NEW YORK—Next week, Sotheby’s will hammer down 829 lots of Asian art tagged to earn between $46,512,500 and $65,676,500 in five separate auctions. These sales come on the heels of a frenzied summer in the financial markets, with U.S. housing prices threatening to spiral downward and consumer confidence quickly darkening. For art-market observers, the Asia Week sales represent a first peek into how the suddenly volatile economy will affect the auction season: With Sotheby's having hauled in $89 million during its Asia Week sales in March, this new round of auctions could provide a dramatic contrast. So, are there bargains to be found? What’s bloated in value? And what’s totally quirky and not to be missed?

ARTINFO trolled Sotheby’s offerings and consulted auction-house specialists, tip-top dealers, and collectors worldwide for their insights into items that demonstrate recent shifts in market values and collecting patterns. We found that some Asian art appears surprisingly undervalued, while other work seems aggressively estimated. In fact, one prominent expert, who preferred anonymity, deigned a particular estimate as “downright pushy.”

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