George V

This is a mint condition certificate issued by Hotel George V, the luxury hotel in Paris. It includes a page of interest coupons.

Established in 1928, the Art Deco landmark closed its doors in October 1997 for exhaustive renovations, and opened in December as the rebranded Four Seasons Hotel George V. The new owner, Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia, spent $167 million to acquire the property from the London-based Granada Group, and $125 million more on rebuilding and design. The project was steered by the construction giant Bouygues, the same firm that refurbished the Louvre; more than 1,100 artisans and workmen were involved in the renovation. With such a cosmic investment, Alwaleed and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts—which has a 90-year contract to manage the 245-room property—are leaving nothing to chance.

Not everything from the earlier George V merited saving. "Having been redesigned maybe four or five times over the years, the hotel had become a pastiche," Rochon notes. "We were criticized in the French press for auctioning off so much—there were ten thousand lots—but much of it was beyond repair or simply mauvais gošt." The designer cites a dressing table in Marlene Dietrich's favorite suite. It was worth $1,985 to a fan, but nothing to Rochon as a decorator. And so it went with a pair of Staffordshire spaniels from Greta Garbo's room, a baby grand piano played by Duke Ellington, and the cane bed on which the Beatles had their 1964 pillow fight, famously recorded by photographer Harry Benson.

Luminaries from all over the world stayed at the hotel. Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Gene Kelly, Gary Cooper, Vivian Leigh, Sophia Loren, President Gerald Ford, John Wayne…The Society of Nations (precursor to the United Nations organization) established temporary quarters there, just like General Eisenhower at the end of World War II. 

Certificate Number, date and registration may differ from picture. The certificate will be shipped in a flat cardboard document mailer, and will not be folded. Note: This certificate is sold as a collectible item only, and the successful bidder will not acquire any interest in the security itself. The certificate will not be registered in your name.

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