Christie’s Americana Week 2012 Totals $24.8 Million

Highest Total For Category Since 2007

New York – The final sale of Americana Week, The Peter H. Frelinghuysen Jr. Collection, totaled $1,109,250/ £709,920/ €854,122 and was 95% sold by value and 85% sold by lot. The six sales series that comprise Americana Week realized $24,816,375, marking the highest total for the category since 2007.

Becky MacGuire, Head of Chinese Export Art, comments: “All the ingredients of success were in the saleroom today - excellent quality, great rarity and the provenance of a wonderful, old collection – and the market responded. There were multiple bids for nearly all lots, in person, on the phones, in the auctioneer’s book and from Christie's Live. Private buying was strong, and included bidders from Europe, Asia and Latin America. Mr. Frelinghuysen was a longtime, treasured client and we are extremely gratified by the results of his sale.”

John Hays, Deputy Chairman, Christie’s Americas, comments: “Christie’s spectacular results across all categories of American decorative arts and export porcelain demonstrate the enduring excitement for rare and important artifacts in the Americana marketplace. Enthusiastic participation from the widely visited auction previews and the Rhode Island symposium, to the competitive bidding in the sale rooms, reflected the vibrancy and appeal of these collecting categories. We were especially pleased with the results of the week’s top lots: Audubon’s Birds of America, the Washington Hamilton wine cooler, the colonial masterpiece by John Townsend and the massive pair of Famille Rose Jardinieres, all of which demonstrate that superior quality and rarity will consistently yield encouraging results in this category.”

Click here to read the full press release.