Man Ray's Hollywood Painting Leads Christie's $5.08m Marion Meyer Collection Auction in Paris

A 1948 painting by Man Ray was the headline sale at Christie's 'Man Ray dans la collection Marion Meyer' auction on April 11 in Paris.

• The sale totaled $5.08m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 179 works sold totaling $5.08m.
• Estimates totaled: $2.69m (low) and $3.98m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 93% of the original 193 lots announced.

The star lot was: Man Ray, All's Well That Ends Well (1948), which sold for $283,300, 150% above its $107,100 low estimate. It has been traded 5 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1,600% above its low estimate. Man Ray, Boîte d'allumettes (1955), sold for $9,442 ($535 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

A talking point was: Man Ray, Chess set (1962), which sold for $216,300, 900% above the low estimate. Executed between 1962 and 1966 in an edition of 50 plus 5 artist's proofs. The work has not been traded before.

• 84 works, or 47%, sold above their high estimate.
• 36 works, or 20%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 59 works, or 33%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

1 work was bought-in: Man Ray, Sans titre (Rayographie), 1924 (1924), estimated at $32,100 (low) to $53,500 (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

13 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Man Ray, Nusch nue (Facile), 1935 (1960) estimated at $12,800 (low) to $19,300 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.