The Ghia Focus concept car profiled last week in VeloceToday [read story] was sold by Christie's on Sunday for $1,107,500, a hammer bid of $1 million even - 5 (yes, FIVE) times the $200,000 catalog high estimate.

Other concepts from Ford and Ghia in the auction brought similarly astounding prices, routinely doubling the catalog high estimates. The sale, held on the 99th birthday of the Ford Motor Company with net proceeds to the Ford Motor Company Fund, a non-profit supporting education, community development and the environment, brought in a total of $4,365,968.

The very first lot, a copy of "Ford Design Department" by Jim and Cheryl Farrell, set the tone for the day with spirited bidding driving the high bid to $2,100 ($2,467.50 with commission). Ford will gladly sell you an identical copy for $69.95 plus postage.

A 40% scale model of the Indigo concept brought $16,450 with commission -- which turned out to be a relatively good value when later in the sale a non-operating full-size Indigo concept sold for $75,000 hammer ($88,125 with commission). Another full-size Indigo, but with a dummy interior (i.e., you can't sit in it) brought $36,000 ($42,300 with commission).

It isn't sufficient simply to describe the action in the auction room (the presentation pavillion of Ford's Dearborn Design Center) as "enthusiastic". It was more like "fervent," however, the logic is inescapable. These were absolutely unique examples of high-content automobile concepts, superbly executed and with impeccable provenance, and this was the only time they would be available. Period. "Gone" is gone.

Potential buyers of Ferrari 250 GTOs have 39 from which to choose. Even prospects for a Maserati 450S can hope at least one of the 10 built will come on the market during their lifetimes. Potential buyers of Focus, Lagonda Vignale ($360,000 hammer, $403,500 with commission) or Selene II ($75,000 hammer, $88,125 with commission) have only one. From the results on Sunday it is clear that more than one collector endorsed this realization with their checkbooks.