Russian artist Vasili Polenov was the undisputed star of the Russian art auction at Bonhams in London Wednesday. Two works by the artist — “He That Is Without Sin” (1908) and “He Is Guilty of Death” (1906) — each soared above estimates to sell for £4.1 million ($6.4 million) and £2.8 million ($4.4 million), respectively. The higher price set a world auction record for work by the artist.

“He That Is Without Sin” had a pre-sale estimate of £1.2-1.8 million ($1.9-2.8 million), and “He Is Guilty of Death” was estimated to sell for £600,000-800,000 ($930,000-1.2 million). Both works were part of a series of 60 paintings by the artist called “Life of Christ,” and neither had been seen at auction before.

The Bonhams auction followed Russian art sales at Christie’s and Sotheby’s in London earlier in the week. The last auction of the week will be Thursday at MacDougall’s, the specialized auction house that deals solely in Russian art.

— Shane Ferro

“He That Is Without Sin”

“He Is Guilty of Death”

Tags: Artist Records, Bonhams, Russian art, Vasili Polenov