Sports tension notwithstanding, a number of New Yorkers trudged down to the Sixth Borough yesterday for an auction of artworks from Lehman Brothers' corporate offices at the auction house Freeman's. The amount the sale took in — $1.35 million, which will go toward paying off the now-bankrupt investment firm's creditors — was higher than anyone expected, and attendees say that the artwork's cursed origin may have actually enhanced its value. “The Lehman name has been having a greater effect than anyone expected,” one consultant told Bloomberg.

“I think there was a certain amount of trophy hunting,” said Alasdair Nichol, Freeman’s vice chairman and auctioneer, after the sale, noting the presence of former Lehman employees and staffers from other financial companies.

Fascinating. Of course, $1.35 million is still a very small fraction of the $250 million Lehman owes to creditors, but it does bode well for the upcoming sales of the rest of the artwork, and there being an appetite for "trophies" could open up a whole new realm of things that Lehman Holdings, Inc. could sell to make their creditors whole. For instance: How much do you think former CEO Richard Fuld's pinkie finger would go for?

Lehman Art Draws Trophy Hunters to $1.35 Million Sale [Bloomberg]