Auction of Streisand collection boosts Christies result

Christies International sold the 20th century decorative arts collection of the singer Barbra Streisand for pounds 4.1m in the first half of 1994, helping the auction house to improve interim pre-tax profits by 15 per cent to pounds 8.1m. Adam and Eve by Tamara de Lempicka, above, fetched a record USdollars 1.98m. Total auction sales rose 19 per cent to pounds 390m, slightly down on the pounds 399m in the second half of 1993.

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