Vintage Cubans Draw More Than Half A Million At London Auction
More than 300 lots of vintage Cuban cigars were sold during an online auction earlier this month, amounting to £433,608 (or about $552,069) in total sales. The auction, held by C.Gars Ltd. in the United Kingdom, featured an array of rare offerings, including cigars that pre-date the Cuban embargo, rare limited editions and long-discontinued brands.
The most expensive item sold was a cabinet of 500 pre-embargo Punch Coronas that went for £40,500 (about $51,564).
In a statement, C.Gars Ltd. managing director Mitchell Orchant said he believes the weak state of the British pound attributed to the high price of sales. The number of bidders, according to Orchant, exceeded 500 at one point during the auction. The auction house also noted an increased interest from connoisseurs in Asia.
Other notable lots included a Partagás 165th Anniversary Humidor that sold for £10,100 (about $12,859), a cabinet of 100 Por Larrañaga Coronations Miniature (£6,600 or about $8,403), a cabinet of 50 Davidoff Chateau Yquem coronas from the 1980s (£6,300, about $8,021) and a cabinet of 60 Dunhill Special Seleccion no. 415, sold for £6,100 or $7,766.
The June auction was C.Gars Ltd.'s second of 2017. The company is expected to host two more vintage Cuban cigar auctions this year, in September and November.
This article first appeared in the June 20, 2017 issue of Cigar Insider.
