Nguyen Gia Tri Leads Christie's $7.78m 'A Quest for Eternity: The Philippe Damas Collection' Auction in Hong Kong

A work by Nguyen Gia Tri was the headline sale at Christie's 'A Quest for Eternity: The Philippe Damas Collection' auction on March 29 in Hong Kong.

• The sale totaled $7.78m (HKD60.54m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 40 works sold totaling $7.78m.
• Estimates totaled: $3.16m (low) and $4.98m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 78% of the original 51 lots announced.

The star lot was: Nguyen Gia Tri, Les trois femmes (Three Ladies) (1934), which sold for $2.07m, 301% above its $514,800 low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1367% above its low estimate. Jos Henri Ponchin, Marché au Tonkin (Market in Tonkin) (1930), sold for $453,200 ($30,900 low estimate). It has been traded twice in the past.

• 20 works, or 50%, sold above their high estimate.
• 18 works, or 45%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 2 works, or 5%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

11 works were bought-in, including: Victor Francois Tardieu, Portrait d'homme (Portrait of a Man) (1923), estimated at $90,100 (low) to $115,800 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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