Rene Magritte Leads Christie's $61.63m 'The Art of the Surreal Evening Sale' in London

A work by Rene Magritte, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Christie's 'The Art of the Surreal Evening Sale' on March 5 in London.

• The sale totaled $61.63m (GBP48.07m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 24 works sold totaling $61.63m.
• Estimates totaled: $31.68m (low) and $48.42m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 96% of the original 25 lots announced.

The star lot was: Rene Magritte, La reconnaissance infinie (1933), which sold for $13.22m, 74% above its $7.57m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 793% above its low estimate. Paul Delvaux, Les belles de nuit (Comédie du soir ou La comédie) (1936), sold for $5.64m ($630,900 low estimate). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

• 14 works, or 58%, sold above their high estimate.
• 9 works, or 38%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 1 works, or 4%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

9 works were backed by guarantees, including: Rene Magritte, La reconnaissance infinie (1933). It sold for $13.22m, 74% above its $7.57m low estimate.. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

1 work was bought-in: Rene Magritte, Le stropiat (1948), estimated at $1.26m (low) to $1.89m (high). It has been traded 3 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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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