Imagine, if you can, your narrator wreathed in cigarette smoke, drawing fingers scarred by action in countless colonial conflicts through hair the colour and consistency of fine steel thread. These are the actions of a Man, a French Man.

Artcurial’s 9 December, Paris sale Une Histoire d’Homme V is dedicated to this breed of adventuring freebooter, now living a more ordered life in St Germain (with regular forays rough shooting in the Forest of Orléans, or sailing off Lorient).

Continuing the concept first started by Artcurial’s Vintage et Collections head, Cyril Pigot, three years ago, the latest auction dedicated to discerning gentlemen worldwide will feature an eclectic mix of the chic, the humorous and the wild and wacky.

Early entries include a 1973 Ebro Jeepster Commando (a variation of the military Jeep, redesigned by GM for use by Californian surfers) at 8,000 – 14,000 euros and a dramatic, 80 x 60cm photograph by Bruce Meritte, ‘Don Vito Corleone is The Godfather’, 1/1, for a more than reasonable 800 – 1,000 euros.

For those that really care, vintage luggage by Goyard is at least the equal of the better-known Louis Vuitton. The rare, circa 1930 ‘Malle Wardrobe’ trunk (4,000 – 5,000 euros) makes the perfect centrepiece to that sacred retreat, the man’s study.

And while the catalogue description simply hints at adventure with that crocodile skull and enigmatic initials ‘S. de C.’, we know our man will have a shrunken head, an empty MP 40 magazine and a half-smoked Cohiba rolling around in an upturned turtle’s shell on its well-patinated lid.

For his playful side, the sale includes a Colette & Ralph Lauren, collectors’ edition rugby ball especially made for the 2007 Rugby World Cup (200 – 300 euros), while his sense of tradition will appreciate the Montblanc ‘Georges Pompidou, 2006 Limited-Edition’ fountain pen (8,000 – 10,000 euros), a special design created in celebration of 30 years of the Pompidou Centre, Paris.

The sale will be held at Artcurial’s regular Hôtel Marcel Dassault (7 rond-point des Champs-Élysées) Paris address on Monday 19 December 2011. For further information, visit www.artcurial.com.

Text: Steve Wakefield
Photos: Artcurial