THIS PAIR OF ARMCHAIRS BY JEAN ROYERE (1902-1981) MADE €1.6 million
A pair of fauteuils ‘ Boule’ dits ‘ours Polaire’ by Jean Royere sold for €1.6 million at Christie’s Design sale in Paris on May 25. With 167 lots the sale attracted global participation with bidders from 21 countries and achieved €19,436,730. The auction opened with the Perriand by Perriand collection from the apartment-studio of Charlotte Perriand, rue las cases, in Paris. Proceeds from the sale will support the Perriand Archives. The 13 lots, most of which were prototypes designed for the designer’s studio achieved a combined total of €1,457,820. Top lot was a 16 candle chandelier Structure végétale aux papillons by Claude Lalanne, 2009. It made €2,202,000 more than twice its pre-sale low estimate.
Irish paintings and rare Irish whiskeys, antiques furniture and collectibles, clocks and Waterford Crystal, wines and champagnes, stamps and coins will all feature at Dolan’s timed online summer art auction which runs until the evening of Monday, May 30. Among the artists featured are Cecil Maguire, Norah McGuinness, Charles Lamb, Kenneth Webb, Flora MItchell, Arthur Armstong, Arthur Maderson, Mildred Anne Butler, Markey Robinson, Brian Bourke, George Campbell and Susan Cronin.
Flora Mitchell (1890 – 1973), Winetavern Street, Dublin (these houses were demolished in the 1960’s). UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
FRANK HURLEY – SHACKLETON ON THE ENDURANCE. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £6,048
THIS rare 1914 photograph of polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton on his ship Endurance is lot 109 at Sotheby’s sale online sale of Travel, Atlases, Maps and Photographs which runs until the afternoon of May 24. It is estimated at £5,000-7,000. Frank Hurley was the official photograph on Shackleton’s Imperial Trans Antarctic Expedition which set out in 1914 and was marooned until August 1916.
Frattini desk c1960. UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,400 AT HAMMER
This rosewood c1960 Model 530 desk by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini is lot 17 at de Veres art and design auction which runs online until May 24. The sale is on view from today in Dublin. The desk is estimated at 1,500-2,500. The sale features Danish and Italian furniture and lighting by some of the major designers of the 20th Century including Arne Vodder, Arne Jacobsen, Finn Juhl, Niels Moller, le Corbusier, major labels Desede, Roche Bobois, B + B Italia and Cassina. There is art by Felim Egan, Robert Ballagh, Martin Gale, Terry Frost, Barrie Cooke, William Crozier and a variety of other artists.
Portrait of Jean-Baptiste Lynch at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
Great Irish Interiors at Sheppards, collectibles at Whyte’s and Mullen’s, art at Morgan O’Driscoll and James Adam, an Irish collection at Sotheby’s in London, design at de Veres and antique furniture at Woodwards should get a busy summer season off to a flying start over the next week or so. Kicking off with an Eclectic Collector sale online at Whyte’s in Dublin today buyers at all price points will find plenty to choose from. Wine drinkers who enjoy Chateau Lynch Bages will no doubt be fascinated by a portrait at Sheppards of Jean Baptiste Lynch (1749-1835), Mayor of Bordeaux, Count of the French Empire, lawyer and son of Thomas Lynch who produced high quality wines under the name Cru de Lynch which eventually morphed into Lynch-Bages. The Lynch family – one of the Tribes of Galway – fled persecution in Ireland in the 17th century and this portrait is from the Derk estate in Co. Limerick, thence by descent. Lot 23 is estimated at €15,000-€25,000.
Three days of sales at Sheppards get underway next Tuesday (May 24). Viewing starts in Durrow today and the catalogue with a fascinating selection of antique furniture, Chinese and African collectibles, ceramics, chandeliers, sllver, jewellery and collectibles is online.
