Albert Anker Auction Prices and Value Guide

Albert Anker auction prices are tracked in Appraisily's artist market index, with source-directory coverage of 1,207 records. Use this page to review sold-lot activity, market context, and valuation factors before requesting a formal appraisal.

Albert Anker auction prices: quick answer

Albert Anker auction prices depend on medium, size, date, condition, provenance, edition details, attribution confidence, and recent comparable auction sales.

Artist
Albert Anker
Source records
1,207
Market update
2026-02-06

Artist context

About Albert Anker

Albert Anker (1831–1910) was a Swiss painter, illustrator, and watercolorist widely regarded as Switzerland's national painter for his enduring depictions of 19th-century Swiss rural and village life. Born and later based in the municipality of Ins, Anker studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and briefly at the Académie Colarossi, absorbing French academic technique while remaining devoted to distinctly Swiss subject matter. His carefully composed genre scenes—children at lessons, village gatherings, quiet domestic interiors, and still lifes—combine Realist observation with an idealized warmth that made them immensely popular during his lifetime and beyond. Active from roughly 1851 until his death in 1910, Anker also produced illustrations and served in Swiss political life. His work is held in major Swiss museum collections, and his name remains a reference point for Swiss cultural identity in the visual arts.

Genre paintingOil on canvasWatercolorDrawingIllustrationSwiss rural lifeChildren and village scenesStill life

Common works and media

Anker's most frequently encountered works at auction are oil-on-canvas genre paintings depicting Swiss rural life—children reading or writing, village schoolrooms, family meals, and seasonal farm activities. Still-life compositions, often featuring arranged objects with meticulous detail, form another significant category. Watercolors and ink drawings, including preparatory studies and illustration work, appear regularly but at lower price levels. Plateel (faience) painting is also recorded among his activities. Collectors may also encounter Anker's illustrations from published editions. Signed works with clear provenance and catalogue raisonné numbers are the most desirable.

Market and appraisal context

Albert Anker commands a deep and well-established secondary market with 510 auction lots recorded in the Appraisily index dating from 2004 through March 2026, of which 312 carry realized prices. The price distribution is wide: the median sits at CHF 18,240, the 75th percentile at CHF 72,000, and the top-end reaches CHF 2,625,000, indicating that premier oil-on-canvas genre scenes can achieve seven-figure results. At the same time, the 25th percentile (CHF 2,500) and a floor of CHF 200 reflect the regular circulation of minor works on paper, studio copies, and attributions. The market is concentrated in Swiss houses—Koller Auctions leads in volume, followed by Artcurial Beurret Bailly Widmer—though Sotheby's and Christie's also appear, confirming international blue-chip interest. Recent top results include CHF 500,000 (Artcurial BBW, March 2026), CHF 240,000 (Koller, November 2025), and CHF 220,000 (Koller, November 2024), suggesting that the upper tier has remained active and stable. Liquidity has moderated slightly: 17 priced lots in the trailing 12 months versus 31 in the prior period, which may reflect consignment timing rather than demand softening given the strong individual prices achieved.

Auction categories and appraisal factors

Common auction categories

  • Oil on canvas
  • Watercolor
  • Drawing
  • Illustration

Value drivers

  1. [object Object]

Appraisal caveats

  • No specific realized price data was available in this source pack; collectors should consult recent auction records for current market benchmarks.
  • Anker's output was prolific and spans several decades; condition, date of execution, and subject all materially affect value.
  • Prices in the source pack are denominated in both CHF and EUR; the CHF 200–2,625,000 range should be interpreted with currency context in mind. The EUR 200 floor lot at Derksen Veilingbedrijf is an outlier in currency and venue.
  • Seven of the 24 most recent lots show null priceRealised (bought-in or post-sale results pending), which means the actual sell-through rate is lower than the raw lot count suggests.

Evidence

Sources for artist context

This source-grounded artist context passed Appraisily's promotion threshold: high confidence, strong sources.

Source-grounded artist Markdown

Data basis

This page is built from Appraisily's public auction market index. Private transactions, incomplete sale feeds, and attribution changes may not be fully represented.

LLM-readable Markdown summary for Albert Anker

LLM summary index · LLM full index

Artist value FAQ

How much is Albert Anker worth?

Comparable public auction sales are the best starting point, but final value depends on the specific artwork, condition, size, medium, provenance, and attribution confidence.

Can Appraisily value my Albert Anker artwork?

Yes. Appraisily can review photos, dimensions, signatures, condition, provenance, and comparable market data to prepare a current valuation.