Sir Peter Paul Rubens (Siegen 1577-1640 Antwerp)
Samson and Delilah (recto); Figure studies, probably of soldiers (verso) (£1.5-2.5 million). Courtesy Christie’s Images Ltd., 2014. UPDATE: SOLD FOR £13.2 MILLION.
A drawing by Sir Peter Paul Rubens was the top lot at the sale of the I.Q. van Regteren Altena collection Part I at Christie’s in London on July 10. Samson and Delilah made a world record price of £3,218,500 in a sale which brought in £13.2 million and established 15 auction records.
Benjamin Peronnet, International Head of Old Master Drawings at Christie’s said: “We are elated with the results of the first sale of the collection of IQ van Regteren Altena. With a sale total of over £13 million it more than doubled the pre-sale high estimate. Over 15 auction records were set for drawings by Northern artists, including seven of the top ten sale results. Extraordinary prices were achieved for great masters such as Peter Paul Rubens, Hendrick Goltzius, and Jacques de Gheyn II, as well as for extremely rare artists such as Jan Lagoor, Johan Verwer and Abraham Rutgers. There was nearly unprecedented participation across the market with international museums, private collectors and dealers aggressively bidding throughout the sale in a crowded saleroom, on the telephone and online. This first sale of the most important collection of Old Master Drawings to appear on the market in over a generation will stand as a landmark auction in the history of Old Master Drawings sales. The enthusiasm exhibited in the saleroom by bidders and buyers today is a fitting homage to the great scholar and connoisseur, I.Q. van Regteren Altena.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for February 24, 2014)