This October, Sotheby's will present Magnum Opus: A Private Collection of Exceptional Art and Objects Through the Ages. Assembled over decades by a single, deeply committed collector, the collection encompasses more than 900 works spanning millennia and continents — from Roman imperial marble, Old Master paintings, ancient Near Eastern ceramics, Islamic court carpets, and royal French furniture to Impressionist masterworks and exceptional 20th century design. Yet what distinguishes it is not its sheer breadth, remarkable as it is, but the singular intelligence that binds it. Across every medium and every era, a set of abiding preoccupations with the human form, with the dialogue between material and meaning, and with the enduring power of provenance holds the collection together as a coherent and deeply personal vision.

In an immersive public exhibition at the Breuer, opening October 17 and running through October 22, works from the collection will be displayed across four floors of the building and then offered across an historic series of four single-owner sales in New York, together comprising more than 600 works and estimated to realize in excess of $60 million. Unfolding over three consecutive days, the series opens with the Magnum Opus Evening Auction, showcasing the collection's most exceptional masterworks across categories, before continuing through three thematic day sales: Act II: Figure & Form, Act III: Darkness & Light, and Act IV: Ornament & Texture.