A new record was created at the third Christie’s India auction held at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai with an untitled oil painting by India’s famous abstract painter Vasudeo S Gaitonde fetching a whopping Rs 29.30 Crore.
As per reports, 5 bidders, on telephone and in the room, battled for Gaitonde’s work and finally it was purchased by an anonymous person, an international buyer, over phone. The price notched above its pre-sale estimate and broke the previous auction record of Rs 23.70 Crore set by the same artist at Christie’s inaugural India edition in 2013. Gaitonde died in 2001.
London based Christie’s, the world’s largest auction house, revealed that a total sale amounting to Rs 97.69 Crore was made in the auction. It exceeded the pre-sale estimate of Rs 75.60 Crore and became the highest total for any auction ever held in India. 73 percent of lots were sold for above pre-sale estimate.
The auction for the first time included classical art and much to the shock of many, a tenth century granite figure of a Dvarapala fetched whopping Rs 1.70 Crore.
