Amadeo Modigliani Sculpture sets record

A limestone bust of a woman with an upswept hairdo by Amedeo Modigliani sold for $52.6 million at Christie's in Paris on Monday, making it the priciest artwork ever sold at auction in France.

"Tête" also sets a new record price for Modigliani, the Italian modernist who is better known for his jewel-toned portraits of women with swan-like necks. Modigliani's paintings have sold for as much as $31 million at auction, but his sculptures are coveted in part they are rare. Only 10 of his 27 sculptures remain in private hands, with museums owning the rest, Christie's said.

This 1910-12 work, which depicts the head of a woman with a tribal-mask of a face and a sweeping bouffant, comes from the storied collection of Gaston Levy, the founder of retail-chain Monoprix who bought "Tête" in 1927. Christie's, which offered the work on behalf of Mr. Levy's heirs, priced it to go for up to $7.2 million but wound up toggling 20 bidders over the course of a 10-minute bidding war. The winner chose to remain anonymous, the house said.

Overall, Christie's brought in $60 million from its sale of Impressionist and modern art in Paris. Christie's and Sotheby's major round of summer art auctions kick off in London on June 22.