London, 30 June 2026 - Marking the start of Christie’s Classic Week London summer sales, the Old Masters Evening Sale and The Exceptional Sale: Masterworks Across Cultures realized a combined total of £50,717,740 (US$66,947,417 / €58,832,578). The sales were led by Sir Thomas Lawrence’s celebrated portrait of Britain’s greatest military hero the Duke of Wellington, which sold for £9,670,000 (US$12,764,400 / €11,217,200), establishing a new world auction record for the artist, and an important Egyptian Limestone Pair Statue from the Hovingham Hall Collection, which realized £3,710,000 (US$4,897,200 / €4,303,600).
OLD MASTERS EVENING SALE IN SUMMARY
The Old Masters Evening Sale realized £38,940,700 (US$51,401,724 / €45,171,212), selling 96% by value and 90% by lot. In addition to the Lawrence, further highlights included:
Two superlative examples showcasing Jan van Huysum’s technical virtuosity and sophisticated compositions sparked consecutive bidding battles, each breaking the previous record for the artist: Fruit and flowers in a wicker basket sold for £6,516,000 (US$8,601,120 / €7,558,560) and Flowers in a terracotta vase sold for £5,540,000 (US$7,312,800 / €6,426,400).
Rubens’s sketch Aeneas helping Dido from her horse, Property from The Grosvenor Family Collection, sold for £2,734,000 (US$3,608,880 / €3,171,440). Few surviving oil sketches by the artist so completely embody the spontaneity of his creative imagination.
Maja Markovic, Head of Old Masters Evening Sale, London: “This evening’s results speak to the continued strength of the Old Master market, with the sale achieving its highest percentage sold by lot to date. Sir Thomas Lawrence’s beautifully preserved portrait of the Duke of Wellington, offered from the collection of the late Sir Robert Ogden, C.B.E., Hon. L.L.D. (1936 to 2022), more than quadrupled the previous record for the artist, established by this very picture almost a decade ago, achieving a new world auction record and underscoring its storied provenance and historical importance. The technical brilliance of Jan van Huysum, celebrated in his own day as the ‘ Phoenix of Flower Painting’, was recognized in the record prices achieved for each of his two superlative still lifes, recalling the remarkable results they achieved when last offered more than 20 years ago. Further world auction records were established for Adélaïde Labille-Guiard’s elegant portrait of the Marquise de La Valette and John Melhuish Strudwick’s poetic late Pre-Raphaelite masterpiece, contributing to six records set in the sale.”
| Lot | Price realized |
|---|---|
| Sir Thomas Lawrence, portrait of the Duke of Wellington (world auction record for the artist) | £9,670,000 (US$12,764,400 / €11,217,200) |
| Jan van Huysum, Fruit and flowers in a wicker basket | £6,516,000 (US$8,601,120 / €7,558,560) |
| Jan van Huysum, Flowers in a terracotta vase | £5,540,000 (US$7,312,800 / €6,426,400) |
| Egyptian Limestone Pair Statue, Hovingham Hall Collection | £3,710,000 (US$4,897,200 / €4,303,600) |
| Sir Peter Paul Rubens, Aeneas helping Dido from her horse | £2,734,000 (US$3,608,880 / €3,171,440) |
(Press Release)
