Gerrit Dou Leads Christie's $16.8m 'Old Masters Evening Sale' in London

A work by Gerrit Dou, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's 'Old Masters Evening Sale' on December 2 in London.

• The sale totaled $16.8m (GBP12.71m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 21 works sold totaling $16.8m.
• Estimates totaled: $14.08m (low) and $21.08m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 64% of the original 33 lots announced.

The star lot was: Gerrit Dou, The Flute Player (Undated), which sold for $5.06m, 91% above its $2.65m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 375% above its low estimate. William Hodges, A group of musicians playing Sarangi, a Tambura and Tablas (Undated), sold for $755,100 ($158,900 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 11 works, or 52%, sold above their high estimate.
• 9 works, or 43%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 1 works, or 5%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

1 work was backed by a guarantee: Gerrit Dou, The Flute Player (Undated). It sold for $5.06m, 91% above its $2.65m low estimate. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

12 works were bought-in, including: Domenico Beccafumi, The Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist and Saint Catherine of Siena (Undated), estimated at $1.32m (low) to $1.99m (high). It has been traded 7 times 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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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