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Pierre Paul Rubens Leads Artcurial $3.61m 'Maîtres anciens & du XIXe siècle' Auction in Paris

3 min read  ·  06 Nov 2024

Les miracles du bienheureux Ignace de Loyola by Pierre Paul Rubens sold for $660,000.
Image courtesy of Artcurial

Les miracles du bienheureux Ignace de Loyola by Pierre Paul Rubens sold for $660,000. Image courtesy of Artcurial

A work by Pierre Paul Rubens was the headline sale at Artcurial 'Maîtres anciens & du XIXe siècle' auction on November 26 in Paris.

  • The sale totaled $3.61m (EUR3.45m), falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

  • 86 works sold totaling $3.61m.
  • Estimates totaled: $4.29m (low) and $6.24m (high), excluding premiums.
  • The sell-through rate was 55% of the original 156 lots announced.

The star lot was: Pierre Paul Rubens, Les miracles du bienheureux Ignace de Loyola (Undated), which sold for $660,000, 21% above its $543,000 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 490% above its low estimate. Jean Baptiste Gallet, Branchage d'aubépine, de rosier et vol de papillons dans des roseaux (Undated), sold for $19,200 ($3,258 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

  • 40 works, or 47%, sold above their high estimate.
  • 46 works, or 53%, sold within their low and high estimate.
  • 0 works, or 0%, sold below their low estimate.
  • 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

70 works were bought-in, including: Cornelis van Cleve, Vierge à l’Enfant avec saint Jean-Baptiste (Undated), estimated at $162,900 (low) to $217,200 (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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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. Estimates, sale prices and totals are converted into US dollars. 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.