The deadly fire that raged through the Oakland hills also destroyed private collections of art, books and furniture worth millions of dollars.
Losses included an $18 million collection of California paintings, which were to begin touring museums next week. None of it was insured.Walter Nelson Rees and James L. Coran lost their collection when the home they shared for 24 years went up in flames.
"I couldn't believe it," Rees said. "Why did our house burn? We had a metal roof, insulation. We're all so vulnerable."
Their collection included an 1872 scene of San Francisco Bay by Albert Bierstadt, whose work was recently featured in a show that toured the nation.
It also included "Admiral Farragut's Flagship The Hartford," an 1878 work by William Alexander Coulter that depicts the ship on which the phrase "Damn the torpedoes - full speed ahead" was uttered.
Collector David Shaw, who also lost everything in the fire, was driving home when he saw the smoke. By the time he reached home, flames were threatening, and he had time only to rescue his cat.
Shaw's collection included a table and six leather chairs by designer Charles Eames, as well as bookshelves and a desk by the designer, said Greg Favors, a friend of Shaw's and owner of a Berkeley shop that sells modern collectibles.
"Dave's just in shock," Favors said.