CHRISTIE'S NY FINE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS  MAY 16TH 2006 THIS CATALOG CONTAINS 199 LOTS WITH:

CHRISTIE’S NEW YORK ESTABLISHES NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT WHEN 1707 STRADIVARI VIOLIN SELLS FOR $3.5 MILLION The Hammer Surpasses Previous World Auction Record By $1.5 million New York – In today’s sale of Fine Musical Instruments, a violin known as The Hammer made by Antonio Stradivari in 1707, achieved $3,544,000, smashing the previous world auction record for any musical instrument against a presale estimate of $1,500,000-2,500,000. This price largely surpasses the previous record of $2,032,000 realized by The Lady Tennant Stradivari sold in April 2005 at Christie’s New York. With only 620 Stradivari in existence, The Hammer survives in a wonderful state of preservation. With its superb outline and the use of the finest materials, the violin dates from the maker’s ‘Golden Period’ (1700-1720). These works are the ones most coveted by collectors and musicians for both their beauty and superior tonal qualities. The violin’s name, The Hammer, derives from the 19th century Swedish collector of the same name (Christian Hammer). The sale of Fine Musical Instruments totaled $5,501,680, achieving the highest sale total in musical instrument auction history.LOT PRICE ESTIMATE BUYER 199 $3,544,000 £1,885,106/¤2,768,750 $1,500,000-2,000,000 Anonymous Antonio Stradivari, a violin known as The Hammer, Cremona, 1707 A WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT 196 $204,000 £108,511/¤159,375 $140,000-200,000 European Trade Giovanni Francesco Pressenda, a violin, Turin, 1828 35 $192,000 £/102,127¤150,000 $100,000-150,000 U.S. Trade Gibson Incorporated, a solid body electric guitar, Les Paul model, Kalamazoo, 1960 1 $180,000 £95,744/¤140,625 $50,000-60,000 U.S. Private Herman Hauser, a classical guitar, Reisbach, 1948 A WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE MAKER 72 $180,000 £95,744/¤140,625 $60,000-80,000 U.S. Trade Francesco Ruggieri, a violin, Cremona, 1694 198 $156,000 £82,978/¤121,875 $50,000-70,000 U.S. Private Spirito Sorsano, a violin, Cuneo, circa 1736 A WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE MAKER 195 $92,400 £49,149/¤72,188 $65,000-75,000 U.S. Trade Attributed to Sanctus Seraphin, a violin, Venice, 18th century 194 $66,000 £35,106/¤51,563 $50,000-70,000 U.S. Trade Jean Baptiste Vuillaume, a violin, Paris, 1850 73 $60,000 £31,915/¤31,915 $60,000-80,000 U.S. Private Giovanni Tononi, a violin, Bologna, circa 1696 103 $57,600 £30,638/¤45,000 $30,000-40,000 U.S. Trade Carlo Giuseppe Oddone, a violin, Turin, 1922 A WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE MAKER b-3 s-3