LONDON.- Sotheby’s announces that its forthcoming 20th Century Italian Art Sale on Thursday, October 13, 2011 will be the company’s strongest ever, both in number of lots offered and the quality of works featured. Expected to realise between £15,872,000 and £21,718,000, it is also the highest estimated sale in this collecting category ever staged by an auction house. The sale, which is highlighted by two important private collections ‘Italian Identity’ and Property from an Important New York Collection, features works by Alberto Burri, Gino Severini, Lucio Fontana and Marino Marini among many others. Discussing the forthcoming auction, Cheyenne Westphal, Sotheby’s Chairman of Contemporary Art Europe, said: “Our 20th Century Italian Art Sale this year is not only Sotheby’s strongest, both in terms of lots offered and the quality of works presented, but it is also the highest estimated sale in this