Bids roll in for Christie’s Charlie Watts sale

The landmark two-part sale, Charlie Watts: Gentleman, Collector, Rolling Stone, including literature and jazz from the late drummer’s collection at Christie’s, realised an overall total of £3,815,280.

Part I of the sale realised £2,751,588, followed by Part II at the end of September which achieved £1,063,692.

The sales comprised over 500 lots, with 40% of registrants new to Christie’s and bidders from 32 countries. Significant records were set for over 70 important literary works, more than 15 globally-acclaimed authors and a range of jazz memorabilia.

Part I was led by an important presentation copy of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a book which defines the Jazz Age, inscribed to ‘the original Gatsby’, which sold for £226,800.

Part II was led by A Damsel in Distress by P.G. Wodehouse which sold for £21,420.

Following multiple world auction records set in Part I including Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles, Agatha Christie’s The Thirteen Problems and Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited, Part II achieved a number of further records including the world record for a signed photograph of Josephine Baker.

Benedict Winter, Specialist, Private & Iconic Collections and Mark Wiltshire, Specialist, Books & Manuscripts at Christie’s, commented: “It has been a real privilege for Christie’s to offer Charlie Watts’s outstanding collection of literature and jazz to the world, opening a remarkable window into his lifelong passions. From the sale announcement, to exhibitions in Los Angeles, New York and London, through to the live and online auctions, Charlie’s exceptional taste has captivated the hearts of fans, connoisseur collectors and institutions globally.”