Souren Melikian offers a detailed discussion of Drouot’s sale of artifacts and works of art in France. Of course, neither Melikian nor the auction house provide a total for the sale which featured works from the collection of Charles Maillent, a Jewish collector of Christian sculpture, who was born Charles Mayer:

This could only happen in France, a land of passionate collectors gloating in the privacy of their homes over treasures accumulated for love and kept out of sight for decades. In contrast to Britain, bled dry of its fabulous private collections by its powerful auction houses for the last 50 years, artistic rarities still come out of the woodwork, as they did on Wednesday at a Drouot sale organized by the Piasa group.

Surprises and Perils of French Sale (New York Times)