Roger Muhl Leads Rago Arts & Auction Center $555,600 '20|21 Art' Auction in Lambertville

A work by Roger Muhl was the headline sale at Rago Arts & Auction Center '20|21 Art' auction on June 11 in Lambertville.

• The sale totaled $555,600, meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 181 works sold totaling $555,600.
• Estimates totaled: $490,800 (low) and $734,000 (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 86% of the original 211 lots announced.

The star lot was: Roger Muhl, L'Olivier (Undated), which sold for $44,500, 789% above its $5,000 low estimate. It has not been traded before.

The outperformer sold for 789% above its low estimate. Roger Muhl, L'Olivier (Undated), sold for $44,500 ($5,000 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 53 works, or 29%, sold above their high estimate.
• 41 works, or 23%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 87 works, or 48%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

28 works were bought-in, including: Hunt Slonem, Amazons (2015), estimated at $10,000 (low) to $12,000 (high). It has not been traded before.

Withdrawn before the sale

2 works were withdrawn before the sale, including: Jose Lerma, Parallelogram (after Tintoretto's Paradiso) (2012) estimated at $5,000 (low) to $7,000 (high).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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.