Porsche sculpture sells for more than the real thing

Damien O'Carroll
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A 1:1 scale wireframe sculpture of a Porsche 934, created by London-based artist Benedict Radcliffe, has been sold for a whopping £201,000 (NZ$442,251) in an auction held by UK enthusiast and classic car sales website Collecting Cars.

The auction attracted 218 bids and more than 6,000 views during its seven-day auction period, and Collecting Cars says the final sale price was more than three times the price of a used and drivable 930-generation 911 Turbo from the same era, while it was also more than a pristine low-mileage example sold on the site early last year for £180,500 (NZ$397,146).

The sculpture sold for more than a pristine low mileage real 930 Turbo.

The sculpture is an orange tubular wire frame artwork in Radcliffe's signature style, and captures the design of the iconic Porsche 934 racing car, which is well-known for its orange Jägermeister livery.

The 934 was introduced in 1976 as the racing version of the 930 Turbo that had been introduced the previous year. Prepared for the FIA Group 4 rules for sports car racing, Porsche built 32 examples of the 934 over the course of 1976 and 1977 and it would go on to with the European GT Championship and the North American Trans Am championship during that time.

The 934 is most famous in its iconic Jägermeister livery, hence the sculpture's orange colour.

One even made its way down this way, with Australian Porsche distributor Alan Hamilton winning the Australian Sports Car Championship with one in 1977. That very same car would win the championship again in 1980 in the hands of racing legend Allan Moffat.

But it was the bright orange Jägermeister-liveried 934s that became true legends.

Jägermeister had been sponsoring Porsche race cars since 1972, with the iconic livery first being used on a 914/6 that year, but it was a pair of orange-liveried 934s used by Max Motritz Racing in 1976 that cemented the connection between the brand's iconic orange and Porsche, with the company saying that the 934 is one of the most modeled Porsches in history, with all sorts of models and toys - including diecast scale models and slot cars - based on it.

Porsche only built 32 real 934s, but says the Jägermeister 934 has more toys and models made of it than almost any other Porsche. It's got a sculpture now too.

Radcliffe's sculpture was first exhibited at Milan Design Week in 2022, and has since been displayed in collaboration with Porsche China in Beijing and Shanghai. The sculpture will be delivered to its new owner, a private collector in Asia.

"The Porsche 934, in its Jägermeister livery, is one of the most iconic racing cars of its type, and this sale of the sculpture that it evokes, is one that will go down in the history books," said Edward Lovett, Founder and CEO of Collecting Cars.

"It’s proof of the breadth of automobilia available on Collecting Cars and the power of our community and bidders on the platform. We can’t wait to see the sculpture in situ with our client in Asia – it’s going to be a great talking piece."

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