Famed padlocks from Paris bridge to be auctioned

Record ID: 876065

  • Title: Famed padlocks from Paris bridge to be auctioned
  • Date: 12th May 2017
  • Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (FILE - JUNE 1, 2015) (REUTERS) PADLOCKS IN PARTIALLY DESTROYED BRIDGE GRID PADLOCKS CHAINED TO PANEL BRIDGE RAILINGS PARTIALLY CLEARED OF LOCKS, WHILE SOME PANELS REMAIN BRIDGE WITH PADLOCKS, OVER SEINE RIVER
  • Embargoed: 26th May 2017 16:04
  • Keywords: France Paris romance auction bridge padlocks love locks
  • Location: PARIS, FRANCE
  • City: PARIS, FRANCE
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Human Interest / Brights / Odd News
  • Reuters ID: LVA0036GJAGD5
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The famed padlocks chained by lovers on a Paris bridge and removed two years ago by city authorities will be auctioned on Saturday (May 13), with proceeds going to charity.
    Hundreds of thousands of "lovelocks" attached to the Pont des Arts bridge in central Paris were pulled off in June 2015, as city authorities were afraid the sheer weight was putting the 19th century structure at risk.
    The pedestrian bridge had become a shrine of love for tourists and Parisians seeking to immortalise their relationships by attaching a padlock with their names or initials on it to the metallic grid railings.
    A part of the bridge laden with padlocks collapsed in 2014, and the city's government said the mushrooming locks spoiled the aesthetics of the Pont des Arts and another bridge nearby, the Pont de l'Archeveche.
    Each cluster of padlocks grouped together as a piece of art is estimated to be sold for 150-200 euros (165 to 220 U.S. dollars), while a whole panel may go for 5,000 to 10,000 euros (5,470 to 11,000 U.S. dollars). Fifteen panels are up for auction.
    The auctioneer is expecting buyers from the U.S. and European countries like the U.K., Italy and Belgium - whose visitors have hung lovelocks - to participate in Saturday's auction.
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register