LONDON.- From a busy saleroom opened to capacity, with two banks of 60 telephone lines reserved to execute bids on behalf of potential buyers, clients enthusiastically competed to acquire a piece of Russian Imperial history in Sotheby’s Sale of ‘Romanov Heirlooms: The Lost Inheritance of the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna’. The auction, which saw every lot contested by several bidders, exceeded all pre-sale expectations (estimate: £600,000-900,000) and brought the outstanding total of £7,073,300/$11,658,920. With every lot sold, the auction achieved the status of