Chinese Art Appraisal

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Selling Your Chinese Art at an Auction House

Commissions: In the U.S. and U.K., most auction houses base their commissions on the hammer price. A general rule followed by most auction houses is that if the price is less than or equal to $3,500, the commission is 25-30% of the hammer price. For prices under $20,000, the commission is 25%. For prices over $20,000, the commission is around 15% of the hammer price. In China, regardless of the sales price, the usual commission is about 10% of the hammer price. Recently, China Guardian Auction House raised their commission from 10% to 12%. Other Chinese auction houses may soon follow their lead.

Charges and Fees: Selling at an auction house involves various charges and fees. For example, as the seller, you will pay for a loss and damage warranty, unsold charge, illustration charges, web advertising charges, withdraw consignment charge, insurance, and other possible fees. The amount of charges and fees is determined by the estimates of value proposed by the auction house. Therefore, an honest estimate of your art work is both necessary and cost-effective. You don’t want to pay for the value that does not exist.

Going to the big auction houses may not be the best option. If your Chinese art object is not of significant value (more than $50,000), you might consider selling it somewhere other than Christie’s and Sotheby’s.  These auction houses tend not to accept for sale art objects of lower value and objects from low-profile art owners. They may give you a vague or ambiguous message about why they are not interested in taking your Chinese art object. Also, not hearing word from the large auction houses for a stretch of 4-6 weeks after you make the request is normal.

Trying less prestigious but well-respected auction houses may bring you top dollar.  Ask your agent to locate the auction houses specializing in your kind of art work and to open a channel of communication with them on your behalf. You or your agent can check up on the auction house giving them a call and asking them some informed questions.

Don’t be intimidated by auction house representatives or other buyers. Their interests may be purely financial or they may have non-aesthetic reasons for their choices. Remember too that the overworked staff at auction houses also has to make quick judgments based on their subjective experience and their understanding of what their superiors at the auction house need at the moment. They may not be expert in the kind of art you have. If you are convinced by the analysis and the fair market value proposed by a qualified Chinese art appraiser, then, have faith in your Chinese art object and be patient with the process of selling it.

If your Chinese art work is unusual and of high quality, sooner or later the Chinese art market will recognize it and appreciate it.