Dutch Old Master Leads Sotheby's $5.4m 'Aso O. Tavitian' Auction in New York

A work by the Dutch Old Master Master of the Magdalene Legend, which had a guarantee, was the headline sale at Sotheby's 'The Vision of Aso O. Tavitian | Master Paintings & Sculpture' auction on February 7 in New York.

Tavitian (1959-2020) fled communist Bulgaria as a boy and immigrated to the US as a young man, becoming a successful businessman, collector and philanthropist.

• The sale totaled $5.44m, falling short of its pre-sale low estimate.

Snapshot of the sale

• 25 works sold totaling $5.44m.
• Estimates totaled: $5.55m (low) and $8.07m (high), excluding premiums.
• The sell-through rate was 68% of the original 37 lots announced.

The star lot was: Master of the Magdalene Legend, Portrait of Margaret of Austria (Undated), which sold for $1.4m, 6% below its $1.5m low estimate. The work was backed by a guarantee. It has been traded 7 times in the past.

The outperformer sold for 229% above its low estimate. Frans Pourbus the Elder, Portrait of a Lady in a Lace Cap (Undated), sold for $132,000 ($40,000 low estimate). It has been traded 6 times in the past.

• 12 works, or 48%, sold above their high estimate.
• 6 works, or 24%, sold within their low and high estimate.
• 7 works, or 28%, sold below their low estimate.
• 0 sold with undisclosed estimates.

Guaranteed sales

1 work was backed by a guarantee: Master of the Magdalene Legend, Portrait of Margaret of Austria (Undated). It sold for $1.4m, 6% below its $1.5m low estimate. It has been traded 7 times in the past.

Works that did not sell

12 works were bought-in, including: North Italian, Bust of Penelope (Undated), estimated at $300,000 (low) to $500,000 (high). It has been traded 4 times 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Withdrawn before the sale

0 works were withdrawn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Withdrawn: This happens when a seller decides, for whatever reason, to withdraw a work before the bidding begins.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