Christie's 20th Century Day Sale Totals $16.04m

A work by Zao Wou-ki, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's '20th Century Day Sale' on March 28 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $16.04m (HKD125.6m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 76 works sold totaling $16.04m.
• Estimates totaled: $9.85m (low) and $15.87m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 92% of the original 83 lots announced.

The star lot was: Zao Wou-ki, 18.03.63 (1963), which sold for $1.93m, 37% above its $1.4m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 3 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 916% above its low estimate. Attributed to San-Yu, Kneeling Horse (Undated), sold for $259,500 ($25,500 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 46 works, or 61%, sold above their high estimate.
• 23 works, or 30%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 7 works, or 9%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

2 works were backed by guarantees, including: Marc Chagall, Esquisse pour “La vie” (1964). It sold for $875,800, 42% above its $612,700 low estimate.. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

6 works were bought-in, including: Miguel Covarrubias, Jungla (Jungle) (1940), estimated at $204,200 (low) to $331,900 (high). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Edgar Degas, Trois danseuses dans les coulisses (1900), estimated at $127,700 (low) to $255,300 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.