Maurice Prendergast Leads Christie's $13.53m American Art Evening Sale

A work by Maurice Prendergast was the headline sale at Christie's 'COLLECTOR/CONNOISSEUR: The Max N. Berry Collections; American Art Evening Sale' on January 22 in New York.

• The sale totaled $13.53m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 29 works sold totaling $13.53m.
• Estimates totaled: $9.59m (low) and $14.32m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 91% of the original 32 lots announced.

The star lot was: Maurice Prendergast, The Bridle Path, Central Park (1902), which sold for $2.33m, 366% above its $500,000 low estimate. It has been traded several times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 2016% above its low estimate. Fidelia Bridges, Garden Path (1902), sold for $254,000 ($12,000 low estimate).

• 14 works, or 48%, sold above their high estimate.
• 9 works, or 31%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 6 works, or 21%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

3 works were bought-in, including: Andrew Wyeth, In the Orchard (1972), estimated at $400,000 (low) to $600,000 (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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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