Picasso portrait of mistress sells for $41 million The auction, coming a day after a tepid affair at rival Christie's which fell short of its $209 million low estimate, is likely to somewhat unsettle the art market to ahead of next week's sales of post-war and contemporary art, an arena that has seen sharply escalating prices over the past decade. The results of both sales were remarkably similar, from the prices of their top lots and percentage of works sold to buyers' carefully controlled bidding. While several works sold within their estimated range (estimates do not include commission of about 12 per cent) and a few went significantly higher, there were noteworthy casualties including another Picasso, "Plant de tomate," estimated at $10 million to $15 million which could not draw a $9 million bid. Strong prices were attained by Picasso's "Le Viol," a work on paper from the collection of Greek shipping magnate George Embiricos which soared to $13.5 million against an estimate of only $5 million, and Monet's "Champ de ble," being sold by the Cleveland Museum of art, which fetched $12.1 million or nearly double the estimate. Another Picasso, "Femme à la robe verge," estimated at $6 million to $8 million, also went unsold. The auctions continue next week when both Sotheby's and Christie's hold their sales of post-war and contemporary art. Latin American sales follow later in November.