ENGLISH SCHOOL, ATTRIBUTED TO CAPTAIN ROBERT MELVILLE GRINDLAY (1786-1877)
THIS historic English School portrait of a poignant moment in Indian history and one of triumph for Britain made a hammer price of €75,000 at the second day of the Fine Asian Art sale by James Adam in Dublin today. The unsigned oil on paper with a handwritten title on the back in French shows the king of Delhi and his suite at the time of his capture by the English army. The arrest of Bahadur Shah Zafar, King of Delhi and last Mughal Emperor took place 1857/09/20 before the Humayun’s tomb, where the former did find refuge. It was performed by Captain Hodson and did constitute a major event of the Sepoys Mutiny or First War of Independence, the first step towards the fall of the Mughal Empire. Captain Robert Melville-Grindlay is well-known for his illustrations transcribed in books of engravings such as Scenery, Costumes, and Architecture, chiefly on the Western Side of India.
Bridget Flannery – The Privacy of Drams II. UPDATE: THIS MADE 460 AT HAMMER
This 2001 work by the Irish artist Bridget Flannery – The Privacy of Drams II – comes up as lot 87 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s online sale of Irish art. The small oil on board is estimated at €400-€600. The catalogue for the sale, which runs to July 5, is on line.
The sale of Fine Asian Art at James Adam in Dublin got off to a rollicking start this afternoon. Bidders on various internet platforms, Drouot and on the telephone vied for Fine Art from China and Himalaya on the first day of the sale. The most expensively estimated lot of the auction, Lot 18 – a Chinese School scroll with the signature of Giuseppi Castiglioni, known as Lang Shining made a hammer price of €110,000 over an estimate of €10,000-€100,000. A yellow glazed Hundred Shou Qing Dynasty cup with an estimate of 500-700 made a hammer price of 3,800 and most lots so far have attracted considerable competition. The auction is continuing.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for June 19, 2021)
THIS SCROLL BY GUISEPPE CASTIGLIONE SOLD FOR 110,000 AT HAMMER
This pair of 19th century bookcases with brass mounts comes up at Victor Mee‘s June Decorative Art sale which gets underway online at 2 pm today. Lot 95 has an estimate of €1,000-€2,000. Among other lots of note in this two day auction are; a 19th century kitchen table in elm; an oak bank of 15 shop drawers; a pair of upholstered easy armchairs in the Howard style; a Georgian four poster bed; a cast iron gothic bench and a pair of moulded sphinxes.
THIS very large coral model of a standing lady with fan and lotus sprig comes up as lot 88 at the James Adam online sale of Fine Asian Art today and tomorrow. It dates to early 20th century China and is estimated at €20,000-€40,000. Fine Arts from China and Himalaya comes under the hammer today. Tomorrow it is the turn of fine arts from Vietnam, South East Asia, India, the Middle East, Japan and Korea.
A large untitled iron sculpture by John Burke, exhibited outside the Crawford Gallery for many years, comes up at Sheppards annual Glantelwe Gardens sale in Durrow on June 30. The catalogue is online and in person viewing gets underway today. One of the most significant figures in the history of sculpture in Ireland the pioneering John Burke, who died in 2006, introduced the use of steel and welding process into an Irish world of sculpture dominated by carved marble and cast bronze. Like any artist ahead of his time his work is not always understood. Two of his best known pieces are the Red Cardinal at the Department of Health in Dublin and the large untitled piece at the Wilton Roundabout in Cork. A native of Clonmel, John Burke studied at the Crawford in Cork and the Royal Academy in London and travelled widely before setting up a workshop and studio near Blarney. He taught at the Crawford and numbered acclaimed artists like Vivienne Roche, Eilis O’Connell and Maud Cotter among his pupils. He made large and small pieces which are held in public and private collections. It is rare to see his work coming up at auction and this piece is estimated at €80,000-€120,000.
