Barn-find bonanza: 20 lost Ferraris surface at auction
A collection of 20 Ferraris which has been locked away for more than 30 years will soon be up for auction.
The “Lost & Found Collection” briefly came to light in 2004 when Hurricane Charley hit the Florida barn in which the Prancing Horses were being kept. Fortunately, the cars were rescued, and moved to a facility in Speedway, Indiana for safe keeping. Their secretive owner secured the cars there for almost another two decades, but now the whole incredible stable is for sale at RM Sotheby’s in Monterey on August 17-19.
“While a select group of Ferrari collectors knew about the existence of these extraordinary cars, the rest of the world remained unaware,” explains Rob Myers of RM Sotheby’s. “This represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for enthusiasts to acquire these iconic Ferraris, some of which have participated in renowned races. Most of these lost Ferraris remain untouched, preserving their purity and original condition since the day they were acquired—a true embodiment of the ‘barn find’ concept. It is the first time that RM Sotheby’s has presented a barn find collection of this magnitude to the market.”
Included in the sale are several cars of racing royalty which took part in the Targa Florio, Mille Miglia and Le Mans, while one example was even owned by an actual king.
This 1956 250 GT Coupe Speciale by Pinin Farina is one of just four cars built with Superamerica coachwork and was sold to King Mohamed V of Morocco. Originally specified in Celeste blue with a Nero roof and Naturale Connoly hide interior the car is in need of a full restoration after a total of 49 years in storage, but its matching-numbers V-12 engine means it still comes with an estimate of $1.7-$2.5 million.
Proudly displayed on Ferrari’s Torino Motor Show stand in 1965, and later taking part in the Targa Florio is this 275 GTB/6C Alloy by Scaglietti. It was the first “long nose” 275 GTB to be fitted with lightweight alloy bodywork and featured a six-carburetor setup. Luciano Conti and co-driver Vittorio Venturi entered the notoriously tough Sicilian road race in 1966 but failed to finish. It’s been hidden away for 44 years and is now estimated to achieve $2-$2.5 million at auction.
The most storied Ferrari of the sale is this 1954 500 Mondial Spider Series I by Pinin Farina. At that year’s Mille Miglia the car was driven to fourth place in class and 14th overall by former Scuderia pilot Franco Cortese and was later raced in the 1955 Imola Grand Prix and the 1956 Targa Florio. The car was built with Spider coachwork by Pinin Farina but later re-bodied by Scaglietti, although after a crash and fire in the USA in the 1960s it’s hard to picture what it originally looked like. Despite the damage it is being sold with an estimate of $1.2-$1.6 million.
As Ferrari celebrates its first victory at Le Mans in 58 years the auction is offering one bidder the chance to own a previous entrant. This 1978 512 BB Competizione is one of three cars prepared by the factory for the 1978 24 hour marathon. Driven by Jacques Guérin, Jean-Pierre Delaunay, and Gregg Young, the car completed over 19 hours and 232 laps before it was forced to retire. Now being sold in as-raced condition the price is estimated at $1.8-$2.8m.
Among the other cars in the collection are a 1956 410 Superamerica, a 1964 250 GT/L Berlinetta Lusso, two 365 GTB/4 Daytonas, a 1980 512 BB and a 1991 Testarossa. If you’re looking for a bargain then your best bet is probably a 1977 400i which is offered without reserve.
You can check out the full collection here.
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Just HOW MANY barns containing spectacular finds can there possibly be left in this world? I’m always amazed when something like this is revealed. Makes me want to sneak around my area peeking into windows – um, well, maybe not quite like that sounds, but you know what I mean, right?!?! 🙄
The people that have these secretive buildings are usually a little wacky and secretive themselves. They only reveal themselves to a few. You need to know these “ few” and find if you can accompany them to the stash. The building may be in a warehouse district with hundreds of others or just some out building that would never be suspected so you need to follow the people and the urban legend stories. One of those stories may be true.
