In the first month of 2023, everything old was new again. All of the top 15 most expensive lots sold at auction came from Old Masters sales at Sotheby’s and Christie’s. The two houses each achieved white glove sales, with Christie’s bringing in $62.8 million and Sotheby’s raking in an impressive $86.6 million, totals not seen in this market for years.
“There is little question that new buyers are beginning to recognize the fundamental value in Old Masters,” veteran art dealer Robert Simon told Eileen Kinsella, “especially in contrast to contemporary art.”
After a short-lived “failed experiment” to move its Old Masters sales to April, Christie’s returned to its traditional January slot, helping to bolster the sales as marquee calendar events. A handful of artists achieved new records at auction, including Peter Paul Rubens for the grisly depiction of Salome presented with the head of Saint John the Baptist, which fetched the top price of the month at $26.9 million. Other notable lots include Francisco Goya’s double portrait, which sold for $16.4 million, comfortably within its presale estimate of $15 to $20 million, doubling the artist’s previous auction record of just $7.6 million.
Canaletto’s painting of the Rialto Bridge in Venice came from the collection of late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, and was held back from the “Visionary” sale staged at Christies last November. The work sold for just $2.7 million, which Old Masters expert Milo Dickinson noted was a testament to the power of context, as it surely would have achieved significantly more money if sold among the other Allen masterpieces.
Below, see the full list of the top 15 most expensive works sold at auction in January 2023.
1.Peter Paul Rubens,
Estimate: $25 million to $35 million
Final Price: $26.9 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
2. Francisco Goya,
Estimate: $15 million to $20 million
Final Price: $16.4 million
Where & When: Christie’s New York, January 25, 2023
3. Bronzino,
Estimate: $3 million to $5 million
Final Price: $10.6 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
4. Orazio Gentileschi,
Estimate: $4 million to $6 million
Final Price: $4.9 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
5. Valentin de Boulogne,
Estimate: $4 million to $6 million
Final Price: $4.89 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
6. Joseph Mallord William Turner,
Estimate: $4 million to $6 million
Final Price: $4.62 million
Where & When: Christie’s New York, January 25, 2023
7. Bernardo Cavallino,
Estimate: $2.5 million to $3.5 million
Final Price: $3.92 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
8. Georges de La Tour,
Estimate: $3.5 million to $5 million
Final Price: $3.68 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
9. Anthony van Dyck,
Estimate: $2 million to $3 million
Final Price: $3 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
10. Pieter Brueghel the Younger,
Estimate: $2.5 million to $3.5 million
Final Price: $2.94 million
Where & When: Christie’s New York, January 25, 2023
11. Frans van Mieris the Elder,
Estimate: $1.5 million to $2 million
Final Price: $2.71 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
12. Jean-Baptiste Oudry,
Estimate: $1.5 million to $2 million
Final Price: $2.7 million
Where & When: Christie’s New York, January 25, 2023
13. Canaletto, (1740)
Estimate: $2.5 million to $3.5 million
Final Price: $2.7 million
Where & When: Christie’s New York, January 25, 2023
14. Master of the Spinola Annunciation,
Estimate: $2 million to $3 million
Final Price: $2.43 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023
14. Pieter Brueghel the Younger, (1630)
Estimate: $2 million to $3 million
Final Price: $2.23 million
Where & When: Sotheby’s New York, January 26, 2023