A vast collection of art, furniture, silver, ceramics, and jewelry long held in the private collection of the Rothschild banking dynasty sold for more than $62.6 million over several auctions at Christie’s New York.

The sales, which concluded on Tuesday, marked the first dedicated auction in North America of works from the French branch of the long-time banking family. Most of the lots were acquired in the 19th century by Baron James Mayer de Rothschild, his wife Betty and their son Alphonse, and have remained in their descendants’ collection since.

As for why the family chose to sell the collection now, Rendell believes it may have been a “rationalization” and a “generational shift” in attitude. “Not everybody lives like a 19th-century Rothschild, even the Rothschilds,” he said.