A 19th century Thomas Eakins boxing nude soared to more than 6X its high estimate at Sotheby’s recent Photographs sale, but aside from that outstanding outcome, the results from the sale were altogether underwhelming. An overall Buy-In rate over 40% was the first culprit, followed in quick order by weakness in the middle and high price tiers. With only a handful of positive surprises to pump up the numbers, the Total Sale Proceeds (of roughly $2M) missed the bottom end of the aggregate pre-sale estimate range by a wide margin.
The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):
| Summary Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Total Lots | 188 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale Low Estimate | $2756500 |
| Aggregate Pre Sale High Estimate | $4190700 |
| Total Lots Sold | 110 |
| Total Lots Bought In | 78 |
| Buy In % | 41.49% |
| Total Sale Proceeds | $2004030 |
Here is the breakdown (using our typical Low, Mid, and High definitions):
| Detailed Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Low Total Lots | 79 |
| Total Low Lots Sold | 56 |
| Total Low Lots Bought In | 23 |
| Low Buy In % | 29.11% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Low Lots | $553700 |
| Total Proceeds from Low Lots | $308700 |
| Mid Total Lots | 101 |
| Total Mid Lots Sold | 52 |
| Total Mid Lots Bought In | 49 |
| Mid Buy In % | 48.51% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of Mid Lots | $2337000 |
| Total Proceeds from Mid Lots | $1399230 |
| Total High Lots | 8 |
| Total High Lots Sold | 2 |
| Total High Lots Bought In | 6 |
| High Buy In % | 75.00% |
| Aggregate High Estimate of High Lots | $1300000 |
| Total Proceeds from High Lots | $296100 |
The top lot by High estimate was lot 36, Richard Avedon, Dovima with elephants, Evening dress by Dior, Cirque d’Hiver, Paris, August 1955, 1955/1980, estimated at $180000-280000; it did not sell. The top outcome of the sale was lot 57, Thomas Eakins, Untitled (Male Nudes Boxing), c1883, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $327600 (image above via Sotheby’s).
75.45% of the lots that sold had proceeds in or above the estimate range and there were a total of 5 positive surprises in the sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate) (images above via Sotheby’s):
Lot 57, Thomas Eakins, Untitled (Male Nudes Boxing), c1883, estimated at $30000-50000, sold at $327600
Lot 79, Thomas Ruff, Anderes Porträt Nr. 133/1, 1995-1996, estimated at $1500-2500, sold at $6300
Lot 90, Jospeh Koudelka, Calais – Digue du nouveau port, 1988/1996, estimated at $8000-12000, sold at $27720
Lot 182, Hiro, Apollo – 11, 9:32 A. M. 7-16-69 Maiden Voyage To The Moon, 1969, estimated at $15000-25000, sold at $63000
Lot 184, Nan Goldin, Sharon in the river, Eagles Mere, Pa., 1995, estimated at $5000-7000, sold at $15120
The complete lot by lot results can be found here.
