Elton John's Horst P Horst Leads Christie's Online $194,800 'Out of the Closet' Auction

A work by Horst P Horst was the headline sale at Christie's Online 'The Collection of Sir Elton John: Out of the Closet' auction on February 28.

• The sale totaled $194,800, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 21 works sold totaling $194,800.
• Estimates totaled: $155,000 (low) and $228,000 (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 100%, so a white-glove sale.

The star lot was: Horst P Horst, Lisa Fonssagrives with turban, New York, 1940 (1987), which sold for $35,300, 175% above its $12,000 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

• 7 works, or 33%, sold above their high estimate.
• 6 works, or 29%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 8 works, or 38%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

0 works were bought-in.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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