Van Gogh Leads Sotheby's $109.5m Cindy and Jay Pritzker Evening Auction in New York

A work by Vincent van Gogh was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'The Cindy and Jay Pritzker Collection Evening Auction' on November 20 in New York.

• The sale totaled $109.5m, exceeding the pre-sale high estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 13 works sold totaling $109.5m.
• Estimates totaled: $73.5m (low) and $88.5m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 100%, so a white-glove sale.

The star lot was: Vincent van Gogh, Piles de romans parisiens et roses dans une verre (Romans parisiens) (1887), which sold for $62.71m, 56% above its $40m low estimate. It has been traded 11 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 238% above its low estimate. Wassily Kandinsky, Ins violett (Into Violet) (1925), sold for $2.37m ($700,000 low estimate). It has been traded 8 times in the past.

• 7 works, or 54%, sold above their high estimate.
• 3 works, or 23%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 3 works, or 23%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

4 works were backed by guarantees, including: Henri Matisse, Léda et le cygne (1944). It sold for $10.38m, 48% above its $7m low estimate.. It has been traded 4 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

0 works were bought-in.

Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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