Leda and the Swan take the lead at Sotheby's
One of antiquiety's least represented motifs skyrocketed to the astronomical sum of 30.918.375 dollars
Recently discovered in Aske Hall, in north Yorkshire, the monumental marble sculpture from the II century A.D of Leda and the swan was the reighning lot in Sotheby's Antiquieties sale hosted last week in New York. The statue, without a parallel in history, was the subject of several bids by collectors worldwide, who for the first time chose to diversify their bidding methods by phone, online and in the sales room. Finally four bidders battled over the precious work that ended up multiplying by 10 its pre-sale estimate of two million dollars.
An Egyptian head of a king, from the Ptolemaic period, reighn of Ptolemy I-III, circa 304-200 B.C, from the collection of the late philanthropist and collector, Dodie Rosekrans, was sold to an online bidder for 3,722,500 dollars. Achieving not only a great hammerprice but also the highest bid ever registered online in a live Sotheby's auction.
The Rosekrans collection also included a marble head of Zeus from the Roman period, Circa 120-160 A.D, which was finally auctioned off in 3,554,500 dollars to the Metropolitan museum of Arts, revealing the agressiveness of American museums in teh market when dealing with an exceptional work.
Lastly another Egyptian bust of Tuthmosis III, 18th dinasty fetched 602,500 dollarson the web, surpassing its previous sale estimate of 150.000-250.000 dollars. The winter sale of Antiquities brought in a total of 30,918,375 dollars, relieving any symptom of the field's relapsing in the last months. At last the general idea that the market is responding very well to important works, of rariety and exceptional quality seems to be settling in.Alfonso Carbajo Agrasar
