At Ewbank’s last bond auction on April 9th, 98% of the 370 lots sold for a massive £ 220,000 – nearly £ 90,000 more than forecast.
The five best lots alone fetched a total price of almost £ 60,000, led by a successful premium inclusive offer of £ 20,000 for an original Dr. British Quad Movie poster promoting the debut film in the longtime franchise. The estimate had been £ 6,000-9,000.
Two original British Quad movie posters made £ 10,000 each, both linked to the Sean Connery era – From Russia with Live and Thunderball.
A limited edition Golden Gun replica from SD Studios, made up of the famous composite parts of the cigarette case, lighter, pen and cufflink, valued at £ 3,000-5,000, was also sold for £ 10,000.
Another limited-edition replica of the Golden Gun, valued at £ 2,000 to £ 4,000, was priced at £ 9,375.
A total of 35 lots went for £ 1,000 or more.
To illustrate how collectable Bond is, a folded poster from 1965 for Thunderball with the completely missing upper left section went for £ 1,250. For most other film franchises, such damage would render a poster worthless.
Among the props offered was a metal light box with the legend Albert R Broccoli 007 Stage. The 100 x 65 x 12 cm sign hung in Pinewood Studios and carried a £ 1,500-2,500 guide. The bidders competed for £ 5,500.
A limited edition replica cylinder of the hat worn by Oddjob in Goldfinger was estimated to be £ 5,000.
“The Bond phenomenon is more alive than ever,” said Ewbast’s partner and specialist Alastair McCrea. “It’s amazing to believe that we’ve been selling limited edition advertising posters for the launch of A Time To Die for a year. Due to the pandemic, the film has still not been released.
“It’s not just the sales rates and amazing prices that show how popular 007 remains, but also the number of specialized collector websites, fan clubs and the general craze for the franchise.
“There aren’t many characters or franchises out there to set up a whole series of special sales, but Bond is certainly one of them, as our experience shows.”
This was the request that Ewbank’s just announced another special James Bond auction for July 1st.
You can view the entire catalog for the auction online at www.ewbankauctions.co.uk Here you can also find out about live bids online.
