LONDON - The work of Indian and Pakistani artists made record prices at Bonhams, the international fine art auction house in London on May 21, 2007. A packed saleroom saw fierce bidding for work by Jamini Roy (India 1887 -1972), Sadequain (Pakistan 1937-87), Sakti Burman (India born 1935) and Jamil Naqsh (Pakistan born 1939). All broke their existing top prices to establish new world records for these artists.

Jamini Roy’s picture titled, `Musicians’, sold for £90,000 against an expected pre-sale estimate of £30,000 to £40,000. Previous top price for a Roy was £33,500.

Sadequain’s `Cactus’ made £57,600, significantly up on its £10,000 to £15,000 estimate. The previous top price for a Sadequain was £55,000.

Sakti Burman’s `Circus’ made £55,200 against an expected estimate of £10,000 to £15,000. This artist’s previous best price was £50,000.

Jamil Naqsh’s Blue Woman with Dove made £33,600 against an estimate of £15,000 to £25,000. His previous best was £28,800.

Claire Penhallurick, Head of Indian and Islamic Art at Bonhams said: “We were delighted with these prices. Making new world records for the artists whose work we deal in is one of the great pleasures of our work.”

Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son and Neale UK. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America and in August 2003, Goodmans, a leading Australian fine art and antiques auctioneer with salerooms in Sydney, joined the Bonhams Group of Companies. Today, Bonhams is one of the largest one of the largest and fastest growing auction houses in the world. It offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street, and Knightsbridge, and a further 10 throughout the UK. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Boston in the USA; and Switzerland, France, Monaco, Australia and Hong Kong. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 50 specialist areas. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments, go to www.bonhams.com