Antique Auction to Kick Off College Fund-Raising Campaign

Volunteers and administrators were polishing and cleaning antiques Tuesday at the Doheny campus of Mount St. Mary’s College.

The college in Brentwood is preparing for an auction next month that kicks off a four-year $40-million fund-raising campaign designed to help carry the school beyond the turn of the century. Many of the items on the auction list include original furniture and art from the Doheny mansion, once the home of Edward Doheny and his wife, Carrie Estelle.

The mansion was donated to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 1958, and the archdiocese deeded it to the college. One highlight in the auction is a French kingwood and gilt bronze mounted console table with a white Italian marble top, circa 1870.

Nearly 60 other items will be auctioned, including an oil painting titled “Yosemite” by Harry Casie Best and a Navajo rug. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the auction, however, is a chance for the winning bidder to host a dinner for 12 at the Doheny mansion--served by nuns.