Website Designer: Jessie Lingenfelter
Chapter Eight
Chapter eight investigates the meteoric rise of the London art auction firm founded by James Christie. Our data show that the number of different art auction firms that were active in the market during the eighteenth century had dwindled, resulting in a near monopoly of this one firm by the end of the Napoleonic war period. As the market turned away from old paintings, Christie’s market dominance enabled the firm to establish itself as the central exchange platform for contemporary paintings. The trend was fueled by the recognition of mutually shared economic interest among all players. To that end and in close cooperation with dealers, the auction firm evolved towards performing certain market making and regulatory activities to check market volatility.