Jean Pierre Cassigneul Leads Sotheby's, Online $2.6m 'Modern Discoveries' Auction

A work by Jean Pierre Cassigneul was the headline sale at Sotheby's, Online 'Modern Discoveries' auction on July 17.

• The sale totaled $2.6m, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 111 works sold totaling $2.6m.
• Estimates totaled: $2.09m (low) and $3.12m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 78% of the original 142 lots announced.

The star lot was: Jean Pierre Cassigneul, Le renard bleu (1976), which sold for $168,000, 300% above its $40,000 low estimate. It has been traded twice in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1100% above its low estimate. Gloria Vanderbilt, Women on the Beach (Undated), sold for $60,000 ($5,000 low estimate). It has been traded 3 times in the past.

• 33 works, or 30%, sold above their high estimate.
• 37 works, or 33%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 38 works, or 34%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

30 works were bought-in, including: Andrew Wyeth, Archie’s Corner (1953), estimated at $60,000 (low) to $80,000 (high). It has been traded once in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Carl Ethan Akeley, Lion and Buffalo (1915) estimated at $7,000 (low) to $10,000 (high).

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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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