USA: THE SALE OF A TIFFANY LAMP FOR ALMOST 3 MILLION US DOLLARS SETS A RECORD AT CHRISTIE'S NEW YORK

Record ID: 639951

  • Title: USA: THE SALE OF A TIFFANY LAMP FOR ALMOST 3 MILLION US DOLLARS SETS A RECORD AT CHRISTIE'S NEW YORK
  • Date: 12th December 1997
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (DECEMBER 12, 1997) (RTV - ACCESS ALL) 1. LV/PAN DOWN EXTERIOR OF CHRISTIE'S AUCTION HOUSE, SEEN FROM MANHATTAN'S PARK AVENUE (2 SHOTS) 0.20 2. VARIOUS OF PINK LOTUS LAMP BY TIFFANY STUDIOS (2 SHOTS) 0.44 3. VARIOUS VIEWS FROM SALE ROOM AS TIFFANY PINK LOTUS LAMP IS SOLD FOR 2,550,000 US DOLLARS (THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE CHRISTIE'S COMMISSION) (3 SHOTS) 1.17 4. SV NANCY MCCLELLAND OF CHRISTIE'S GIVING REASONS WHY THE LAMP BROUGHT SUCH A HIGH PRICE, "IT'S THE EXCEPTIONAL GLASS USED IN THIS LIGHT SCREEN, UM, IT'S TIFFANY'S FAVRILE GLASS OR HANDMADE GLASS. AND YOU SEE ALL OF THE WONDERFUL COLORATIONS OR COLORATION DIFFERENCES WITHIN THE SINGLE PIECES OF GLASS AND THIS IS WHAT MAKES TIFFANY EXCEPTIONAL." (ENGLISH) 1.39 5. CU VIEW OF TIFFANY PINK LOTUS LAMP 1.45 6. SV MCCLELLAND CONTINUES TO TELL WHY LAMP SOLD SO WELL: "IT WAS ALSO THE IMPORTANCE OF THE LAMP. PEOPLE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS LAMP FOR A LONG TIME. IT WAS ALWAYS CONSIDERED THE MOST IMPORTANT AND THE MOST DESIRABLE TIFFANY LAMP. AND I THINK IF WE CHECKED PROBABLY HERE AT CHRISTIE'S THERE WERE FIVE PEOPLE BIDDING ON THIS LAMP TODAY. SO THERE WAS VERY, VERY STRONG INTEREST." (ENGLISH) 2.03 7. CU LAMP 2.13 Initials S3,P3 Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
  • Embargoed: 27th December 1997 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City:
  • Country: USA
  • Reuters ID: LVACLD3Y7C79V2U8B3DNLD2UPW4E
  • Story Text: - INTRO: The sale of a Tiffany lamp for almost 3 million US dollars has set a record at Christie's in New York.

    The Pink Lotus Lamp by Tiffany Studios was auctioned for 2.8 million US dollars on Friday (December 12) to a telephone bidder who wished to remain anonymous.

    The amount established a new world auction record for the 20th century decorative arts (1.6 milllion US dollars) and surpassed the previous record for a Tiffany lamp (1.1 million US dollars).

    Nancy McClelland of Christie's said the 2.8 million US dollars sale was a "function of the importance of the lamp." McClelland said collectors had been waiting for this lamp to go on the market for a long time. "It was always considered the most important and the most desirable Tiffany lamp," she said.

    The Pink Lotus Lamp has a leaded glass shade of waterlilles, with their flowers, buds and leaves in varied shades of pink, red, yellow, green and blue.

    Aside from it's beauty, McClelland said the lamp's history makes it extraordinary. It was commissioned around 1905 from the Tiffany Studios by the Wrigley family of Chicago, founders of Wrigley chewing gum.


  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register