Sotheby's London Old Master sale soars over estimates

KOLKATA: Sotheby’s London Old Master and British Painting Evening sale on July 9 has soared over the estimate to realise £68.3 million/$117.1 million/€85.9 million, the highest ever total for such a sale at Sotheby’s London.

The top lot of the night was George Stubbs’ Tygers at Play which sold to an Asian collector for £7.7 million/$13.2 million/€9.7 million.

Earlier, on the same day, Sotheby’s London Treasures’ sale totalled £23.6 million/$40.4 million/€29.7 million, the highest ever total for a decorative arts sale at Sotheby’s London. The total for sales at Sotheby’s on July 9 across categories was £115 million.

Henry Wyndham, chairman, Sotheby’s Europe, commented in an email statement: "Today’s superb results demonstrate the great appetite of today’s international collectors for outstanding works with exceptional provenance. As we have seen, the key to unleashing the full potential of today’s market is to present such works with the right estimates in thoughtfully curated sales."

Discussing the July 9 night’s auction, Alex Bell, joint international head and co-chairman of Sotheby’s Old Master Paintings Department said in the same statement: "This evening’s results set a record for an Old Master and British Paintings Evening sale at Sotheby’s London and eclipsed our landmark 2002 total of £67.58 million. With 17 auction records and unprecedented international participation, we saw the market at its best. The prestigious aristocratic and private collections that constituted the core of tonight’s sale were the secret of this success. Having remained in the same collections for centuries, most of the works carried the imprimatur of the greatest art patrons of the day, such as the Dukes of Northumberland and the Earls of Warwick and bore witness to the discerning eye of some of the most important collectors of the 20th century, including Baron Coppée and Barbara Piasecka Johnson."