Auction introduction: Christie’s is honoured to be entrusted with the sale of The Personal Collection of Barry Humphries in London, February 2025. Best known for his comedic personas, this extraordinary collection bears witness to Barry Humphries’ taste and his thirst for knowledge, from the fin de siècle period to the present day. Barry Humphries AC CBE (1934–2023) was a world-renowned performer, best known for his now immortal characters Dame Edna Everage and Les Patterson, but behind these very public personas Barry was an inveterate and impulsive collector. He started collecting in his teen years in Melbourne, Australia developing a passion which lasted until his death. The sale brings together a superb selection of books and manuscripts, Australian paintings, Victorian and 19th-century art and Impressionist and modern art. Headlining the sale is Charles Conder’s arresting Sand Dunes at Ambleteuse, which leads an unrivalled collection by the artist. Additional highlights include an inscribed copy of Oscar Wilde’s Importance of Being Earnest and Jean Delville’s magnificent L'oubli des Passions.