Sotheby's Autumn 2017 Hong Kong Sales Achieve $404 Million - 42% Increase Year-Over-Year -

HONG KONG, Oct. 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Sotheby's (NYSE: BID) Autumn 2017 Hong Kong auction series achieved a grand total of $404 million, against a low estimate of $309 million* and with a combined sell-through rate of 86%.

"Strong results this week in Hong Kong capped off more than a month of client events and exhibitions hosted by our outstanding team in Asia, including Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Taipei, Seoul and Tokyo," said Sotheby's President and CEO Tad Smith. "Bidding and buying from the Mainland throughout the week was meaningful, with the majority of our top ten lots selling to buyers in China.  Their participation helped to drive a 42% increase in sales compared to one year ago and bring our annual total for major auctions in Hong Kong to over $810 million, the highest level since 2014."

Top prices achieved spanned centuries and categories with sixteen auctions records established:

• A Highly Important and Extremely Rare Ru Guanyao Brush Washer
  Northern Song Dynasty
  Sold for $37.7 million
  World Auction Record for Chinese Ceramics
                               
• Li Keran'sMagnificent Mountains with Gushy Cascades, 1978
  Sold for $15.6 million
                              
• Yun Gee'sWheels: Industrial New York, 1932
  Sold for $13.5 million
  Record for the Artist at Auction
                              
• Fu Baoshi, Trekking over Mountains in Moonlight
  Sold for $11.9 million
                       
• Very Rare and Impressive Ruby and Diamond Ring, Designed and Mounted by BHAGAT
  Sold for $10.5 million
                                  
• A Rare and Important Imperial White Jade and Cloisonné Enamel Ram-Head Teapot & Cover
  Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period
  Sold for $9.7 million
  Record for a Jade Carving at Auction
                                   
• Wine Auctions Total $9.2 million
  Wines from the Cellar of FUX Restaurant Sold for $3.8 million
                                 
• An Extremely Fine and Rare Blue and White 'Bajixiang' Bowl and Cover
  Marks and Period of Xuande
  Sold for $6.6 million
                                  
• Gerhard Richter'sAbstraktes Bild (679-2), 1988
  Sold for $6.3 million
                             
• An Exceptional Blue and White 'Makara' Jar
  Mark and Period of Xuande
  Sold for $4.5 million
                               
• An Outstanding and Extremely Rare Gilt-Bronze Dancing Figure of Tara Pitti Uddiyana
  Incised Mark and Period of Xuande
  Sold for $3.8 million
                                     
• A Fine, Superb and Rare Blue and White 'Fruit' Meiping
  Ming Dynasty, Yongle Period
  Sold for $3.5 million
                                 
• A Sapphire Tonneau-Form Skeletonized Tourbillon Wristwatch RM56-02 by Richard Mille
  Sold for $1.9 million

*Estimates do not include buyer's premium. Prices achieved include the hammer price plus buyer's premium and are net of any fees paid to the purchaser where the purchaser provided an irrevocable bid.

About Sotheby's

Sotheby's has been uniting collectors with world-class works of art since 1744. Sotheby's became the first international auction house when it expanded from London to New York (1955), the first to conduct sales in Hong Kong (1973), India (1992) and France (2001), and the first international fine art auction house in China (2012). Today, Sotheby's presents auctions in 10 different salesrooms, including New York, London, Hong Kong and Paris, and Sotheby's BidNow program allows visitors to view all auctions live online and place bids from anywhere in the world. Sotheby's offers collectors the resources of Sotheby's Financial Services, the world's only full-service art financing company, as well as the collection advisory services of its subsidiary, Art Agency, Partners.  Sotheby's presents private sale opportunities in more than 70 categories, including S|2, the gallery arm of Sotheby's Global Fine Art Division, and two retail businesses, Sotheby's Diamonds and Sotheby's Wine. Sotheby's has a global network of 80 offices in 40 countries and is the oldest company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (BID).

New York| +1 212 606 7176 | Lauren Gioia | Lauren.Gioia@Sothebys.com |
Dan Abernethy | Dan.Abernethy@Sothebys.com

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SOURCE Sotheby's