Sotheby's Master Works on Paper from Five Centuries Auction Totals $3.08m

A work by Eugene Delacroix, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'Master Works on Paper from Five Centuries' auction on July 1 in London.

• The sale totaled $3.08m (GBP2.32m), falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 53 works sold totaling $3.08m.
• Estimates totaled: $4.21m (low) and $6.34m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 65% of the original 81 lots announced.

The star lot was: Eugene Delacroix, Lion et lionne dans les montagnes (1847), which sold for $847,000, 152% above its $335,800 low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 6 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 846% above its low estimate. Master of the Liechtenstein Adoration, Soldiers discovering the body of Holofernes (Undated), sold for $127,100 ($13,400 low estimate). It has not been traded before.

• 20 works, or 38%, sold above their high estimate.
• 28 works, or 53%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 5 works, or 9%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

1 work was backed by a guarantee: Eugene Delacroix, Lion et lionne dans les montagnes (1847). It sold for $847,000, 152% above its $335,800 low estimate. It has been traded 6 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

28 works were bought-in, including: Sir Peter Lely, Self-portrait (Undated), estimated at $1.07m (low) to $1.61m (high). It has been traded twice in the past.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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