Christie’s kicks off its Paris season with a fine single owner sale drawn from the collection of Kaspar M. Fleischmann; it’s the kind of carefully gathered vintage material that doesn’t surface as often these days and will likely draw some powerful black and white collectors out of the woodwork. The auction offers a deep selection of between the wars European Modernism, and then connects that aesthetic thinking with highlights from other locales and time periods (a selection of Berenice Abbott’s New York prints from the same collection follow the next day, preview here). Overall, there are a total of 148 lots on offer in this sale, with a Total High Estimate of €2090000.

Here’s the statistical breakdown:

The top lot by High estimate is tied between two lots: lot 74, Edward Weston, Head of an Italian Girl (Tina Modotti), 1921, and lot 85, (Alfred Stieglitz), Camera Work (complete set), 1903-1917, both estimated at €150000-200000.

Here’s the complete list of photographers with six or more lots in the sale, along with the number of lots on offer:

Other lots of interest include lot 13, Ilse Bing, Tour Eiffel, Paris, 1931, estimated at €12000-18000 (image above, left, via Christie’s), lot 56, Pierre Dubreuil, Le Marteau des Heures, c1932, estimated at €30000-50000 (image above, middle, via Christie’s), and lot 96, Walker Evans, Demolition Site, New York, 1929, estimated at €15000-20000 (image above, right, via Christie’s).

The complete lot by lot catalog can be found here.