Record for Russian Art Sales

On 30 November and 1 December 2004, Sotheby’s and Christie’s each generated revenues of GBP 9.3 million at their prestigious Russian Art Sales. This year, the auction houses reached a new record with turnover of GBP 22 million for Christie’s on 30 November and GBP 22.2 million for Sotheby’s the following day. Even with high bought-in rates (32% and 28% respectively), the two houses well exceeded their most optimistic forecasts. Prior to its Russian Sale, Sotheby’s only hoped to achieve GBP 12-16 million in turnover.

The hammer price for certain pieces was actually much higher than estimated. For example, at Sotheby’s, Ilja Iwanowitsch Maschkoff’s Still Life with Flowers was estimated at GBP 200,000-300,000, but ended up fetching GBP 1.9 million! This is the highest price ever paid for a lot at a Russian Sale.Christie’s boasted a total of six records for artists: Constantin Andrevich Somov (1869-1939), Isaak Il’ich Levitan (1860-1900), Robert Rafaelovich Falk (1886-1958), Alexander Evgenevich Iacovleff (1887-1938), Nicolaj Konstantinov Roerich (1874-1947) and Boris Mikhailovich Kustodiev (1878-1927) whose painting Odalisque (1919), estimated at GBP 180,000-220,000, went under the hammer for GBP 1.5 million.