Weakness among the middle and high price tiers and a Buy-In rate over 40% combined to sink the results of the recent online Photographs sale at Sotheby’s in London. The top lot Peter Beard print also failed to sell, and with only a couple of positive surprises, the Total Sale Proceeds came in at roughly £480K, well below the low end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 84 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | £892100 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | £1305600 |
| Total Lots Sold | 50 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 34 |
| Buy In % | 40.48% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | £481950 |
Here is the breakdown (using our usual Low, Mid, and High price tier definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 26 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 24 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 2 |
| Low Buy In % | 7.69% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | £96600 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | £55944 |
| Mid Total Lots | 45 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 20 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 25 |
| Mid Buy In % | 55.56% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | £503000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | £206766 |
| Total High Lots | 13 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 6 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 7 |
| High Buy In % | 53.85% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | £706000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | £219240 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 48, Peter Beard, Ele Portfolio (15 prints), 1960-1984/2008, estimated at £120000-180000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 19, Robert Mapplethorpe, X Portfolio (13 prints), 1977-1978, estimated at £50000-70000, sold at £63000 (image above, via Sotheby’s).
74.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 2 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above, via Sotheby’s):
Lot 11, Gilles Bensimon, Elle and Friends Number 3, c1987 estimated at £3500-5500, sold at £12600
Lot 41, Gabo, Liaison IV, 2006/2007, estimated at £2000-3000, sold at £6300
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
