Edgar Payne auction records and market history
Selected public auction results for Edgar Payne, each linked to its source. Prices are as published by the auction house or results database, generally including buyer's premium. These are public auction results for paintings unrelated to Steven Stern Fine Arts' own sales, which are never published.
Top and representative public results
| Painting | Auction house | Date | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riders on Horseback | Christie's, Beverly Hills | 30 Apr. 2008 | $553,000 | [1] |
| Canyon de Chelly (ca. 1916–19), oil on canvas, 26 × 32 in. | Coeur d'Alene Art Auction | July 2022 | $484,000 | [2] |
| Solitude's Enchantment (1921), oil on canvas, 43 × 43 in. | Coeur d'Alene Art Auction | 2018 | $476,000 | [3] |
| Arizona Indians | Scottsdale Art Auction | Apr. 2022 | $438,750 | [2] |
| View of the Glacier & Palisades, oil on canvas, 40 × 50 in. | Coeur d'Alene Art Auction | — | $402,500 | [3] |
| Monument Valley, Riverbed, oil on canvas, 25 1/4 × 30 1/4 in. | Bonhams, Los Angeles | 2 Aug. 2016 | $323,000 | [4] |
| Red Mesa, Monument Valley, Utah | Christie's, Beverly Hills | 30 Apr. 2008 | $289,000 | [1] |
| Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, oil on canvas, 29 × 29 in. | Bonhams, Los Angeles | 8 Apr. 2014 | $112,500 | [5] |
| View Across Dragon Lake, oil on canvas, 25 × 30 in. | Bonhams | 3 Aug. 2021 | $62,812.50 | [6] |
| Brittany Boats, oil on canvas, 28 1/8 × 34 1/8 in. | Bonhams (online) | Aug. 2025 | $33,280 | [7] |
| Valley of St. Gervais, oil on canvas on board, 12 × 16 in. | Bonhams, Los Angeles | 6 Aug. 2013 | $11,875 | [8] |
What the databases say about the overall market
Results databases count Payne's auction history differently, but they tell a similar story. ArtSell records 431 lots offered between 2005 and 2026, about 90% of them sold, with a median of roughly $27,500, and lists Bonhams as by far the most frequent seller. TheBasis.Art records 315 results from 1998 to 2026 with a median of $22,950. MutualArt gives the auction record since 1998 as $553,000 for Riders on Horseback (Christie's, 2008); ArtSell, whose coverage starts in 2005 and covers fewer houses, lists $484,000 for Canyon de Chelly (2022) as its highest.
In other words, most Payne paintings that come to auction sell for tens of thousands of dollars, while a small number of large, important canvases, mostly Southwestern and Sierra subjects, have reached several hundred thousand.
Why a single price can mislead
Every result reflects one painting's subject, size, condition, quality, provenance and the day it sold. Two paintings with similar titles can be worth very different amounts. If you own a Payne, the factors are explained on What is my Edgar Payne painting worth?, and Steven Stern Fine Arts offers a free, confidential evaluation.
Sources
- Christie's, California, Western and American Paintings, Drawings and Sculpture, Beverly Hills, 30 April 2008, lot 21, Edgar Alwin Payne, Riders on Horseback, price realised US$553,000. christies.com.
- ArtSell, "Edgar Alwin Payne auction prices" (431 lots offered 2005–2026; record Canyon de Chelly, ca. 1916–19, Coeur d'Alene Art Auction, July 2022, $484,000; Arizona Indians, Scottsdale Art Auction, April 2022, $438,750; median about $27,500). artsell.art, accessed Oct. 2026.
- Coeur d'Alene Art Auction, "Edgar Payne – past auction highlights" (includes Solitude's Enchantment, 1921, 43 × 43 in., $476,000; View of the Glacier & Palisades, 40 × 50 in., $402,500; Land of the Navajo, 40 × 50 in., $363,000). cdaartauction.com.
- Bonhams, California and Western Paintings & Sculpture, 2 Aug. 2016, lot 78, Monument Valley, Riverbed, signed 'Edgar Payne' (lower left), titled on the stretcher bar, sold for $323,000; exhibited in The Irvine Museum's Masters of Light international tour, 2002–2004. bonhams.com.
- Bonhams, California & Western Paintings & Sculpture, 8 April 2014, lot 86, Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, signed 'Edgar Payne' (lower left), titled on the reverse, oil on canvas, 29 × 29 in., sold for $112,500. bonhams.com.
- Bonhams, California Art, 3 Aug. 2021, lot 82, View Across Dragon Lake, Looking Southwest, Kings Canyon National Park, signed 'EDGAR PAYNE' (lower left), with a study of Navajos on horseback on the reverse, oil on canvas, 25 × 30 in., sold for $62,812.50; provenance notes an April 11, 2017 Bonhams sale "as 'Sierra Lake Beneath Glaciers'". bonhams.com.
- Bonhams, California & Western Art Online, 30 July–8 Aug. 2025, lot 440, Brittany Boats, signed 'EDGAR PAYNE' (lower left), titled on the reverse, oil on canvas, 28 1/8 × 34 1/8 in., sold for $33,280 inc. premium. bonhams.com.
- Bonhams, California and Western Paintings & Sculpture, 6 Aug. 2013, lot 54, Valley of St. Gervais, signed 'Edgar Payne' (lower left), oil on canvas affixed to board, 12 × 16 in., sold for $11,875. bonhams.com.
- MutualArt, "Edgar Alwin Payne" (record since 1998: Riders on Horseback, Christie's Los Angeles, 2008, US$553,000). mutualart.com.
- TheBasis.Art, "Edgar Payne — auction results" (315 recorded results 1998–2026, median $22,950 including premium). thebasis.art, accessed Oct. 2026.
Results compiled October 21, 2026. Please tell us if a source has changed.