Sotheby's Takes Record $79.8m Art

Bloomberg reports that Sotheby's in London sold 38.7 million pounds ($79.8 million) of Russian paintings, Orthodox icons, Faberge works and porcelain over the past two days, setting a record for the biggest Russian art sale. The previous record holder was Christie's International, the world's largest art auction house, which sold 28.2 million pounds of Russian art in London on Nov. 28, 2006. The Russian economy has been growing since 1999 and as wealthy Russians buy art to decorate homes and build collections, Prices have increased as much as 10-fold since 2000. The country has about 120,000 U.S. dollar millionaires, a figure that grows annually by 15 percent, said Deutsche Bank AG. "There's lots of new Russian art buyers who we've never seen before," said Nina Lobanov-Rostovsky, a London-based historian and art collector with more than 30 years experience in the market. "As long as the oil and gas continues to flow, rich Russians will feel confident and go on buying their national heritage." (For full source and full article click the Headline). Irish Art