HONG KONG, April 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Sotheby's (NYSE:
BID) Spring 2017 Hong Kong auctions achieved a grand total of
$406.1 million against a low estimate
of $313 million* and with a combined
sell-through rate of 87% across the series of sales.
"Our results of the past week in Hong
Kong are equivalent to the strong sales we held a year ago
and an improvement on the fall of 2016, continuing the encouraging
trend we have experienced so far this year," said Sotheby's
President and CEO Tad Smith,
continuing, "Outstanding results in our traditional categories of
Chinese ceramics and paintings were joined by records across a
range of collecting fields including western contemporary art and
jewelry affirming Hong Kong as an
anchor of the global art market."
The top three prices achieved this week spanned centuries and
categories:
- The Pink Star, a 59.60-carat oval fancy vivid pink and
internally flawless diamond, sold for $71.2
million, a record for any diamond or jewel ever sold at
auction as well as a record for any lot ever sold in Asia.
The buyer was Hong Kong jeweler
Chow Tai Fook, who has renamed the stone The CTF Pink Star.
- An Exceptional Blue & White Ming 'Fish Pond' Bowl
sold for $29.5 million, more than
double pre-sale expectations, to an Asian private collector. The
price is a record for early Ming Porcelain at auction.
- Andy Warhol's iconic Mao
from 1973 led an evening sale of Modern & Contemporary Art
selling for $12.6 million, to an
Asian private collector and setting an auction record for any
Western Contemporary Art sold in Asia
About Sotheby's
Sotheby's has been uniting collectors
with world-class works of art since 1744. Sotheby's became the
first international auction house when it expanded from
London to New York (1955), the first to conduct sales in
Hong Kong (1973), India (1992) and France (2001), and the first international
fine art auction house in China
(2012). Today, Sotheby's presents auctions in 10 different
salesrooms, including New York,
London, Hong Kong and Paris, and Sotheby's BidNow program allows
visitors to view all auctions live online and place bids from
anywhere in the world. Sotheby's offers collectors the resources of
Sotheby's Financial Services, the world's only full-service
art financing company, as well as the collection advisory services
of its subsidiary, Art Agency, Partners. Sotheby's
presents private sale opportunities in more than 70 categories,
including S|2, the gallery arm of Sotheby's Global Fine Art
Division, and two retail businesses, Sotheby's Diamonds and
Sotheby's Wine. Sotheby's has a global network of 80 offices in 40
countries and is the oldest company listed on the New York Stock
Exchange (BID).
*Estimates do not include buyer's premium. Prices achieved
include the hammer price plus buyer's premium and are net of any
fees paid to the purchaser where the purchaser provided an
irrevocable bid.
Browse sale catalogues, view original content, stream live
auctions and more at www.sothebys.com, and through Sotheby's apps
for iPhone, iPad, Android, Apple TV and Amazon Fire
New York | +1 212 606 7176 |
Lauren Gioia |
Lauren.Gioia@Sothebys.com | Dan
Abernethy | Dan.Abernethy@Sothebys.com
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SOURCE Sotheby's