Adolph Menzel Leads Grisebach $1.3m '19th Century Art' Auction in Berlin

A work by Adolph Menzel was the headline sale at Grisebach '19th Century Art' auction on May 30 in Berlin.

• The sale totaled $1.3m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 52 works sold totaling $1.3m.
• Estimates totaled: $1.22m (low) and $1.22m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 71% of the original 73 lots announced.

The star lot was: Adolph Menzel, ”Wallenstein's Lager (Undated), which sold for $357,900, 1500% above its $21,500 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 14500% above its low estimate. German School, Two oil studies: carnation and leaf twig (1820), sold for $158,300 ($1,080 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 51 works, or 98%, sold above their high estimate.
• 0 works, or 0%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 1 works, or 2%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

21 works were bought-in, including: Caspar David Friedrich, ”Feuer in einer Kirchenruine (1800), estimated at $215,000 (low) to $215,000 (high). It has not been traded before.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn

Terms and definitions

All results include the fees and premiums added to the price of a work of art when the auctioneer's hammer falls. Sale prices are compared to the auction house’s low estimate, which do not include premiums.

Guarantees: Sometimes an auction house guarantees to pay a seller for a work, regardless of whether the bidding reaches the reserve price, a figure that is typically confidential.

Bought-in: If there are no bids for a work, or if bidding falls short of the reserve price, the lot is unsold or “bought-in”.

Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.

Premiums: Typically a sliding-scale of charges paid in addition to the hammer price by the buyer, plus any other fees.