Sales calendar

Spring (March to June) is the season of major sales of old masters, modern painting and contemporary art, with the Hong Kong and Basel fairs. Summer is quiet, with sales of furniture and objets d'art. Autumn (September to December) is the most intense season, with the major evening sales in New York, London and Paris.

Winter begins with sales of books, tribal art and photography, before spring picks up. This calendar is stable, but houses add themed sales throughout the year.

An auction is prepared several weeks in advance. The buyer consults the catalogue, asks for condition reports, visits the exhibition and sets a price ceiling. They may bid in the room, by telephone, by commission bid or online.

Fees should be allowed for: the buyer's commission (around 21%), any VAT, transport, insurance. A bid of €100,000 may ultimately cost €130,000.

More and more houses organise themed sales: collections of a single collector, sales devoted to one artist, charity sales. These sales benefit from targeted promotion and attract specialised buyers.

Sales of famous collections, in particular, often reach prices above estimates. They come with a reference catalogue, which contributes to the documentation of the works.