Accumulated over the course of 40 years by an unassuming, introverted connoisseur, this barn find collection may be one of the rarest of its kind.
In the motoring world, a so-called barn find is a car or collection of cars that is discovered, usually by chance, after being locked away for a lengthy period. Stories of eccentric owners who simply forgot that had a particularly rare or valuable car parking in the barn at the bottom of the estate, a final will and testimony listing the location of a secret garage left to a next of kin, or even cars that were stored before their owners simply disappeared are the stuff of legend in the automotive space.
Known as the Palman Barn Find, a collection of more than 230 cars was recently uncovered in the town of Dordrecht, outside of Rotterdam in The Netherlands. Stored in an abandoned church and two other dusty warehouses that were later purchased by Gallery Aaldering owner, Nico Aaldering, this collection is said to be one of the rarest finds in European history.
Forced to sell through illness – and with no family to leave the keys to – the unnamed original owner of the collection is said to have begun his journey with the purchase of a yellow Lancia Aurelia B20 in the early 1950s. Noted as being an introvert with little interest in showing his burgeoning collection to the outside world – or even his neighbours – it is said that this businessman had various commercial interests, including real estate and new car dealerships.
Part of the broad appeal of a barn find lies in the “carefree” way some of the rarest and ultimately most valuable cars in existence were stored before seeing the light of day once more. Despite 40 years’ worth of dust accumulated on top of many of the cars in the Palmen collection, it is stated that the owner nevertheless spent many hours ensuring that each remained mechanically sound, including manually starting each of them from time to time.
Also noteworthy about this collection is the variety of brands included. While the owner is said to have favoured Italian cars, his interests extended across the globe to include the likes of 1929 Ford Model A Roadster and Chevrolet Corvette C1 from the US, many Bentleys and Jaguars from the UK and more than a few German offerings. Of the rarest cars uncovered is a Monica 560 – one of only 40 cars ever produced by this French brand – as well as an Imperia TA8 that was built in Belgium.
Organised by Classic Car Auctions, the Palmen Collection is due to be auctioned via 243 lots, the most valuable car set to top the R17 million mark.
Image by Classic Car Auctions https://www.classiccar-auctions.com/
A motoring journalist with more than 20 years of experience, Ian McLaren will be compiling a series are articles documenting his learning curve when it comes to all things auction. Find him on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok at @IanMcLaren76.
These articles aim to offer insights only and in no way encourage reckless or hit-and-miss purchasing decisions.