Bonhams U.S. 2013 world records demonstrate strength across markets

NEW YORK, NY.- Salerooms at Bonhams in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco broke multiple records in 2013. Among the most prominent of its 2013 records were those achieved in the departments of 20th Century Decorative Arts, Asian Art, Books, California and Western Paintings, Coins and Medals, Entertainment Memorabilia, Furniture and Decorative Arts, and Motoring.

Entertainment Memorabilia:
Bonhams Entertainment Memorabilia Department made history in New York, selling the Maltese Falcon statuette from the cinema noir classic of the same name for $4,085,000, a record price for a movie prop at auction (non-automotive). The 12 inch-tall Falcon was the star of the Bonhams inaugural film history sale with partner Turner Classic Movies (TCM).

Charles Reiffel (American, 1862-1942), Rainy Evening, 1937. Oil on board, 36 x 48in. Sold for $398,500. Photo: Courtesy of Bonhams.

Coins and Medals:
Bonhams Coins and Medals Department found record-breaking success, achieving $2,574,000 from the sale of the 1880 $4 Stella Coiled Hair coin, which is the highest sold price ever recorded for a Stella, as well as its date and type. The Stella coin now holds one of the top 10 all-time highest priced US coin records.

Asian Art:
Bonhams Asian Art Department set a record price for a mixed-metal snuff bottle. An impressive gold plated silver and copper snuff bottle, Qianlong four-character mark, sold for $965,000 in the Fine Chinese Works of Art auction on December 17 in San Francisco.

Books:
Bonhams Books Department provided the highlight of New York’s 2013 Asia Week, surpassing expectations and setting records with their extraordinary eight-lot sale The Xi’an Incident: The Papers of Hyland “Bud” Lyon. A single signed letter written by Zhang Xueliang sold for $854,500, a record for a manuscript by China’s “Young Marshal.”

Motoring:
The Motoring Department had a banner year in the US, breaking several records at the Quail Lodge sale in Carmel, Calif. A 1931 Bentley 4.5-Liter Supercharged Le Mans racer from the Charles R.J. Noble Collection sold for $4,647,500 – a new record set for a production blower Bentley. At the Las Vegas Motorcycle Auction, Bonhams set a new record for a BMW motorcycle, selling a 1939 BMW Rennsport 255 Kompressor for $480,000.

California and Western Paintings:
Bonhams California and Western Paintings Department witnessed the sale of E. Charlton Fortune’s The Señora’s Garden, circa 1918, for $722,500. This is the second highest price reached at auction for the artist – second only to a record Bonhams set in 2007. Charles Reiffel’s Rainy Evening (1937) achieved the highest price for the artist at auction: $398,500. Bonhams also set the second highest price for Reiffel with To Wander (1938) at $206,500. Spring (1926), by John Frost, sold for an impressive price of $269,000 and is the highest price realized at auction since 2004.

Furniture and Decorative Arts:
Bonhams Furniture and Decorative Arts Department achieved a record price for a Florentine Grand Ducal jewel casket at auction on October 28 in San Francisco. The rare and important Italian relief pietra dura and gilt bronze mounted ebony jewel casket, with panels circa 1700, achieved $617,000 and soared past its $80,000-120,000 estimate. The department also saw success with a pair of brass and teak chairs by Lockwood de Forest that quadrupled their pre-sale estimate to sell for $242,500 in New York. It was a world record for furniture designed by the lauded American artist.

20th Century Decorative Arts:
Bonhams 20th Century Decorative Arts Department reaffirmed its position as a market leader in the field of Contemporary Studio Glass, achieving the world record price for a work by William Morris at $290,500 with the sale of the artist’s Sable Antelope, from his iconic 1995 Canopic Jar Series.