Sotheby's celebrated its 40 years of business in Asia by raising a better-than-expected HK$4.2 billion (US$542 million) in Hong Kong, a record for the global auction house's autumn sales in the city.
Sotheby's biannual sales in Hong Kong are considered a barometer of demand from China and elsewhere in Asia for some of the world's most expensive artworks and luxury goods. As many as 16 records were set at the five-day event.
Among the highlights was Zeng Fanzhi's painting "The Last Supper" — inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's work of the same name - which sold for US$23.1 million, setting a record for a piece of Asian contemporary art.
The final result was hailed as a success by Sotheby's, exceeding its forecasts of some US$370 million for the more than 3,500 lots on offer. The amount was almost double the US$280 million Sotheby's sold at its spring Hong Kong sales in April.
"We've taken the pulse of the Asian art market - it's racing and we are racing with it," Sotheby's Asia Chairman Patti Wong said in a statement, adding that the result "demonstrates the importance of Hong Kong as an international selling center."
A 118.28-carat white diamond fetched US$30.6 million, a world auction record for such a gem and the most expensive item sold during the event. The buyer's identity was not disclosed.
China's diamond market, now the world's second-largest after the United States, has more than tripled to US$22.8 billion over the last five years, market research firm Euromonitor says.
Another record was set by a massive Ming gilt-bronze figure of a seated Shakyamuni Buddha, which was bought by a Chinese collector from Guangdong Province for US$30.3 million.
While prices for some paintings and ceramics were strong, the jewelry auction saw around a quarter of pieces go unsold.
Demand for fine Chinese paintings was robust, with 95.3 percent of works sold by lot. They included the auction favorite, Chinese ink master Zhang Daqian's "Spring Dawns Upon the Colorful Hills," which sold for US$4.47 million.
