Three top works from the late Hollywood star Elizabeth Taylor's art collection have sold at a London auction for nearly 14 million pounds ($22 million), the auctioneer Christie's said. The lot's biggest-selling item was Van Gogh's "Vue de l'asile de la Chapelle de Remy," which used to hang in the living room of Taylor's Bel Air home. The tan-and-turquoise landscape was sold for more than 10 million pounds (nearly $16 million) to an anonymous telephone bidder.
The two other pieces, a self-portrait by Edgar Degas and a landscape by Claude Pissarro, sold earlier in the evening.
Marc Porter, chairman of Christie's Americas, called the works the "crown jewel" of the showbiz legend's collection, and he said in a statement that the auctioneer hoped for more positive results when it offered the rest of Taylor's art collection later in the week.
Taylor died in March at age 79, and Christie's has been selling off her possessions piecemeal.
Last month, the auctioneer sold a 17th-century portrait that once hung over Taylor's fireplace for $2 million. In December, Christie's sold her collection of jewelry, fashion and memorabilia for well over $100 million, including $8.8 million for a diamond ring given to her by Richard Burton, whom she married twice.
Auction-house staff members taking telephone bids were packed three deep at the sale of 88 impressionist, modern and surrealist works.
Economic volatility and decreased returns on financial investments have spurred rich individuals to buy art as an alternative asset class. Sellers are encouraged by rising prices for museum-quality works
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