For the week ending March 10th 31 sales were archived; 2 in Mexican pesos, 4 in British pounds, 11 in US dollars and 14 in Euros.  17,747 lots were offered and 12,669 sold.  71.4 percent of all lots sold raising $20,354,802 that was 143.4% of the aggregate high estimate for all sales.  It was another strong week.

Fifteen of the thirty-one sales reached or exceeded 100% of their aggregate high estimate:

Piasa.  Ancient and Modern Books on March 6th:  334%

Heritage Auctions.  Vintage Comics and Comic Art on February 22^nd:  305%

Dorotheum.  Modern Prints on March 1^st:  174%

Ferraton.  Books and Cartographies, Second Vacances on February 18^th:  169%

Ferraton.  Books and Cartographies, First Vacances on February 17^th:  163%

Aguttes.  Modern and Ancient Books on March 1^st:  144%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Photography on March 8^th:  142%

Doyle New York.  Doyle at Home on March 7^th:  137%

Rupert Toovey.  Prints on January 25^th:  134%

Heritage Auctions.  Illustration Art Signature online on March 1^st:  125%

Bruun Rasmussen.  Old Prints on February 29^th:  120%

Neret – Minet & Tessier.  Archeology on March 2^nd:  119%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Printed Books and Maps on March 7^th:  109%

Bruun Rasmussen.  Modern Prints on March 6^th:  108%

Alde.  Jacques Montessaro Library I on February 27^th:  107%

For the week ahead 21 sales are scheduled:

Monday March 12^th  Christie’s.  Photographic Masterworks by William Eggleston [2642]
Dorotheum.  Books and Decorative Prints [9271]

Tuesday March 13^th  Ader.  Ancient and Modern Books [18356]                                  

                                                Bruun Rasmussen.  Modern Prints [1211a]

Wednesday March 14^th  Bruun Rasmussen.  Old Prints [1211b]

                                                Lyon and Turnbull Ltd.  The Blair Sale [345]

                                                Sotheby’s.  The Collection of Giovanni and Gabriella Barilla [L12309]

Thursday March 15^th Antiquarian Auctions.co.za.  Rare Books [17]

                                                Bloomsbury Auctions.  Bibliophile [35884]

                                                Gray’s Auctioneers.  Fine Books and No Reserve Books [56]

                                                Heritage Auctions.  Rare Books Online [201211]

                                                Kapandji Morhange.  Books, Stamps, Autographs from Mathier Varille’s Library [18846]

                                                PBA Galleries.  Fine Literature [475]

                                                Swann Galleries.  The Eric C. Caren Collection:  How History Unfolds on Paper, Part II [2273]

                                                Tajan.  Photographs [9718]

Friday March 16^th  Kapandji Morhange.  Books, Stamps, Autographs, Documents from Mathieu Varille’s Library [18847]

                                                The Romantic Agony Book and Print Auctions.  Books [47]

Saturday March 17^th  Addison and Sarova.  Rare and Fine Books [31712]

                                            The Romantic Agony Book and Print Auctions.  Books continued… [47]

Sunday March 18^th      National Book Auctions.  Books [31812]

                                                National Book Auctions.  Books and Ephemera – Archaeology, Obama, Nautical, Coins, etc
 [03182012]

There is a sense of recovery and selected but inconsistent strength evident.

Bruce McKinney

AE

March 11^th, 2012