Albert and Stephanie of Monaco aboard Princess Grace’s Renault Florida
Prince Albert II of Monaco has completed the new premises for his car collection. He went to the scene with his family, including his sister Stephanie. Prince Albert II drove his sister to Port Hercule in the Renault Florida that belonged to their mother.
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Prince Albert II driving Princess Grace’s car with his sister
Prince Albert II and Princess Stephanie of Monaco traveled to Port Hercule in Princess Grace’s green Renault Florida. The Monegasque Head of State and his younger sister have taken charge of the new exhibition space for Prince Albert II’s car collection.
The 1959 Renault Floride was given by the automaker to Princess Grace. The interior is dressed by the Italian designer Frua. The color of this convertible is Borneo green. Princess Grace played her role of ambassador wonderfully because sales of this model exploded among women in the early 60s. Diamond magazinethe certificate for the car already had 1000 kilometers on the odometer when it was handed over to the princess and the odometer currently shows less than 7000 kilometres.
Prince Abert and Princess Stephanie were joined by Louis Ducruet, Stephanie’s son, and Andrea and Pierre Casiraghi, Princess Caroline’s sons. Prince Albert’s nephews were curious to discover this new place which will certainly attract tourists. Cars are part of the DNA of the Grimaldis, who are car enthusiasts.
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Prince Rainier III’s car collection regains its shine at Port Hercule
Prince Rainier III started collecting cars in the late 1950s. “For more than forty years, according to bargains, favorites and circumstances”the former Monegasque sovereign was established “a considerable and intimate collection of old vehicles”explains it museum.
When the garage of the Prince’s Palace became too small to keep the growing car collection, Prince Rainier had the idea of making his collection visible to the public and exhibiting it. In 1993, his collection moved to premises located on the terraces of Fontvieille.
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Admittedly, the premises were somewhat outdated. Prince Albert II wanted to restore a more prestigious shine to the cars he spawned from his father and he set off in search of a new place to house his collection. Now it is in the heart of Monaco, where also the Formula 1 Grand Prix, that the car collection is located.
The collection remains a collection, which reflects the acquisitions of an enthusiast and it is not a car museum. Visitors could therefore be surprised by certain cars from all continents and all eras. We find, for example, a DeDion–Button from 1903 next to a Lotus F1 from 2013. The Lexus used by Prince Albert on his wedding day to Princess Charlene is also on display.
On July 7, the day before the collection opened to the public, Prince Albert, Princess Stéphanie, Andrea Casiraghi, Pierre Casiraghi and Louis Ducruet wandered between the bodies of Rolls-Royce, Maserati and Lamborghini.
The Monegasque authorities accompanied the princely family during this inaugural visit. A hundred exceptional cars are known. The scenography has been completely redesigned and uses innovative techniques to discover archive images of the main family who take care of their cars.