The wines predate the devastating phylloxera epidemic that ravaged European vineyards in the late 19th century. They were produced from original, ungrafted vines – relics of what many consider a golden age of winemaking.

The estate’s meticulous records, including a Cellar Book from 1885 to 1894, document the purchase and laying down of 48 magnums of the 1870 Lafite in 1878. When the Glamis cellar was rediscovered and brought to auction in 1971, the wines had remained undisturbed in cold, dark conditions for nearly a century, and bottles tasted since are widely regarded as the finest preserved examples of this celebrated vintage.

The sale, comprising over 250 lots assembled primarily from leading auction houses during the 1980s and 1990s, was held at Sotheby’s global headquarters in Manhattan and drew fierce international competition from bidders online, by telephone, and in the room. In total, ten world records were set on the day, with the single-owner collection realising $2.1 million (£1.56 million), more than double its pre-sale high estimate of $1.3 million.

The two Glamis magnums proved the most dramatic highlight. The first sold for $106,250 against an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000, immediately setting a new world record. Moments later, after nearly four minutes of relentless bidding, the second magnum, never recorked or reconditioned since its discovery, and therefore considered one of the purest known surviving examples of Lafite 1870, broke that record once more, achieving $200,000 and nearly seven times its low estimate, to become the top lot of the entire sale.