Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr The Greek Sale Totals $5.03m
3 min read · 21 May 2026
Poetry (Annunciation) by Constantine Parthenis sold for $1.46m. Image courtesy of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr
A work by Constantine Parthenis was the headline sale at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr 'The Greek Sale' on May 20 in Paris.
- The sale totaled $5.03m (EUR4.33m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.
Snapshot of the sale
- 119 works sold totaling $5.03m.
- Estimates totaled: $2.86m (low) and $4.24m (high), excluding premiums.
- The sell-through rate was 72% of the original 165 lots announced.
The star lot was: Constantine Parthenis, Poetry (Annunciation) (Undated), which sold for $1.46m, 317% above its $350,100 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.
Seated Nude by Andreas Vourloumis sold for $12,600 (441% above estimate). Image courtesy of Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr
The outperformer sold for 441% above its low estimate. Andreas Vourloumis, Seated Nude (1956), sold for $12,600 ($2,334 low estimate).
- 77 works, or 65%, sold above their high estimate.
- 38 works, or 32%, sold within their low and high estimate.
- 4 works, or 3%, sold below their low estimate.
- 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.
Guaranteed sales
No sales had a guarantee.
Works that did not sell
46 works were bought-in, including: Theofilos Hadjimichael, Erotokritos et Aretoussa (Undated), estimated at $116,700 (low) to $175,000 (high).
Withdrawn before the sale
0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.
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