Auction News Network

No Bids Yet For Kate’s College Car

Before she was a Duchess, Kate Middleton tooled around in a 2001 Volkswagen at university and later used it to get to work in London.  The car was handed down to her brother. In ’09, he sold it to a neighbor whose son is now trying to sell it on eBay.  So far no buyers.  Maybe because the reserve price is $32,000.

Thorburn Leads Bonhams 19th Century Art Sale

Birds were Scottish painter Archibald Thorburn’s special subject, and of all his works “Peacock and Peacock Butterfly” may have been among the most memorable. This week it sold at Bonhams in London for $407,000, more than double its high estimate. Thorburn later said that painting the eyes on the peacock feathers gave him nightmares. Bonhams enjoyed a better sort of dream, as the sale of 19^th century realized $6.1m.

Contemporary Art’s Biggest Buyer? It Will Surprise You

Who’s acquired the most –and most valuable—modern and contemporary art in recent years? Hint: it’s not the Chinese or Russians, who’ve been getting most of the press attention. Rather, its buyers from oil-rich Qatar. Often acting through intermediaries such as French agent Philippe Segalot, collectors from the Gulf state have been behind the purchases of the $400m Sonnabend estate, a $310m collection of Rothkos,, and Andy Warhol’s $63.4m “The Men In Her Life,” to name just a few.

$1.6m For Austen Draft, $1.4m For Soccer Rules

An early Jane Austen manuscript sold at Sotheby’s yesterday for $1.6m, more than three times its high estimate. Austen wrote the unpublished 68 page heavily annotated draft of “The Watsons” in 1804.  It is, according to Sotheby’s, the only major Austen manuscript in private hands. At the same London event, the original rules of club football (or soccer, as we know it), sold for $1.4m, just over its low estimate.

Bonhams’ Quail Lineup: A Brough, A Porcupine & Two Eagles

For collectors of vintage motorcycles, the Brough Superior SS100 may represent the ultimate.  This flagship of the brand is thought to be one of the finest motorcycles ever produced—the favorite of such luminaries as T.E. Lawrence (of Arabia), and the 1940 example that Bonhams will offer at Quail Lodge next month has a particular claim to distinction: it’s the last to come with full factory records. At the August 18-19 event it will carry an estimate of $350,000-$450,000.

Imagine: A Guitar Played By Lennon & Dylan

Is there a guitar with a more stellar rock provenance? A 1967 Gibson J-160 E Sunburst acoustic-electric instrument formerly owned by both John Lennon and Bob Dylan is coming to auction later this month. Lennon used the guitar during the late 60’s, then gave it to Dylan, who played it until Lennon’s death.  Heritage is expecting over $200,000 for the instrument at the July 29^th auction.

Ryanair Founder’s Collection At Christie’s

Ryanair co-founder Dr. Tony Ryan bought Lyons Demesne, once one of Ireland’s finest houses, in 1996, after which the late billionaire restored the mansion and filled it with a vast amount of antique furniture and art. Of the 400-lots that Christie’s will offer on July 14^th in London, the most valuable item is likely to be an 18^th century portrait by Hugh Douglas Hamilton. Ryan paid over $600,000 for the pastel at Christie’s in 2000. On Thursday, it’s expected to fetch considerably less: $319,000-$478,00.

Update: The Hugh Douglas Hamilton portrait exceeded estimates at $537,239. In all, the sale brought in $4.7m, well above expectations.

Wynn’s “Gift” To China

Steve Wynn more than doubled down when he bought four Chinese vases at a Christie’s auction for eight times their high estimate.  He then gave the vases to the People’s Republic, but they will be displayed at the new Wynn resort in Macau yet to be built, pending final approval from the government. Wynn sprung for $12.8 million.

Glasses Bought For $1.91 Bring $25,472

Three 18^th century Beilby wine glasses bought for $1.91 at an English “car boot” sale sold at auction this past weekend for $25,472. After picking them up at the swap meet, the anonymous seller brought them to Stride & Son in Chichester for evaluation. Auctioneer Mark Hewitt, sensing their value, immediately placed them in a locked cabinet.

Millions Expected for Futurliner On eBay

General Motors built 12 Futurliner buses for the 1939 New York World’s Fair, of which just 9 remain. Part of their “Parade of Progress display,” the buses opened up to show what life would be like in a future replete with microwaves, radar, and televisions. The example that will be auctioned on eBay from July 8-18 is a product of a three-year restoration. Back in 2006, one sold at Barrett Jackson for $4.1m.  eBay is expecting its Furturliner to be the most expensive vehicle ever auctioned by the site.

Update: With a top bid of $505,600 the Futurliner failed to meet its reserve, and did not sell.

Bobby Jones’ Green Augusta Jacket To Be Sold

Golfing legend Bobby Jones acquired his green Masters jacket the old fashioned way: he co-founded the Masters Tournament, as well as the Augusta National Golf Club, where it’s played. For an Augusta jacket to hit the auction market is virtually unheard of, which is why this one is expected to fetch more than $100,000 at a Heritage Auction in Chicago on August 4^th. How does the club  feel about one of its revered blazers being sold? A club spokesman had no comment, which perhaps says it all.

Most Expensive Artwork Of 2011

More than half of the $76.5m that changed hands last night at Sotheby’s Old Masters auction in London came from the sale of just one painting. Francesco Guardi’s “Venice” sold for $42,865,102, bettering its high estimate by more than $2m. The price set a world record not just for the artist, but also for any work of art sold at auction this year.  Sotheby’s total for the event was $76,492,229, just under the high estimate for the night.

“Ghost Car” At RM

At the 1939 New York World’s Fair, the Pontiac Deluxe Six “Ghost car” drew crowds. For good reason: made of new “Plexiglass” acrylic, the transparent sedan showed people what their cars were made of and how they ran. After a nationwide tour of dealerships, the Pontiac spent several years on display at the Smithsonian. RM will offer it on July 30^th at the St. John’s (formerly Meadow Brook) Concours auction, where it’s expected to sell for $275,000-$475,000.

Update: the “Ghost car” sold for $308,000. Al Jolson’s 1932 Packard was the top lot at $1.1m.

Stubbs & Gainsborough Records In London

Modern and contemporary art may be the current rage, but it was considerably older paintings that ruled last night at Christie’s in London, where a sale of Old Masters brought in $80m. With one bid of $36m, a new world record was established for a work by George Stubbs, shortly after another had been set for Thomas Gainsborough, whose “Portrait of Mrs. William Villebois” scored $10.4m.

$1.4m Snuff Box Blows Past Estimates

As much as $240,000 had been expected for an 18^th century porcelain snuff box made for Poland’s king, August III. After a telephone bidding war, however, the box adorned with a Dresden landscape finally sold for $1.4m, which was more than five times its high estimate. The price was a new world record for a porcelain snuff box.