A total of 82 artworks realized over 240 billion rials ($4.8 million) in sales at the 19th edition of the Tehran Auction that focused on classic and modern Iranian art.

According to The Iran Project,Held on January 26 at the Parsian Azadi Hotel in Tehran, the auction offered 89 works from 69 artists, including 82 paintings and 7 sculptures, of which 82 items, over 90 percent of the total lots, were sold, ILNA reported on Saturday.

At the event, where veteran actor Reza Kianian served as the auctioneer, the 82 sold artworks pulled in 2,417,200 billion rials ($4,834,400). Four items grossed over 100 billion rials ($200,000) each and 53 more works went under the hammer at over 10 billion rials ($20,000). 

Sohrab Sepehri’s untitled painting from the “Tree Trunks” series led the auction, selling for 204 billion rials ($408,000). The hammer price for the oil on canvas work was in line with expectations as it was estimated between 200 billion rials ($400,000) and 220 billion rials ($440,000). 

The second most expensive work was a calligraphy painting by Hossein Zenderoudi titled “Who’s Watching?” painted in 1974, which was sold for 142 billion rials ($284,000).

Another untitled painting by Sepehri was also among the top three works of the auction, selling for 140 billion rials ($280,000).

The fourth highest auction price, 132 billion rials ($264,000), belonged to a gouache on cardboard painting by Aydin Aghdashloo titled “Mors and Vita” from the “Memories of Destruction” series painted in 2009.

This round of the auction offered artworks by classic and modern artists including Hossein Qollar-Aghasi, Mahmoud Farshchian, Mahmoud Zangeneh, Sadegh Tabrizi, Parviz Tanavoli, Monir (Shahroudy) Farmanfarmaian, Faramarz Pilaram, Masoud Arabshahi, and Mohammad Ehsai among many other notable figures. 

The first of its kind in Iran, the Tehran Auction was launched in 2012 as an independent and private initiative to introduce the best in Iranian art, ranging from established and emerging Iranian artists to art collectors and the global audience.

It is aimed at addressing the increasing interest in modern and contemporary Iranian art and facilitating the acquisition of quality works in reliable ways.