This year’s Bonhams Annual Scottish sale made over £1,800,000, the highest since it moved into its new premises on Queen’s Street Edinburgh in 2008 and the second highest in the sale’s 11 year history.
Among the highlights were George Leslie Hunter’s ‘Still Life’ which was sold for £144,000 and Anne Redpath’s ‘Still Life with Michaelmas Daises’ which made £134,000 against a pre sale estimate of £30,000 – 50,000. Christmas gifts from Queen Victoria to her favourite servant John Brown also sold for well over their estimates. A silver mounted claret jug made £14,300 (est. £4,000-6,000) and an engraved teapot went for £9,000 (est. £5,000 – 7,000).
The Managing Director of Bonhams Scotland, Miranda Grant, said, “This is a fantastic result. We are the only international auction house committed to selling Scottish art in Scotland and I think our faith in the robustness of the Scottish market is paying off. Since moving to Queen Street we have worked hard to keep the showrooms busy throughout the year by increasing the number of sales and inviting other organisations to use the space to stage exhibitions and other events.
The success of the sale also shows that high quality pieces with a good, interesting provenance will always do well, even in a difficult economic climate. Established collectors continue to want the best and we are also seeing buyers looking for attractive places to invest while bank interest rates for savers remain so low.”
www.bonhams.com/eur/scottishsale/