Djahanguir Riahi

Djahanguir Riahi (22 September 1914 – 28 April 2014)^[1] was a French-Iranian businessman and a renowned collector of 18th century French furniture.^[2] Riahl has been declared one of the greatest art collectors since 1945.^[3]

Riahi started out as an engineer and road-builder, eventually acquiring an apartment in France.^[3] He started collecting in the 1970s,^[4] in order to furnish the apartment in the grandest possible tradition.^[3] Riahi swiftly achieved notoriety among French dealers due to regularly outbidding them on the finest pieces at auction.^[4] Among the master craftsmen represented in the collection were André Charles Boulle, the ébénistes Bernard II van Risamburgh and Martin Carlin; and carpets and tapestry from the Savonnerie and Gobelins manufactories.^[4] Some of his individual pieces included wall brackets from Marie Antoinette's bedroom and a cabinet made for the Comtesse de Provence.^[3] 59 pieces from the collection, including pieces with royal provenances, were purchased in 2000 by Christie's and estimated to raise 25 million dollars when auctioned off.^[4] In 2012 Christie's held a second auction dedicated to former Riahl collection pieces.^[2]