Hindman auctioneers announced the phenomenal success of its inaugural Antiquities & Islamic Art auction. Enthusiastic bidding from buyers around the globe participating by phone, absentee bid and four online bidding platforms, sent the June 16 auction well past its low estimate of $601,800 to a $991,325 total. Hindman is not new to the antiquities category, but this sale marked its first auction focused exclusively on ancient art. The auction featured artifacts from ancient Mediterranean Greek, Egyptian, Roman and Near Eastern cultures, as well as selections from the Islamic world and Pre-Columbian Central and South America.
“We have been encouraged by some leading players in the ancient art market to boost our presence in the category,” says Hindman Specialist Corbin Horn. “There is a significant portion of material in the middle of the market that is overlooked by New York and London firms, who focus all their effort on the highest end. We saw the opportunity to have such an auction when, late last year, we pitched for and won the privilege of handling a large collection of antiquities from the estate of George R. Francoeur, an educator and philanthropist in Detroit,” Horn says. “I spent several months seeking items from other collectors and dealers in the field to build on the Francoeur collection.”
While the 277-lot auction featured items from more than 20 consignors, the core of the auction came from the remarkable George R. Francoeur Trust from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Assembled over more than 40 years by Mr. Francoeur and his partner, Gerald Earles, as they traveled around the world, the highly curated collection included a broad variety of art and artifacts. Bidders could not get enough of the collection as it more than doubled its combined presale estimate of $250,000, selling for $583,942. A benefactor of the arts in Michigan for most of this life, Mr. Francoeur’s collection was sold to benefit a scholarship fund in his name at Cranbrook Academy of Art.
The Antiquities and Islamic Art auction was held on June 16 in Hindman’s Chicago saleroom with all bidders participating remotely. The sale saw tremendous interest online with nearly 70% of the sale’s total coming from online bidders participating live across four online platforms. Hindman’s proprietary online bidding platform was the single largest bidder category accounting for over $350,000 of the sale’s total.
Hindman is now welcoming consignments for the next Antiquities and Islamic Art auction to be held in November.
