PARIS ? Defying the credit crunch, dealers and the very rich snapped up treasures from Yves Saint Laurent's stunning art collection for millions Tuesday, smashing records for a second day running.

As the three-day "sale of the century" wound up for its finale, the hundreds of well-heeled bidders packed in the spectacular glass-domed Grand Palais exhibition hall sent prices for old masters, silver antiques and Art Deco gems rocketing.

The shine could dim, however, for the last chapter of the mammoth sale of 700 works on Wednesday when a dispute with China over the fate of prized cultural relics takes the spotlight.

In the limelight Tuesday were Art Deco furnishings that graced the elegant homes of the fashion icon and his companion Pierre Berge.

Frenzied bidding among 1,200 seated buyers and from 100 telephone lines pushed pieces gathered by the pair over half a century to 10 times their estimated value, with a brown leather armchair smashing a record for 20th century furniture.

"Owning a YSL piece is like owning a Cezanne," said a French entrepreneur who walked off with a pair of Art Deco lampshades for ?80,000.

Highlight of the day was Irish designer Eileen Gray's exquisite armchair -- known as the Dragons armchair because the arms feature sculptured dragon's heads -- which at ?21.9 million ($28.2 million) became the second most expensive item of furniture ever sold.

Philippe Segalot, who is a buyer and consultant for billionaire business leader Francois Pinault, took away a Gray chest for ?4 million. "This is what I came for. It's for a man who already has an extensive Art Deco collection," he told AFP.

With bids flying high, others who flew in to Paris for the three-day sale were less fortunate.

"The prices are too high for a small museum, it's very disappointing," said Birgit Hahn-Woernle from Esslingen near Stuttgart, who had hoped to buy rare 17th century gilt silverware.

Christie's said works by old masters and 19th century artists, as well as the silver antiques, fetched a combined total of ?42.1 million ($53.7 million).

Apart from Art Deco items that smashed several records, a 19th century oil by Theodore Gericault also sold for a record as did works by Ingres.

In a twist of history, that work was acquired by the man who initially sold it 25 years ago to Saint Laurent and Berge -- celebrated dealer Alain Tarica, who also purchased another work, both on behalf of clients.

"These works have found a home now," he told AFP. "They'll continue to live and to be cherished in a warm environment."

Asked whether the sale marked a turning-point for the flagging global art market, Tarica said, "that remains to be seen."

"Everything here is exceptional", he said. "That is not the case unfortunately on the market."

On the opening night, the auction broke seven world records for contemporary artists -- including Matisse, Mondrian, Klee and Brancusi -- and smashed the world record for a private art sale with ?206 million ($261 million) worth of bids.

The Matisse went for ?35.9 million ($46.5 million), the highest price on Monday.

Berge, who decided to sell the pair's collection after the designer's death last June, told reporters after the first round of the sale that "Yves would have been very happy" over the results.

Auctioneers Christie's said 30 percent of buyers on the opening night were from the US and 70 percent from Europe, with 12 percent of them French.