Sotheby's and Christie's are pretty close.
At €190m, Sotheby's France figures represent a nine per cent increase over 2010. Christie's edged ahead of their competitors, recording sales of €199m in France, a 13 per cent increase and their best figures since 2009 when the Yves Saint Laurent sale put them way out in front at an exceptional €455m. While the Saint Laurent sale would be a hard act to follow, Christie's figures were given a boost by the Château de Gourdon sales which contributed €43.8m.
In terms of individual results, the big two produced plenty of the Paris market's top prices, with 29 lots surpassing the €1m level at Sotheby's and 21 at Christie's.
Art Curial, who registered sales of €127m, held on to their third position. This represents a 23 per cent increase on the €102.8m recorded in 2010, impressive in the context of last year but slightly less than the 28 per cent increase seen the year before. They also saw seven results topping the €1m mark.
Drouot, the communal auction facility in the city centre used by most Paris auctioneers, which reorganised its management structure last summer, recorded an eight per cent increase to €475m (€440m in 2010).
Piasa, who led the Drouot roll-call of auctioneers in 2010 at €45m, thanks to results like their €9m Daniel Carasso Collection, were down this time on €23.5m (although that figure does not include any of the €10.2m Fabius Frères sale that Piasa held in association with Sotheby's).
Other Drouot totals for 2011 include Gros et Delettrez on €38m (thanks in no small part to the €23.7m garnered from the Paul Louis Weiller collection); Millon on €38.7m (Paris and Swiss figures combined), Pierre Bergé & Associés on €38.3m (Paris and Brussels operations combined), and Beaussant Lefevre on €21.3m.
Tajan recorded €42.6m of sales at Drouot, their Espace Tajan and Monaco, a 12 per cent increase that was boosted by an €8m sale of the collection of Jorge de Brito in October.
Aguttes' sales at Drouot, Neuilly and Lyon Brotteaux combined yielded €36.6m, a nine per cent increase over 2010.
In a year where 15 of their individual lots surpassed the €1m level, Drouot's top individual price was the premium-inclusive €2.91m for a Mayan figure of a seated divinity from the H Law Collection sold by Binoche & Giquello in March.
Beyond the French capital, the Ivoiregroup, which has 12 salerooms around the country, recorded €80.4m.
All figures quoted are premium-inclusive.
