Sir Winston Churchill's Marrakech and Francis Holman's Three Hudson's Bay Company Ships in the Thames hang on a wall as some of the works of art destined for the Hudson's Bay auction in Toronto.

About halfway through the sale of the Hudson’s Bay Co. art collection in Toronto on Wednesday, auctioneer David Heffel decided to talk about the weather.

“It’s getting a little chilly in here,” Mr. Heffel said. “I think I have to put a coat on.” With a flourish, he donned a multistripe-patterned Bay wool coat over his tuxedo, to applause from the crowded sale room at Heffel Fine Art.

It was a nod to the historic moment that the auction represented, as Canada’s oldest retailer sells off its art and artifacts collection, part of the collapsed company’s insolvency proceedings.

The Bay’s full col

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