The most expensive Breyer horse in history just sold

You guys see this? Breyerfest is happening right now, and there is an auction for one of a kind models. They of course go for a lot, given that they are unique pieces, but this year history was made with a $65,000 purchase of a Silver in silver dun with wings. The previous record for most expensive Breyer was $22,000.

   

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Holy moly I never knew a Breyer could even go anywhere near that high!

I would be so nervous transporting that home or displaying it

Wow that is a lot, more than I paid for my house!! Can't say I am fond of the wings or the colour though. I thought the economy was in the crapper

That's crazy. I also don't care for the wings. Must be nice.

Holy smokes! Wish I had their wallet.

...that's more than my home cost

Funnily enough, the extreme price makes more sense to me than the few-thousand-dollars ones. The fact it's SO much means the buyer must just be extremely wealthy, rather than an average hobbyist who paid a few hundred or over a thousand cos they got carried away, or had been saving up for something special, or wanted to treat themself with some windfall money (all reasons perfectly normal people I've known have admitted to paying eyebrow-raising prices for model horses, when they're usually on a much more reasonable budget).

But someone who can spare $65,000 at the drop of a hat is clearly the kind of person to whom money is no object in daily life, with a high disposable income they just wouldn't consider that to be a lot in the same way we do.
Just like paintings, cars, or houses sell in the millions range, and the people who buy them just count it as a luxury or an investment and don't think it's really a lot, cos it's not costing them all they have, and/or they'll easily get more money to replace what they've spent.

As for the horse itself, the sculpt's a nice one and I don't mind the silver dun colour, but don't like the gloss finish, or the wings. Fantasy models aren't my cup of tea anyway, but if they do happen, I'd like them to be realistically 'possible' in anatomical design - those wings would need to be a lot bigger for an animal that heavy to fly with
Also the paintwork's a little bit basic for the minimum price they knew it would be making, for even £650 (a hundredth of the final sale price!) I'd want to see a hand-painted or masked mane without that airbrush overspray on the neck, and individually detailed feathers rather than a vague shading across the whole wing

That's an incredible price, wow! I never knew Breyers reached anywhere near that, although I've seen lots for sale at really quite high prices. I'm curious now to see the new owner's Breyer collection, it must be pretty impressive considering how much they are willing to pay and how much they clearly wanted this model!

Some horse owners are very rich; as George already suggests, this price may not be so high for them. I am also surprised the most expensive Breyer is a glossy fantasy model rather than a real horse.

This year had a lot of expensive auction models, and I think many of them were much more carefully painted than this one. I agree about the overspray and the lack of attention to fine details in this paint job. I mean, I like the color itself quite a lot, especially with the brown on the legs, but it feels much more mass produced than auction models usually do, where they often take the chance to make something really finely detailed and unique. It's a strange one to be the history making model, to me.
I've also never liked how Breyer does their wings (too small, as George pointed out, and too obviously separate from the body). The price itself is bewildering, but as pointed out, for some people it is not as impossible. The strangest thing to me is the model itself. But I guess it doesn't matter what I think, I assume the buyer thinks it's the best one out there!

The previous record holder was quite lovely, and on the incredibly limited Alborozo mold.

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there would have been another bidder - who would have happily paid the price to buy this, just below the $65,ooo.oo price.
And that would make 2 very interesting stories to tell. Who will be the lucky recipient of this model ? Maybe not the person purchasing it. It could well be a gift for a very cherished person, and the wings on the horse could probably be some personal story intertwined in there.

Or perhaps the painter is being supported by a wealthy admirer ?

Underneath the purchase price is always an emotional story, usually linked to the heart.

As George says money is relative.

I've only heard of Breyerfest since I joined here, and had no idea how popular it was. It must be very exciting for all the fans to go there, seeing all the models that make their heart sing!
Kind of like being on here - seeing all the jewels!, only in real life

and about those wings - they are fitted into slots cut into the side of the body if I am seeing correctly ? hence making them so slim and surreal.
I like the colours on it, greyish and with the legs being brownish and having the primeval stripes.

sunny wrote:

and about those wings - they are fitted into slots cut into the side of the body if I am seeing correctly ? hence making them so slim and surreal.
I like the colours on it, greyish and with the legs being brownish and having the primeval stripes.

They are, the mold does not have wings originally but wings are sometimes added to molds via those slots. They can be removed. And I am sure you're right, that there is an interesting story here for sure! I hadn't thought directly about the at least one other bidder willing to go so high. I wonder what is behind this figure in particular!

In fact I wonder very much what happens to these very expensive pieces, more like fine art really than "only" a model horse. You rarely see them turn up again, I think. (Or maybe I have just missed it!)

(I saw one person suggest money laundering as a reason this horse went so high. A less romantic conjecture.)

The Alborozo is a much nicer model, I agree - the mould is special with how limited he was, as well as just being handsome to look at and a good popular breed, so he's already got a lot going for him, but then the paintjob on there is custom-quality with so much more detail than a regular run would ever have.

I've got one of those rearing pegasus with wings* and they do feel very loose and added-on, they can easily be hooked out of the slots. It would've been nicer if they'd sculpted them down to feathered flat ends which lay close-fitting to the shoulder and fixed them on permanently with a good strong glue

*I only have one because I got him free, Breyer used to do what was called a 'Treasure Hunt' where if you bought all four models of a certain series and sent off the barcodes from the boxes as proof, you got a free model. Usually I only bought one or two from the set, but that one year I liked all the colours they'd released and none of them were rare or hard to find, so I ended up with all four, then thought I may as well have the free 'prize' to go with them. But I wouldn't have bought him outright.

In a way I think it is disgusting
To get so high, somebody else must have been bidding also.

So it not just somebody who has a termianlly sick child, who wishes this above enything else.
It is a symbol of the many people who can get whatever they point at, while the earth is moaning from the over-consumption of homo sapiens

I would normally agree with you, Susanne but this time the money from the auction doesn't go to Breyer but charity. So, in a way, it's just a generous donation to one of the charities. I guess the pegasus will just remind them about the donation At least I would like to believe this reasoning.

The model itself is not very appealing, I agree. But Alborozzo from 2019 was indeed beautiful.

Ana wrote:

I would normally agree with you, Susanne but this time the money from the auction doesn't go to Breyer but charity. So, in a way, it's just a generous donation to one of the charities. I guess the pegasus will just remind them about the donation At least I would like to believe this reasoning.

That actually explains it, to me. Someone very rich may have been inclined to donate that much money anyway or is in the habit of philanthropy - and just did it here in the form of purchasing an item, because they are likely a collector as well. Not at all an uncommon way for things to work, I think!