Founded in London in 1766 by James Christie, Christie’s currently organises around 600 sales annually in over 80 categories from fine and decorative arts to collectibles, wine and cars.

Christie’s also provides a range of auction-related services, including a secure storage facility (CFASS), education courses (Christie’s Education), a network of high-end real estate broker agency (Christie’s Great Estates), and heritage and taxation advice.

Christie’s is recognised for its expertise and the quality of its client relationships, with a reputation for its strong sense of integrity, and these are strengths which have enabled it to play a major role in the international art market. Through their long experience and in-depth knowledge of the art market, Christie’s specialists are acknowledged as the authority in their field.

In 2008, 629 works of art were sold for a unit price of over $1 million. The most expensive lot was Claude Monet’s painting “Le Bassin aux nymphéas” sold in London for £40.9 million.

Other highlights for the year included the Evening Sale of Impressionist and Modern Art in June in London which realised a total of £660 million, and the sales of Post-War and Contemporary Art totalled £597 million.

In Asia, Christie’s maintained its leadership position with a 55% market share. 2008 sales in Hong Kong totalled £249 million, up 6% on 2007.

In 2008, Christie’s enjoyed a huge success with the Interiors sales concept, recently launched in London, New York and Paris.

Active in the Middle East since 2005, Christie’s has continued to expand in the region, with sales in Dubai and a major exhibition of paintings and jewellery in Abu Dhabi in October.

Christie’s France confirmed its solid results in the French market, with sales volumes of £118 million.

July 2008 marked the second anniversary of LiveTM, real-time Internet bidding access, which recorded bidding volumes of £57 million in 2008.

Chief Executive Officer of Christie’s International: Edward Dolman