Gardens have become much more important in the lives of many of us during lockdown and in this sale Sheppards has no less than 522 lots of architectural ornament, garden statuary and about 30 lots of floral themed jewellery. There is something for every garden and every budget from a half life size bacchanal fountain by Robin Buick (€25,000-€35,000) to a 19th century terracotta chimney pot (€100-€150).
John Burke – Untitled. UPDATE: THIS MADE 110,000 AT HAMMER
This Georgian oak tilt tip table with original snap action can be found online at the tenth virtual Hibernian antique fair which is open today and tomorrow. It is priced at just €195 at The Very Thing stand by Barry and Fiona O’Leary. The fair is now live and can be accessed on the following link: https://hibernianantiques.com/fairs/10
Green Predominating (Summer Suite) (1976) by William Scott is lot 36 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s online sale of Important Irish Art which runs to June 28. The signed limited edition lithograph (27/40) is estimated at 5,000-6,000. There is work by artists ranging from George Barret, Evie Hone, Daniel MacLise and Jack B. Yeats to Mainie Jellett, Louis le Brocquy, Donald Teskey, Hughie O’Donoghue, Tony O’Malley and Sean Scully and sculpture by John Behan, Rowan Gillespie, Orla de Bri, Patrick O’Reilly and more. The catalogue is online. UPDATE: THIS MADE 9,000 AT HAMMER
“Atlantic Winter Storm meets Ireland” has won Mayo man Felix Sproll the title of World Landscape Photographer of the Year. His image of waves crashing into the coastline at Doolin in Co Clare was selected from more than 6,500 photographs. The 29-year-old from Ballinrobe said conditions were good when he travelled to the area in question to try to capture the shot last winter. Winning images can be seen on worldlandscapephotographer.com
The Irish Silver Museum – home to one of the largest collections of Irish silver in the world – was officially opened by the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe today. Using beautiful objects the museum, which is open daily, offers visitors a journey through Irish history from the arrival of the Vikings to our entry to the EEC in 1973. Located at ‘The Deanery’ building in Cathedral Square the museum stands above a medieval wine vault dating to the 1440s, celebrates the skills of Irish silversmiths and showcases our social, economic and political history.
Highlights include the Waterford kite brooch, a sword granted to the city by Edward IV, silver which belonged to Dean Jonathan Swift, and pieces from the most powerful families in Ireland alongside medals and commemorative items associated with great events in Irish history. Additional pieces on display are the Cheltenham Gold Cup won by ‘Minella Indo’ and the Randox Grand National trophy won by ‘Minella Times’ in 2021, presented by Henry de Bromhead.
The Waterford Kite brooch Ireland’s finest piece of early 12th century secular metalwork.
Minister Donohoe said, “As Minister for Finance I am delighted that Section 1003 of the Finance Act enables important elements of our national and much-valued heritage to remain in or be repatriated to the country, to be enjoyed not just by the privileged owners of old but all the people of Ireland and visitors to our shores”, the finance minister said. “I know that many of the items in this museum have been repatriated from overseas and collectively they show the richness and diversity in the craft of silver that has been practiced in Ireland for over twelve hundred years.”
Museum Director Eamonn McEneaney said that Irish silver has been a prized metal since the Viking period. “Most of the objects in the museum feature the initials of their makers and the coat of arms of their owners which allows each beautifully crafted piece to tell its own story, thus giving us a remarkable window into the past.”
The Irish Silver Museum offers examples from the most talented Dublin, Waterford, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Youghal, Clonmel and Carrick-on-Suir silversmiths of the 1700s, including Ireland’s rare female silversmiths. Waterford-based goldmith Paul Sullivan hosts his workshop and shop on the ground floor so that visitors can enjoy watching pieces of jewellery being created. The City of Waterford can now boast five award winning museums all located in the Viking Triangle.
During the 1798 Rebellion, republican rebels, many of them Presbyterians, occupied the town of Ballymoney in County Antrim. When the town was captured by advancing British forces under the command of Lord Henry Murray, he ordered that it be burned to the ground. These two silver cups made by John Lloyd of Dublin in 1798, were presented to Lord Murray in gratitude for ‘restoring tranquillity’ to the local area.
