Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky Leads Sotheby's $4.7m European Art Auction

A work by Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky was the headline sale at Sotheby's '19th & 20th Century European Art' auction on December 4 in London.

• The sale totaled $4.71m (GBP3.56m), meeting the pre-sale estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 75 works sold totaling $4.71m.
• Estimates totaled: $3.3m (low) and $4.83m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 62% of the original 121 lots announced.

The star lot was: Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky, Clouds (1865), which sold for $1.29m, 1535% above its $79,100 low estimate. It has been traded once in the past.

The outperformer sold for 1535% above its low estimate. Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky, Clouds (1865), sold for $1.29m ($79,100 low estimate). It has been traded once in the past.

• 31 works, or 41%, sold above their high estimate.
• 31 works, or 41%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 13 works, or 17%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

No sales had a guarantee.

Works that did not sell

45 works were bought-in, including: Frederick Richard Lee & Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, The Village Blacksmith (Shoeing of Imaum) (1855), estimated at $197,700 (low) to $263,600 (high). It has been traded 9 times in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

1 work was withdrawn before the sale: Jozsef Rippl-ronai, Artist and model in a garden (Undated) estimated at $13,200 (low) to $19,800 (high).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. 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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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.