A historic fortnight in London has come to a spectacular close as Christies Classic Week realized a staggering total of £68,110,243. The spotlight shone brightest on the Imperial Winter Egg by Fabergé, which fetched a world-record £22,895,000, while J.R.R. Tolkien’s Merton College desk soared to six times its estimate at £330,200. From the £3.4M sale of “Spike” the dinosaur to record-breaking results in Books and Manuscripts, the auction house reaffirmed its dominance in the Old Masters and Antiquities markets. These standout results prove that the appetite for exceptional, one-of-a-kind artifacts remains stronger than ever. Discover the full highlights and see why Christie’s continues to lead the global art market!
AUCTION RESULTS
Two weeks of standout results – from Fabergé’s Winter Egg achieving £22,895,000 to Tolkien’s Merton College desk selling for six times its estimate.
VIEW RESULTS
£68,110,243
Sale total (total hammer + premium)
Classic Week concludes with impressive results across all categories. Christie’s continues to lead the Old Masters market in London for the third successive year, with combined July and December Evening Sale totals of £67,975,680. Elsewhere, Groundbreakers set the pace with major moments, including a Kenbak-1 reaching a world-record £114,300 and Spike, the Caenagnathid dinosaur, achieving £3,466,000.
Books and Manuscripts recorded the highest result for this sale since 2016, and Antiquities also delivered exceptional results. Meanwhile, Arnout Tholinx, Inspector, achieved the highest price for an Old Master print at auction in The Sam Josefowitz Collection: Graphic Masterpieces by Rembrandt van Rijn – Part III.
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Auction highlights
Gerrit Dou (1613–1675)The Flute Player£3,832,000
Estimate: £2,000,000–3,000,000
Old Masters Evening Sale, 2 DecemberVIEW LOT
A magnificent and highly important Imperial Winter EggBy Fabergé, St Petersburg, 1913£22,895,000
The Winter Egg and Important Works by Fabergé, 2 DecemberVIEW LOT
William Blake (1757–1827)The Tyger£228,600
Estimate: £80,000–120,000
Old Masters to Modern Day Sale, 3 DecemberVIEW LOT
A Greek marble draped female figurec. 2nd century BC£139,700
Estimate: £80,000–120,000
Antiquities, 3 DecemberVIEW LOT
William Harvey (1578–1657)Exercitatio anatomica de motu cordis…, 1628£1,016,000
Estimate: £800,000–1,200,000
Valuable Books and Manuscripts, 10 DecemberVIEW LOT
J.R.R. Tolkien’s Merton College DeskLate 19th century£330,200
Estimate: £50,000–80,000
Groundbreakers: Icons of our Time, 11 DecemberVIEW LOT
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