A rare Fabergé Winter egg, originally owned by Russia’s last tsar’s mother, sold for a record £22.9 million at Christie's in London, setting a new world auction record for a Fabergé piece, highlighting its historical and artistic significance.
A rare Fabergé egg made for Russia's imperial family sold for a record-breaking $30.2 million at auction, highlighting its significance as a masterpiece of craftsmanship and history, and setting a new world record for a Fabergé item.
A well-worn prototype of Jane Birkin's Hermès handbag sold for €8.6 million at a Paris auction, setting a record as the most expensive fashion accessory ever sold in Europe and the second-highest worldwide, highlighting the bag's legendary status and unique provenance.
A René Magritte painting sold for $121.2 million at Christie's in New York, setting a new auction record for the artist and becoming the most expensive lot of the New York November sales season. The painting had a third-party guarantee of $95 million, ensuring its sale. Magritte's previous auction record was $79.5 million, set in March 2022 at Sotheby's in London.
Gustav Klimt's "Lady with a Fan" has become the most expensive painting ever sold in Europe, fetching a price of £74 million ($108.77 million) at an auction at Sotheby's London. The 1918 painting, which had not been on the market for 30 years, surpassed the previous European auction record. However, Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi" remains the most expensive painting ever sold worldwide.
Gustav Klimt's "Lady With a Fan" sold for $108.4 million at Sotheby's, setting a new auction record for the artist and becoming the highest price for a public sale in Europe. The painting inspired 10 minutes of competition from three Asian bidders before selling to Hong Kong-based art adviser Patti Wong. The painting depicts an unidentified young woman against a backdrop of opulent Oriental textiles and was one of two unfinished paintings photographed on easels in Klimt's Vienna studio shortly after the artist died of Spanish flu.
Gustav Klimt's final portrait, "Dame mit Fächer (Lady with a Fan)" (1917), sold for a record-breaking £85.3m at Sotheby's Modern and contemporary art evening sale in London. The painting accounted for nearly half of the auction's total and surpassed the previous European auction record held by Alberto Giacometti's sculpture. The sultry portrait, depicting a woman with a slipping kimono, received significant attention from Asian bidders due to its Chinese and Japanese motifs. The sale also featured a themed sub-auction focusing on portraits, including works by Frank Auerbach. Despite some works selling below estimate, the auction was considered a strong affirmation of the market's strength.