When new, the Mondial was owned by one of the world’s greatest playboys of all time, Dominican Republic
diplomat and professional bon vivant Porfirio Rubirosa. Accompanied by his then paramour Zsa Zsa Gabor,
Rubirosa raced the new Spider in Santa Barbara where the couple was extensively photographed.
Shortly thereafter, it was bought by John von Neumann, the man who introduced Porsche and Volkswagen to
California and sold sportscars to the stars through his dealership Competition Motors. Once again at the
Santa Barbara road races, an admiring James Dean (who had taken his Porsche Speedster) was shown the
car and, too, was extensively photographed. While under Neumann’s ownership, the Ferrari was also raced at
Palm Springs and then at Torrey Pines by a young driver by the name of Phil Hill – the man who would
become a legend of motorsport.
Even without its glamorous history, this is a very special automobile. One of only 12 made, the rare
competition Ferrari was restored by the “men with the golden hands” at Ferrari’s in-house Classiche
department in Modena and then, as testament to its quality and history, received 1st in Class at the Pebble
Beach Concours d’Elegance, the Platinum Award for Best Restored Ferrari from the Ferrari Club of America,
and the Phil Hill Trophy for Best Competition Ferrari by the Ferrari Club of America – an extremely prestigious
trio of accolades to say the least.
Associated with such illustrious personalities, this Ferrari Mondial Spider is a very special and highly
significant piece of California car and pop culture (click here to see video). The Ferrari Classiche Red
Book-certified, highly original, extensively photographed and raced-in-period automobile will be offered
alongside an astounding line-up next month.
Some of these museum-worthy cars being offered include: the 1946 FIAT Frua Spider – the very first design
created by Frua; the sole existing Moretti Sport Spider with Michelotti body; the evolutionary key Bugatti
model and 1993 Frankfurt Motor Show car EB110 GT – as well as a Chiron; not to mention two of the most
iconic cars in history – a matching numbers and well preserved 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing and an
expertly restored 1965 Aston Martin DB5 worthy of Sean Connery as James Bond. These and so many more
are why Bonhams’ 2019 Scottsdale Auction is shaping up to one of the best collectors’ car auctions of the
year. For more information,visit Bonhams.com/Scottsdale.
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