to pay 523,800 euros.
So between 40,000 and 60,000 euros the 24 steps of 4.3 meters, we can already imagine being far from the final price.
Cécile Trajan also adds, "It is in good condition. He was exposed for a very long time outdoors. As a precautionary measure and conservation, it was, as you can see, repainted. It's a way of keeping it in time, and not seeing the metal deteriorate by rust and corrosion."
If you are currently in the capital, you can see the famous piece enthroned in the middle of the Artcurial yard since Thursday, November 8, pending its sale on November 27.
