Raoul Dufy The Pavilion Heats Up All That Glitters When Ishmael Called Where Are We Going? Overdue Ode Rarity Rules Paris Auction Sets New Records for 20th Century Designer Fashion

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Locked up for three generations in the family attic, more than 600 pieces of clothing, furniture and interior furnishings, dating between 1905-1928, were to go under the auctioneer's hammer Tuesday afternoon.

Most of the clothes were discovered lying in three large trunks in the attic of the designer's grand-daughter Sophie, who called in Paris auctioneers Piasa when she moved house and no longer had the space for the collection.

"She thought the trunks were empty and she just had the furniture, but when we opened them they were full. And it was only when I then saw the labels I realised they were by Paul Poiret," auctioneer Pierre-Emmanuel Audap told AFP.

It's the first sale of its kind of Poiret designs which helped to liberate women from the confines of their corsets and brought swathes of bold colour to the pale, fussy world of early 20th century fashion.

Using museum documents and photographs, Audap took three years to piece together the history of the collection which Poiret's wife and muse, Denise, had conserved since their 1928 divorce and passed down through the generations.

"He was a designer who dealt in fantasy. A precusor to modern fashion because he dared to be different from his contemporaries. His originality helped to advance modern fashion," said Paris designer Dominique Sirop.

He had left bids for several of Poiret's documents and sketches, as well as a stunning wall mural, admitting the designer's use of colour, line and design would be a good source of inspiration.

But he feared the huge interest shown by museums such as the Philadelphia, Japan's Kyoto Museum, as well as many from South America and Canada would push bids up far beyond the modest catalogue prices.

The most expensive piece on sale is a 1911 ivory cotton, velvet and silk coat with a pattern designed by the avant-garde painter Raoul Dufy and thought to be worth around 15,000 to 20,000 euros ($19,000-25,000). But some items have been priced at as little as 50.

The total value of the collection has been put at between 800,000 to a million euros, but auction house spokeswoman Isabelle de Puysegur admitted prices could go much higher.

"We really don't have any point of reference. The only sale of a Poiret dress we can find went for 60,000 francs," she told AFP.

Curator at the Musee de la Mode, Pamela Golbin, acknowleged she was there in the hopes of adding to the Paris museum's collection of designs by Poiret (1879-1944), who despite his early success was to die in poverty and obscurity.

"We can dream," she said, adding that they would love to buy all 600 items but had to be realistic.

More than 8,000 people have poured through the Drouot-Richelieu showrooms since the collection went on display on Monday before the two-day sale, but many were just eager to glimpse a piece of fashion history.

"It's a very beautiful collection," said Jane Whitefield, from England, who said she worked in the fashion industry. "I've only ever seen bits and pieces of Poiret before, nothing on such a huge scale.

"I think what impresses me the most is the colours, textiles and the lightness of the designs, given the time when he was creating."

"I love the freedom that he gave to the body," agreed Paris designer Adeline Andre. "And then there are things from him that I never imagined, such as the nightdresses."

Another Parisienne, who asked not to give her name, donned a pair of white gloves before lovingly admiring the veil which Denise wore for her marriage to Poiret.

"As a woman I just love seeing all these beautiful dresses, but alas I won't be able to buy anything," she said.

Copyright AFP, 2005