Rembrandt's Inspector Leads Christie's $11.4m Sam Josefowitz Collection Sale

A work by Rembrandt was the headline sale at Christie's 'The Sam Josefowitz Collection: Graphic Masterpieces by Rembrandt van Rijn - Part III' auction on December 3 in London.

• The sale totaled $11.39m (GBP8.62m), exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 99 works sold totaling $11.39m.
• Estimates totaled: $6.01m (low) and $9.18m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 98% of the original 101 lots announced.

The star lot was: Rembrandt, Arnout Tholinx, Inspector (1656), which sold for $4.1m, 106% above its $1.98m low estimate. It has been traded 8 times in the past. The sale set a new auction record for a print by the Dutch artist.

The outperformer sold for 947% above its low estimate. Rembrandt, The Hurdy-Gurdy Player followed by Children at the Door of a House ('The Schoolmaster') (1641), sold for $27,700 ($2,642 low estimate). It has been traded 5 times in the past.

• 70 works, or 71%, sold above their high estimate.
• 23 works, or 23%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 6 works, or 6%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

2 works were bought-in, including: Rembrandt, Thomas Haaringh ('Old Haaringh') (1655), estimated at $158,500 (low) to $237,800 (high). It has been traded 12 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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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