木製のシトロエン「２ＣＶ」、３２００万円で落札

【トゥールＡＦＰ＝時事】フランス・トゥールで４日、木製のシトロエン「２ＣＶ」が２１万ユーロ（約３２００万円）で落札され、２ＣＶの落札価格として過去最高を更新した。（写真はフランス中部ロシュ近郊で公開された、ミシェル・ロビヤールさんが手掛けた木製のシトロエン「２ＣＶ」〈資料写真〉）
　２ＣＶの特長である曲線美を木を使って手作業で表現した同車両は、一般車と同様に機能し、仏国内で登録されている。
　落札したのは、首都パリ在住の収集家で、ビンテージの遊具を集めた博物館を所有するジャンポール・ファバンさん。
　競売会社によると、２ＣＶのこれまでの最高落札価格は１７万２０００ユーロ（約２６００万円）だった。
　手掛けたのは、木製家具職人のミシェル・ロビヤールさん。ウイングにはクルミ、シャシーには洋ナシやリンゴ、ボンネットやトランクにはサクラが使われた。２０１１年から５年間、延べ約５０００時間を要したという。
　ロビヤールさんは、２ＣＶに次いで、２０２５年にデビューから７０年を迎えるシトロエン「ＤＳ」も同様に木材でつくりたいと話している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/06/06-16:10）

A Citroen 2CV made of wood, thought to be the only one of its kind, has sold for 210,000 euros ($225,000) at auction in France, setting a new price record for the iconic vehicle.
The car, in full working order and registered in France, beat expectations when it went under the hammer in the central town of Tours on Sunday.
The body of the 2CV was hand-crafted out of wood with the same famous curves as the post-war French classic.
It was snapped up by Paris-based collector Jean-Paul Favand, who owns a museum of vintage fairground attractions.
I'm having difficulty talking after this bet, Favand told AFP by telephone afterwards.
The auction house had issued a guide price of 150,000-200,000 euros, saying it was much more than a car -- it's a work of art.
Auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac declared the sale a record as he brought down the hammer.
The previous high for a 2CV was set in 2016, when an extremely rare 1961 2CV Sahara in almost mint condition was sold for 172,800 euros by Paris-based auction house Artcurial.
Carpenter Michel Robillard crafted the wooden 2CV's wings out of walnut and its chassis from pear and apple tree wood.
He used a single block of cherry wood for the bonnet, shaped with just chisels and sandpaper.
- 'Crazy project' -
Robillard told AFP he spent five years and approximately 5,000 hours creating the car, beginning in 2011.
It's like my daughter, he said as he polished the vehicle before the auction. I had three boys and this was my little daughter.
The 2CV -- which stands for deux chevaux, meaning two horsepower -- was launched in 1948 as Citroen's answer to the Volkswagen Beetle.
Robillard's model is equipped with an original engine from Citroen's later 3CV model, giving it the extra power needed to propel the naturally heavier wooden structure.
He said he had another crazy project in mind for the next few years.
He intends to make a wooden version of another French classic -- the Citroen DS, which in 2025 will celebrate 70 years of existence.
A woodworker since the age of 14, Robillard began making miniature wooden replicas of the world's famous automobiles in the 1990s.
He has won several prizes for his intricate work, including for a Harley Davidson motorcycle and its sidecar, which took more than 500 hours to complete.