Gustav Klimt's *Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer* (1914-16) sold for $236.4 million at Sotheby's on November 18, becoming the second-most expensive painting ever sold at auction and the most expensive work ever sold by the house. The sale was part of New York's marquee November auctions, which generated over $2 billion in a single week—more than 50 percent above last year's total—driven by high-profile estates including that of cosmetics heir Leonard A. Lauder. Other notable sales included Mark Rothko's *No. 31 (Yellow Stripe)* for $62.2 million at Christie's, Marc Chagall's *Le songe du Roi David* for $26.5 million, and Frida Kahlo's *El sueño (La cama)* for $55 million, setting a new record for the artist and the highest sum for a work by a female artist at auction. Phillips also sold a juvenile Triceratops skeleton named CERA for $5.4 million.
This auction week matters because it signals a potential rebound in the art market after three years of tepid sales, with total sales surging over 50% year-over-year. The record-breaking prices for works by Klimt, Kahlo, and Rothko underscore sustained demand for blue-chip modern and contemporary art, while the inclusion of a dinosaur fossil in a contemporary art sale reflects the expanding definition of collectible objects. The Kahlo record, in particular, highlights growing market recognition of female artists, though the limited supply of her works due to Mexican export restrictions continues to drive prices upward.