NEW YORK, NY.- Classic art triumphant. That's the market message of the past four weeks as Christie's completed two hugely successful sales series of classic art. The 12 auctions totaled almost $140 million and featured pictures, drawings, furniture, sculpture, antiquities, the entire range of decorative arts, as well as books and manuscripts.

The Irene Roosevelt Aitken Collection, featuring five sales offering the contents of one of the last great treasure houses of New York, totaled $28,869,005, and was 96 percent sold by lot, and 172 percent hammer and premium against low estimate. Bidders and buyers came from 34 nations across the globe. The Aitken apartment displayed the refinement and grandeur of the 18th century that included British and French society portraits, Meissen porcelain figures, one of the world's greatest collections of gilt-bronze and blue john objets by Matthew Boulton, precious mounted celadon porcelains, rare Savonnerie carpets, and Russell Aitken's world-famous European arms collection (much of which was given to the Metropolitan Museum), all set off by an impressive array of French and English furniture by distinguished makers such as Chippendale, Cobb, Leleu and BVRB. To further Irene Aitken's legacy of generosity, proceeds of the sale of the collection will go to the three New York cultural institutions closest to her heart: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Frick Collection and the Morgan Library and Museum.

Top results included two paintings each of which realized, $889,000: Thomas Lawrence's portrait of Lady Berkeley, and a pair of portraits of the Duc and Duchesse Belle-Isle by Quentin de La Tour. Other top results included $698,500 for two different lots, Alexander Roslin's portrait of the Marquis de Marigny, and a pair of Louis XV Ormolu-mounted Chinese Celadon porcelain ewers. More highlights include a pair of ormolu-mouonted Meissen porcelain models of magpies, which made $311,150; a pair of George III Ormolu-mounted Blue John and Aventurine blue glass 'Sphinx' perfume vases by Matthew Bolton that fetched $393,700; a Fabergé bloodstone snuff box shaped as the head of a hippo, which made $698,500.

The Deputy Chairman of Christie's European Furniture and Decorative Arts Department, Will Strafford, said: “From the moment the sale was announced, clients from all over the world were entranced by the story of this hidden treasure trove on Fifth Avenue, known only to a handful of cognoscenti and curators. The names of Annie Laurie, Russell and Irene Roosevelt Aitken will now find their rightful place in the pantheon of great American collectors and will be added to the rollcall of landmark single owners sales held at Christie's, alongside those of Rothschild, Getty and Wrightsman. Buyers responded with extraordinary enthusiasm, drawn to the history and rarity of the pieces in this remarkable collection. It was with great pride that Christie's orchestrated these sales, particularly as all the proceeds will benefit those institutions so dear to Irene Aitken: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Frick Collection and the Morgan Library and Museum.”

Classic Week

The seven sales of Classic Week in New York totaled $110,004,491, more than doubling any previous New York Classic Week total. The sales were 167 percent sold hammer + premium versus low estimate and 86 percent by lot. This formidable result was based on the continued strength of the Old Masters market, evidenced by the depth of bidding throughout the week. Among the most important results were Canaletto's view of the Venetian Lagoon during a well-known annual celebration, Venice, the Bucintoro at the Molo on Ascension Day, which made $30 million, the third highest price at auction for a work by the artist. The other top five highest prices in the Old Masters Part I sale all had competitive bidding. Artemisia Gentileschi's Self Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria made a record $5,687,000; a Botticelli Madonna and Child realized $5,199,000. Christie's also achieved a world record with the sale of Michelangelo's red chalk Study for a foot of the Libyan Sibyl in the Sistine Chapel which made $27.2 million in a 45 minute bidding war, one of the longest in recent memory.

The week began with Antiquities, led by magnificent pair of Roman porphyry columns, circa 2nd century AD, recently on long‑term loan to The Metropolitan Museum of Art and once part of the collection of William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor (1848–1919) at Hever Castle, Kent, which realized $508,000. A Life of Discerning Passions: The Collection of H. Rodes Sr. and Patricia Hart: Live featured an important group of Renaissance sculptures, including a Bronze Group of Henri IV on Horseback, which made $1,651,000. Johannes Kepler's Mysterium cosmographicum of 1596 was the top result in the Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts including Americana: Online, making $889,000.

The sales in chronological order:

Classic Week

3 FEB | Antiquities (Classic Week)
Total: $5,689,092

4 FEB | Old Masters (Classic Week)
Total: $54,130,050

4 FEB | Old Master Paintings and Sculpture Part II (Classic Week)
Total: $3,509,899

5 FEB | A Life of Discerning Passions: The Collection of H. Rodes Sr. and Patricia Hart: Live (Classic Week)
Total: $8,014,970

5 FEB | Old Master and British Drawings (Classic Week)
Total: $30,512,287

22 JAN – 5 FEB | Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts including Americana: Online (Classic Week)
Total: $7,377,049

22 JAN – 6 FEB | A Life of Discerning Passions: The Collection of H. Rodes Sr. and Patricia Hart: Online (Classic Week)
Total: $771,144

Aitken

11 FEB | Irene Roosevelt Aitken: The Dining Room and British Paintings
Total: $7,630,541

12 FEB | Irene Roosevelt Aitken: The Drawing Room and French Paintings
Total: $9,864,000

13 FEB | Irene Roosevelt Aitken: The Library, Bedrooms and Objects of Vertu
Total: $8,795,512

4 – 18 FEB | Irene Roosevelt Aitken: A Love of the 18th Century
Total: $1,029,716

4 – 19 FEB Irene Roosevelt Aitken: A Life on 5th Avenue
Total: $981,202