Bonhams Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern Art Auction Totals $286,800

A work by Bassem Dahdouh was the headline sale at Bonhams 'Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern Art' auction on February 12-26 in London.

• The sale totaled $286,800 (GBP212,300), falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 34 works sold totaling $286,800.
• Estimates totaled: $474,200 (low) and $706,300 (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 62% of the original 55 lots announced.

The star lot was: Bassem Dahdouh, Isolation (2024), which sold for $51,900, 53% above its $33,700 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 796% above its low estimate. Stelio Scamanga, Abstract Icon (1969), sold for $12,100 ($1,350 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 13 works, or 38%, sold above their high estimate.
• 17 works, or 50%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 4 works, or 12%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

20 works were bought-in, including: Abdulrahman Al Soliman, Mountain Amongst the Palms (1981), estimated at $54,000 (low) to $81,000 (high). It has not been traded before.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Aref Rayess, Three Desert Studies (1965) estimated at $3,374 (low) to $4,049 (high).

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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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