Two outstanding paintings by Russian artist Vasili Polenov were recently sold for record-braking sums at an art auction held by Bonhams in New York. The two masterpieces had never been part of an auction before, but they raised a lot of interest at the event. Titled “He Is Guilty of Death” and “He that Is Without Sin”, the paintings fetched £2.8 million ($4.4 million) and £4.07 million ($6.4 million), respectively.
Part of a collection of sixty paintings that made up the “Life of Christ” series, the two works of art “were unquestionably the most important works by Polenov to ever come up for auction.” The entire collection was only exhibited once, back in 1909. The two paintings surprised everyone when bids started rising far above the presale estimates. Yelena Harbick, the Director of Russian Fine and Decorative Arts, said: “we are delighted with the prices realized”, and there is no doubt they were!