The wacky and secretive person in this case was Walter Medlin, a Floridian who died last year. His history apparently includes multiple stays in federal prison for tax evasion…
I didn’t even realise that there this many BARNS in America, let alone this many barns containing vintage cars worth millions!
Right?
My barn contains:
– one 1952 Ford 8N tractor, currently non-running
– one 1931 Ford Model A 5-window coupe, in various stages of completion as a ’60s hot rod
– one 17′ aluminum fishing boat with Mercury 8-hp outboard, on homemade trailer
– one 20′ car-hauler flatbed trailer with winch enclosed in a tongue-box
– one 10′ small equipment trailer
– one broken Craftsman 42″ riding mower that I was gonna salvage parts off of
– one rusty, crusty cement mixer
– four 3-point hitch farm implements for the 8N tractor (blade, bucket, tiller and rake)
If anyone wants to write me a check for a million bucks (must be a cashable check, so back off all you scammers), you can have the lot – – – heck, you can take the barn home with you, too for that matter.
note: all three trailers have up-to-date license plates on them, with (mostly) working lights
It’s hard to believe that a car that is that badly wrecked and burned is still worth over a million dollars.
Someone paid $120k for a banana taped to wall. Prominence is everything.
I guess so. It’d be nice to have that kind of disposable income.
I assume you mean provenance?
“Someone paid $120k for a banana taped to wall.”
😅 – second best comment of the day award!
And it was rebodied……
The banana??
You aren’t really buying the car, which is almost certainly un-salvageable. You are buying the VIN plate(s) and the drivetrain. The rest will need to be recreated.
If this car was “rebodied” would the vin plate not be attached to the new body? Doesn’t show any drive train parts in the photo.
Funny, I didn’t think vin plates were on any cars in the 50’s and 60’s. I thought the cars just had serial numbers on the engine block and other places.
Nice cars, if you like the Ferrari. Best I can do is $1.
i’ll do 1.25 , but i want free shipping
But they are Ferrari? Who cares, just a wate of Barn space
But they are Ferrari? Who cares, just a waste of Barn space
I’ll tell ya what just give me a good old shoe box Ford. A car that you can drive on the street and not need a police escort.
Eventually someone in the crowd will bluet out “that’s not a Ferrari, that’s a twisted pile of burned out metal & the Emperor will be standing there butt-naked surrounded by a bunch of crypto bro mega-millionaires.
🤣👍 best comment of the day award!
True, that…
Cars get built from as little as a VIN tag all the time – every car has a story, you just need to find who knows it.
Rich collectors are going to spend MILLIONS for Ferraris that were found in a garage,
and will end up stored….. in another garage.
I don’t understand spending so much for a literal hunk of junk.
They have to be kidding about the 1954 Modial 500!?
1.2 – 1.6 MILLION DOLLARS!!
What an uber expensive joke!
It looks like 2/3 of a sick catfish.
It is a crashed & burned, crumpled beer can POS on a castered dolly.
The only thing that the sucker…..
errrrr
high bidder can reuse in the “restoration” is the one OEM headlight.
Yah, but I believe it is on two Harbor Freight furniture movers. Does that make a difference?
I bought a motorcycle engine of unknown condition. It came with one Harbor Freight dolly and a plastic milk crate! Best $20 I ever spent!
And it was rebodied……
The Mondial buyer will just have a new car built, attach the original VIN tag, then sell it as “ restored” for a zillion dollars. Happens all the time, especially with former race cars.
If you look at the online catalog, a couple of the cars look like heavy things were dropped on them. Crunched roof, smashed glass, and no doubt critters in the wiring. I wouldn’t mind having the 400i auto, drove a white one in the Kingdom belonging to a friend, was a pretty slick ride. Good looker, and a GM TH400 & Frigidaire A/C to up the reliability factor. Out of my budget, more’s the pity.
Are These cars to be auctioned? Do you know when and where?
Robert: “but now the whole incredible stable is for sale at RM Sotheby’s in Monterey on August 17-19.“