Founded in London in 1744, it is a leading auction company in the international auction market for books and manuscripts in the world, with experts in English literary studies
Sam. Samuel Baker founded Sotheby's in London in 1744 (the ninth year of Qianlong) and held its first auction. Since then, Sotheby's has expanded from auctioning books to auctioning a wide variety of works of art. Since then, Sotheby's has become not only the oldest art auctioneer in the world, but also the number one auctioneer.
As the end of the First World War drew to a close, Sotheby's auctions expanded to include prints, medals and coins. In 1917, the company moved to the world-famous New Bond Street in London, where it became Sotheby's London headquarters. Taking root in this fashionable street heralded the dawn of a new era at Sotheby's, where famous paintings and other works of art began to sell for more than books and documents. The diversification of the auction was an important decision at the time, and laid a solid foundation for the future leadership of Peter Wilson and the development of the company. Currently, Sotheby's has more than 100 offices worldwide.
Mr. Wilson joined Sotheby's in 1936 and took up the role of a leader in leading the company to the international stage. The most famous and influential auction of his tenure was the Goldschmidt auction in 1958. It was a time when the Impressionist and Modern painting boom was booming, attracting 1,400 attendees. In just twenty-one minutes, all seven works were sold, with a total of £78,100, making it the most expensive art auction at the time. Paul Mellon won Cézanne's Garçon au Gilet Rouge for £22,000, more than five times the record at the time. This was probably the most sensational art auction of the 20th century, and it became the focus of the social circles of the year.
Thanks to Mr. Wilson's vision, Sotheby's was able to see the potential of the art market in the world long before its rivals. In 1955, Sotheby's opened a New York office and in 1964 acquired Parket-Bernet, the largest art auctioneer in the United States, and since then it has played a pivotal role in the burgeoning North American Impressionist and Modern painting market.
As the largest auctioneer in the U.S. and a member of Sotheby's, Mr. Bonett is actively expanding overseas and seeking more opportunities. In the 70s, overseas offices were opened in Europe, the United States, Australia and other places, and in 1974, Sotheby's Hong Kong was opened, becoming the first international auction house to set up a base in Asia, and the first auction was held in the same year.
In the early 80s, despite the uncertain economic situation in the market and enterprises, the American entrepreneur Mr. A. A. Tauberman. Alfred Taubman and a group of investors acquired Sotheby's in 1983. Since then, a series of important auctions have further established Sotheby's market position. Dramatic auction processes, impressive auction prices, and coveted collections have all gone down in history.
The 1987 Duchess of Windsor jewellery auction on the shores of Lake Geneva was particularly impressive. In addition to the celebrities who attended the venue, there were also bids from New York by satellite and telephone bids from all over the world. The spectacular auction recorded a total of $50 million, more than five times the pre-auction estimate.
In the late '80s, Sotheby's auctioned Impressionist and Modern art in New York and London, fetching $1.1 billion. Auction prices have been rising to incredible levels, and the boom in the auction market has attracted unprecedented attention from the global media. Following on in the footsteps of success, Sotheby's was once again listed in New York in 1988.
By the early 90s, the world was in a recession. With 250 years of history and experience, Sotheby's has mastered the ups and downs of the art market. Over the next decade, the impressive results were evident to all, with significant expansion of the London and New York locations. In the spring of 2000, Sotheby's New York's headquarters on York Avenue added six floors to consolidate offices and warehouses, as well as separate exhibition spaces for each specialist department. One of the most talked about is the gallery on the 10th floor, which has been described as "one of the most wonderful exhibition venues in New York, comparable to any museum in New York City." In addition, Sotheby's London opened a separate auction office in Olympia in 2001 to handle the overcrowding of business.
In 2000, Sotheby's became the first international auctioneer to hold an auction on the Internet. Some auctions on Sothebys.com website have been unexpectedly successful, such as the first printing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, which sold for $8 million. There is also the historic Boston Garden floor and a masterpiece by Lord Frederick Leighton. In addition, Sotheby's has moved traditional live auctions to the Internet for public bidding through the real-time auction service on eBay.
