How Much Is The Beach at Sainte-Adresse Worth?

Painted in 1867, The Beach at Sainte-Adresse is a landmark early Monet that crystallizes the artist’s turn toward modern light, color, and leisure subjects. It is discussed as a pair with the Metropolitan Museum’s Regatta at Sainte-Adresse—two near‑twin canvases conceived in dialogue—making this work central to narratives about Monet’s pre‑Impressionist breakthrough. The painting is heavily published and exhibited within Monet scholarship and is a staple of teaching on the origins of Impressionism. Its canonical status, scale, and visibility underpin a valuation premium over typical 1860s beach scenes and position it as one of the most important early Monets hypothetically available to compete for at auction [1][2].

Museum retention of prime early Monets and the concentration of the Sainte‑Adresse subject in institutions (AIC and Met) mean that opportunities to acquire works of this caliber from the 1860s are exceptionally rare. Historical auction benchmarks for related Trouville beach scenes (1997, 2008) are materially lower both because those works are smaller and because they lack the specific canonical pairing and scholarly weight of the Sainte‑Adresse composition. Scarcity of like‑for‑like private-market alternatives acts as a strong upward force on price formation when a work of this stature is hypothetically released [6][7].

At roughly 76 × 102.5 cm, the canvas has a commanding yet domestic scale that aligns with trophy‑level collector preferences. The crisp coastal panorama, flags, and modern leisure motif embody the visual vocabulary that propelled Monet’s ascent. The composition’s balance and legibility deliver strong wall power comparable to larger late works, even as the period differs. While any real-world sale would be condition‑sensitive, the work’s pictorial quality and size are inherently price‑positive attributes. In sum, the painting’s visual impact supports positioning it far above modest early coastal scenes and into the upper tier of early-period valuations [1][2].

Recent blue‑chip Monets demonstrate continued depth: Water Lilies achieved $74.0m (2023) and $65.5m (2024), Poplars $42.96m (2025), Meules à Giverny $34.8m (2024), and Parliament (sunset) $75.96m (2022). Early Normandy beach scenes—though not as iconic—have long been desirable, with top examples trading in the mid‑seven to low‑eight figures in prior cycles. Against this spine, the Sainte‑Adresse beach view prices above ordinary 1860s coastal works and just below late series icons, supporting a $60–90m band in today’s selective but trophy‑friendly market [4][5][11][6][7].

Documented early transactions through Durand‑Ruel, ownership by the eminent collector Jean‑Baptiste Faure, appearance in the Henri Véver sale, and bequest to the Art Institute of Chicago create a clean, prestigious provenance. The painting’s extensive scholarly literature and exhibition record (including its 19th‑century reception and later institutional displays) bolster confidence and salability. Such documentation typically compresses risk and can tighten bidding increments at the top end. These factors materially reinforce the estimate, even if they do not on their own elevate it into the late‑series price bracket [1][10].