Rothko Sells for $75.1 Million at Sotheby\'s

After last week's lackluster auctions of Impressionist and modern art at Sotheby's and Christie's, Sotheby's kicked off this week's post-war and contemporary auctions with a big sale on Tuesday night. Mark Rothko's “No. 1 (Royal Red and Blue)'' from 1954â€"a classic Rothko canvas and about as conspicuous an example of “wall power” as any trophy hunter could hope forâ€"sold to a telephone bidder for $67 million, or $75.1 million with Sotheby's fees, well above its estimate of $35 million to $50 million. (Final prices include the buyer's commission to Sotheby's: 25 percent of the first $50,000; 20 percent of the next $50,000 to $1 million and 12 percent of the rest. Estimates do not reflect commissions.)

Rothko's abstract canvases have starred at other auctions over the last five years. David Rockefeller sold a 1950 painting for $72.8 million at Sotheby's in 2007, setting a record for the artist at auction that was topped in May, when Christie's got nearly $87 m illion for “Orange, Red, Yellow,'' from 1961.