Freeman’s- Auction World Record Set For Carl Moll at $4.75M
FREEMAN’S BEST FINE ART SALE EVER REALIZES $6.4M AND SETS NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR CARL MOLL AT $4.75M
Freeman’s is delighted to announce the results of its February 23 European Art & Old Masters auction, which realized over $6.4M—the best Fine Art sale total that Freeman’s has ever recorded. With spirited bidding throughout the sale from bidders both online and on the telephone, the 67-lot auction achieved an impressive 90% sell-through rate and nearly quadrupled its pre-sale high estimate.
WEIßES INTERIEUR (WHITE INTERIOR) BY CARL MOLL SELLS FOR $4.75M, SETTING NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD
The undoubted highlight of the sale was the stellar result achieved for Carl Moll’s White Interior (Lot 56). After extensive, competitive bidding both online and from a dozen telephone bidders located around the world, the work shattered the previous world auction record of $385,653 and ultimately sold to a private American collector for $4,756,000—more than 8 times its pre-sale high estimate. It is believed the buyer has the intention to exhibit the painting at The Neue Galerie in New York in the future. The significant painting is Freeman’s highest selling lot to date, surpassing the house’s 2011 record of $3.1m achieved by an important Imperial white jade seal from the Qianlong period.
Said Head of Sale, David Weiss:
“Today’s sale set a new house record for Freeman’s with the sale of a stunning painting by the Austrian artist Carl Moll which fetched nearly $4.8m. It was a privilege to have been entrusted with such an exceptional work which had been in the same family for over a hundred years. The consignors are understandably thrilled. ”
Said Chairman, Alasdair Nichol:
“I couldn’t be more delighted with the results of today’s European Art sale particularly as it was hot on the heels of our best American Art auction yet held last December totaling $5.2m. In spite of all the challenges of the past year, Freeman’s continues to have an extraordinarily successful year which is truly a testimony to the efforts of our outstanding team.”
WORKS BY SCHIKANEDER AND RENOIR SURPASS PRE-SALE HIGH ESTIMATES
There was great interest in fresh-to-market works from private and institutional collections, including The Calm Sea, Nocturne (Lot 40) by Jacob Schikaneder, which more than doubled its pre-sale high estimate to realize $346,500. Similarly, Roses (Lot 58) by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, which was deaccessioned by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, Virginia, realized over triple its pre-sale high estimate, selling for $302,400 after a lengthy battle among nineteen telephone bidders.
ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
Other notable highlights included the sale of: Yuri (Georgiy) Ivanovich Pimenov’s The Lemonade Stand
(Lot 67) which sold for $91,700, more than 6-times its pre-sale high estimate; Gustav Klimt’s, Dame Wittgenstein (Study for Bildnis Margaret Stonborough-Wittgenstein) (Lot 55), which surpassed its pre-sale high estimate, achieving $88,200; Étude pour Le Martyre de Saint Procès et Saint Martinien by Valentin de Boulogne (Lot 16), a recently authenticated bozzetto and the first and only one to ever come on the market, realized $78,750, more than doubling its pre-sale high estimate; Venus at the Forge of Vulcan (Lot 6) a work from the Neapolitan School (17th century), which was once a part of the Getty Museum’s collection, sold for $47,250, more than 6-times its pre-sale high estimate; La Sympathie (Lot 61) by Hippolyte Petitjean which sold for $44,100, surpassing its pre-sale high estimate; and Un Témoin Muet (Lot 51) by Evariste Carpentier which realized $30,240, far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of $6,000-10,000.
SALE ENQUIRIES
David Weiss | Head of Sale
[email protected]
PRESS ENQUIRIES
Madeline Hill | Press
[email protected]
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Freeman’s- First Edition Champlain Book Sold for $200k+
Freeman’s is delighted to announce the results of its February 18 Books and Manuscripts auction, which realized over $445k. With spirited bidding throughout the sale from bidders both online and on the telephone, the 166-lot auction achieved an impressive 91% sell-through rate and surpassed its pre-sale high estimate.
FIRST EDITION OF SAMUEL DE CHAMPLAIN’S LES VOYAGES DU SIEUR DE CHAMPLAIN SOARS PAST PRE-SALE HIGH ESTIMATE
The undoubted highlight of the sale was the stellar result achieved for Samuel de Champlains’s Les Voyages du Sieur de Champlain, Paris, 1613 (Lot 3). After competitive bidding, the first edition of the French Explorer’s second books sold for $201,600—more than tripling its pre-sale high estimate.
ADDITIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
Other notable highlights included the sale of: Vladimir Nabokov’s Ada or Ardor: A Family Chronicle
(Lot 99) which sold for $15,120, more than three times its pre-sale high estimate; Thomas Birch and J.H. Seymour’s, The Geographical Pastime, or the Complete Tour of Europe (Lot 48), which achieved $13,100, more than five times its pre-sale high estimate; Evening Clouds, East Side of the Sierra Nevada, California, a photograph by Ansel Adams (Lot 124), realized $10,710; and a complete deck of Harlequin Playing Cards from Chas E. Carryl (Lot 49), which sold for $8,820, more than seven times its pre-sale high estimate.
SALE ENQUIRIES
Darren Winston | Head of Sale
[email protected]