Defying the credit crunch, works by Old Masters, antique silvers and Art Deco gems from the Yves Saint Laurent art collection were snapped up for millions on Tuesday's second day of the giant auction.
Works by Theodore Gericault and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres set three new records for the 19th century masters, the Gericault going for nine million euros ($A17.81 million), an oil by Ingres for two million euros ($A3.96 million), and an Ingres drawing fetching 913,000 euros ($A1.81 million).
Held in the spectacular glass-roofed and cast-iron vaulted Grand Palais exhibition hall, the historic auction already smashed on Monday the world record for a private art sale with 206 million euros ($A407.76 million) worth of bids.
Halfway through day two, auctioneers Christie's said works by old masters and 19th century artists, as well as silver antiques, totalled 42.1 million euros ($A83.33 million).
As night fell, art dealers and museum curators from across the globe joined the super-rich in 1,200 seats inside the Palais, vying with bids through 100 telephones for the treasures that once graced the homes of Saint Laurent and his companion Pierre Berge.
Barely minutes into the sale of their 150 Art Deco gems, a set of 15 mirrors flew away at 1.8 million euros ($A3.56 million), a record for a work by designer Claude Lalanne.
Then a chest by Irish designer and architect Eileen Gray went for four million euros ($A7.92 million), also a record, while a pair of palmwood leopard-skinned benches designed by Hungarian Gustave Miklos set a record at 1.5 million euros ($A2.97 million).
The three-day auction of the collection amassed by the pair over half a century - dubbed the "sale of the century" - broke seven world records for contemporary artists on its first day alone.
On Tuesday, the Gericault in a twist of history was acquired by the man who initially sold it 25 years ago to Saint Laurent and Berge - celebrated dealer Alain Tarica, who also purchased another work, both on behalf of clients.
The shine may wear off for the Wednesday finale, however, when a political dispute with China over the fate of prized cultural relics enters the spotlight.
Despite protests from Beijing and a legal bid to block the auction in France, two disputed 18th-century Qing dynasty bronzes go on the block late Wednesday.
Berge on Monday reiterated an offer to give Beijing the bronzes, worth millions of dollars each, in return for a pledge on human rights and Tibet.
China termed Berge's suggestion "ridiculous" and again demanded the return of the relics, part of a collection looted 150 years ago by British and French troops from the imperial Summer Palace.
Berge, who decided to sell the pair's 700-piece collection after the designer's death last June, told reporters after the first round of the sale that "Yves would have been very happy" with the results.
On Monday, top price went for a Matisse oil, Les coucous, tapis bleu et rose, that sold amid hushed silence as bids soared skywards for a record 35.9 million euros ($A71.06 million) including fees, smashing a pre-sale estimate of 18 million euros.
Works by the Dutch abstract painter Piet Mondrian, Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi and French innovator Marcel Duchamp, also earned record sums, well above estimates.
By contrast, a much anticipated Pablo Picasso work, the highest in the collection - Musical Instruments on a Table - flopped. Bidding fell short of the 25 million euro guide price and the piece was withdrawn unsold.
"I am very happy because now I can keep it," Berge said.
"Not only did this sale attain an unexpected sum, but on top of that I won a Picasso."
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