PARIS (AP).- A section of the Eiffel Tower's original staircase has sold for euro105,400 ($154,380) in an auction of Paris memorabilia.
The 40 painted iron steps had been estimated at a much lower price, euro50,000-euro60,000. Organizers of the Paris auction say Gustave Eiffel himself climbed the stairs during the 1889 inauguration of the monument to plant the French flag atop the tower.
The famed French auction house Drouot says a pair of benches from the Paris Metro dating to the late 19th or early 20th century fetched euro22,320. A hexagonal wooden newspaper kiosk sold for euro14,260.
Monday's auction, dubbed "Paris Mon Amour," brought in a total of euro256,912.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
