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David Shepherd Leads Bonhams $960,300 'Modern British & Irish Art' Auction in London

3 min read  ·  18 Jul 2024

Tiger Resting by David Shepherd sold for $46,500.
Image courtesy of Bonhams

Tiger Resting by David Shepherd sold for $46,500. Image courtesy of Bonhams

A work by David Shepherd was the headline sale at Bonhams 'Modern British & Irish Art' auction on July 17 in London.

  • The sale totaled $960,300 (GBP739,300), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

  • 200 works sold totaling $960,300.
  • Estimates totaled: $805,200 (low) and $1.17m (high), excluding premiums.
  • The sell-through rate was 75% of the original 265 lots announced.

The star lot was: David Shepherd, Tiger Resting (Undated), which sold for $46,500, 102% above its $22,900 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 421% above its low estimate. Robert Buhler R.A., Self-Portrait (Undated), sold for $5,320 ($1,020 low estimate).

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

Breakdown of results against auction house estimates that are disclosed

  • 103 works, or 52%, sold above their high estimate.
  • 94 works, or 47%, sold within their low and high estimate.
  • 3 works, or 2%, sold below their low estimate.
  • 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

65 works were bought-in, including: Patrick Hughes, Perplexivity (1998), estimated at $19,100 (low) to $25,500 (high). It has not been traded before.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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