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The One Percent.
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Monterey 2026 closed at a record USD 758.3 million, up 75% on last year. But sell-through was flat at 75%: the same proportion of cars sold, at much higher prices. A supply story wearing a demand headline.
Luxury collectibles are now the second-largest revenue stream at Christie’s and Sotheby’s. The houses are not selling watches for the margin, they are buying a client relationship at twenty-five to consign a painting at fifty.
Combined auction sales at Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips reached USD 6.77 billion in the first half, up nearly 70%. But close to a third came from single-owner collections and lot counts remain below the peak.
As the United States commemorates 250 years since its founding, two extraordinary portraits of George Washington . .
