Auction recap / Bonhams

Bonhams Concludes The Merkle Collection Auction Realizing €345,344

The sale of Meissen porcelain and decorative arts achieved a 50.6% sell-through rate, led by a rare drinking peasant figure that sold for €51,200.

PC Auction DeskSeptember 14, 2026Source reviewed / 22 citations / 3 sources

Bonhams Concludes The Merkle Collection Auction Realizing €345,344 — Illustration: Pricing Culture Studio

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Auction Math · 168 public lot recordsPC Auction Desk

€345.3K

Total realized

—

Estimate range (Σ)

51%

Sell-through

—

vs Σ high estimate

Facts Table · market analytics

Python computed · 2025-10-29

Lots offered: 168
Lots sold: 85
Lots unsold: 83
Sell-through rate: 50.5952%
Classified sold lots: 0
Pending classified lots: 85
Classification coverage: 0%
Realized value: €345,344
Average sold price: €4,063
Median sold price: €3,200
90th-percentile sold price: €8,448
Top 10% value share: 38.1764%
Value concentration (HHI): 3.61649%
Value concentration (Gini): 49.553%
Price dispersion: 144.014%
Lots within estimate: 75.2941%
Estimate surprise rate: 24.7059%
Realized / midpoint estimate: 111.491%

Lot value ladder

select a lot to inspect its image and result

Très rare statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un paysan buvant, vers 1740 A very rare Meissen figure of a drinking peasant, circa 1740

Estimate: €40,000–€60,000
Result: €51,200

Contextual data provided by Pricing Culture Analytics; this is not an exhaustive list. Pricing Culture Analytics organizes publicly available auction data to analyze and produce insights. Source-bound lot results; calculation version pc-auction-market-facts/2.0. Metrics with incomplete or mixed-currency inputs are withheld.

Auction highlights

	Estimate	Sold price
Très rare statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un paysan buvant, vers 1740 A very rare Meissen figure of a drinking peasant, circa 1740	€40–60K	€51,200
Très rare groupe en porcelaine de Meissen représentant des chanteurs d'opéra, la porcelaine vers 1745, décoré postérieurement A very rare Meissen group of opera singers, the porcelain circa 1745, later decorated	€15–20K	—
La bibliothèque de Hadrian Merkle: Une bibliothèque de référence pour la porcelaine de Meissen, la porcelaine européenne, la céramique et les arts décoratifs The Library of Hadrian Merkle: An extensive reference library relating to Meissen porcelain, European porcelain, ceramics and the decorative arts	€10–15K	—
Suite de cinq personnages en porcelaine de Meissen issus du ballet Le Carnaval des Ballets Russes, circa 1914-1923 A set of five Meissen figures from the Ballets Russes in the ballet Le Carnaval, circa 1914-1923	€10–15K	€12,800
Très rare statue en porcelaine de Meissen représentant une enchanteresse tenant un tambour de cérémonie Sámi, vers 1750 A very rare Meissen figure of an enchantress with a Sámi ceremonial drum, circa 1750	€6–8K	€12,160
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un paysan dansant avec une chope, vers 1740 A Meissen figure of a dancing peasant with a tankard, circa 1740	€8–12K	€10,240
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen de la série des grands « Cris de Paris » représentant un vendeur de bibelots, vers 1750 A Meissen figure of a trinket seller from the large Cris de Paris series, circa 1750	€3–5K	€9,600
Rare groupe en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un couple turc à cheval, ves 1930-33 A rare Meissen group of a Turkish couple on horseback, circa 1930-33	€7–9K	€8,960
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen de la série des grands « Cris de Paris » représentant un porteur, vers 1750 A Meissen figure of a porter from the large Cris de Paris series, circa 1750	€4–6K	€8,960
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un homme jouant la cornemuse, vers 1745 A Meissen figure of a man playing bagpipes, circa 1745	€3–5K	€8,960
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant L'Avocat ou un porteur de masque, provenant de la Maison de l'électeur, circa 1745-50 A Meissen figure of Avvocato or a masquerader from the Dresden Court Pantry, circa 1745-50	€7–9K	€8,960
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen de la série des « Cris de Londres » représentant Le médecin charlatan, vers 1755-60 A Meissen figure of the Quack Doctor from the "Cryes of London" series, circa 1755-60	€6–8K	—

Estimate track marks the pre-sale range; the tick marks the sold price. Lot photography: Courtesy Bonhams.

Contextual data provided by Pricing Culture Analytics; this is not an exhaustive list. Pricing Culture Analytics organizes publicly available auction data to analyze and produce insights.

Bonhams has concluded its sale of The Merkle Collection, realizing a total of €345,344 with a^[1] 50.6% sell-through^[1] rate. Bonhams published the official results for this third installment of the collection, which brought a specialized selection of European ceramics to the market. This session follows previous parts of the collection that were offered in Paris on Avenue Hoche and across France, establishing a multi-part dispersal of these historic decorative works.

The bidding activity revealed strong estimate discipline among the lots that found buyers. Of the sold lots, 75.2941%^[1] hammered within their pre-sale estimates, while the remaining portion contributed to an estimate surprise rate of 24.7059%. This high^[1] level of alignment with pre-sale expectations suggests that the pricing framework established by the specialists was well-calibrated to the current demand for early European porcelain.

Auction highlights

Sale file

Très rare statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un paysan buvant, vers 1740 A very rare Meissen figure of a drinking peasant, circa 1740 | estimate €40,000 to^[4] €60,000 | sold^[4] for €51,200 (within^[4] estimate)
Suite de cinq personnages en porcelaine de Meissen issus du ballet Le Carnaval des Ballets Russes, circa 1914-1923 A set of five Meissen figures from the Ballets Russes in the ballet Le Carnaval, circa 1914-1923 | estimate €10,000 to^[5] €15,000 | sold^[5] for €12,800 (within^[5] estimate)
Très rare statue en porcelaine de Meissen représentant une enchanteresse tenant un tambour de cérémonie Sámi, vers 1750 A very rare Meissen figure of an enchantress with a Sámi ceremonial drum, circa 1750 | estimate €6,000 to^[6] €8,000 | sold^[6] for €12,160 (above^[6] the high estimate)
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un paysan dansant avec une chope, vers 1740 A Meissen figure of a dancing peasant with a tankard, circa 1740 | estimate €8,000 to €12,000^[7] | sold for €10,240 (within^[7] estimate)
Statuette en porcelaine de Meissen de la série des grands « Cris de Paris » représentant un vendeur de bibelots, vers 1750 A Meissen figure of a trinket seller from the large Cris de Paris series, circa 1750 | estimate €3,000 to^[8] €5,000 | sold^[8] for €9,600 (above^[8] the high estimate)
Rare groupe en porcelaine de Meissen représentant un couple turc à cheval, ves 1930-33 A rare Meissen group of a Turkish couple on horseback, circa 1930-33 | estimate €7,000 to^[9] €9,000 | sold^[9] for €8,960 (within^[9] estimate)

This specialized auction represents a focused segment of the house's broader calendar. For context, Bonhams has realized €19,428,278^[1] across 269 lots sold year to date, maintaining an overall year-to-date sell-through rate of 85.4%.^[1]

Bonhams Concludes The Merkle Collection Auction Realizing €345,344

Facts Table · market analytics

Lot value ladder

Sources