Along with Robert Emmet’s 1803 Proclamation Whyte’s sale today offers 1916 Rising and War of Independence documents and medals, Seamus Heaney signed first editions, Polar exploration volumes, maps, banknotes and coins and entertainment and sporting memorabilia. A Butterfly Spin by Damien Hirst and a silkscreen print of John Wayne by Andy Warhol feature at Morgan O’Driscoll’s online sale of affordable art which runs until next Monday evening (May 23) A strong selection of 20th century classic design furniture and Irish art will come under the hammer at de Veres next Tuesday afternoon (May 24). There is Danish and Italian furniture and lighting by designers including Arne Jacobsen, Finn Juhl, le Corbuser, Mies van der Rohe and Arne Vodder and art by Felim Egan, Robert Ballagh, Francis Tansey, Terry Frost and William Crozier.
An Irish George III oval mirror at Sotheby’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE £10,080
The sale of Monte Alverno: An Irish Collection at Sotheby’s in London next Thursday will give Irish and international collectors a chance to pick up something Irish and special like Regency peat buckets, gilt mirrors, antique furniture and art ranging from 18th century bird gouaches by Samuel Dixon through to Yeats, James Arthur O’Connor, John Luke and Patrick Swift.A pair of Georgian peat buckets and a pair of Edwardian demi-lune side tables are among the top antique furniture lots at Woodwards sale in Cork next Saturday (May 24). Among the Georgian lots are a three pillar dining table, a library table, a card table, a wine cooler, a bureau, a chest of drawers and a lowboy. An Edwardian inlaid sofa table and an office mahogany desk are among around 300 lots here.Next week is bookended by a sale of history, militaria and collectibles at Mullens of Laurel Park.
Photograph of a female climber in Victorian days at Mullen’s UPDATE: THIS LOT MADE 380 AT HAMMER
Among the first photographs of rock climbers in action were those taken by the Abraham family at Keswick in the Lake District. Mullens will offer a box of 50 glass stereoscope slides of 19th century images from Cumberland and North Wales featuring climbers in tweeds, flat caps and, in one memorable image, a skirt. In those Victorian times there was no lack of equality on the mountains. The sale kicks off with a skull of a Great Irish Elk. There is a poetry book inscribed by Roger Casement in Pentonville Prison on the night before his execution to Fr. Murnane of The Presbytery, Bermondsey.
BEACHED BOATS AT BRIGHTON ATTRIBUTED TO JOHN CONSTABLE. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
Beached Boats at Brighton, a painting attributed to one of Britains most enduringly popular artists John Constable (1776-1837), is the top lot at Shepards three day Great Irish Interiors sale from May 24-26. The oil on board in a gilt frame is estimated at 20,000-30,000. From a private family collection at Littlehamton in Sussex Sheppards say it is likely to have come from one of the sales at Fosters who sold the contents of Constable’s studios on behalf of his family from 1838 to 1875. The tiny work measures just three and a half by four and a half inches. The sale of 1,204 lots features art, antique furniture and a wide variety of collectibles. The catalogue is online and viewing gets underway in Durrow tomorrow.
Circa 1847 a watercolour of a famine stricken family. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,050 AT HAMMER
The artist of this poignant and stark reminder of the ravages of the Irish famine is unknown but the watercolour, in very good condition, comes up as lot 57 at Whyte’s Eclectic Collector sale on May 21. It is estimated at 800-1,200. The annual sale has attracted attention from collectors worldwide. Viewing for the timed auction of 838 lots gets underway at Whyte’s, Molesworth St., Dublin today and the catalogue is online. There is a range of historical documents and artefacts, medals, militaria, books, coins, banknotes, entertainment and sporting memorabilia.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for May 14, 2022)
A gold and diamond Penelope necklace by Cartier. UPDATE:THIS WAS UNSOLD
This gold and diamond Cartier necklace comes up at the James Adam sale of fine jewellery and watches in Dublin on May 17. It is estimated at 15,000-20,000. A total of 262 lots will come under the hammer. There are rings of every shape, hue and price along with an appetising selection of earrings, bracelets, cuffs, necklaces, brooches, cufflinks and watches by renowned makers.
One of only three known copies in private hands of Robert Emmet’s inspirational 1803 Proclamation comes up at Whyte’s Eclectic Collector sale on May 21 with an estimate of €50,000-€70,000. No other example has ever been offered for sale. Neither the National Museum nor the National Library possess a copy. Emmet’s request to read his proclamation in court was rejected but he did manage to include parts of it in his speech from the dock. It calls on the Irish to claim their independence and specifies that we war against no religious sect. The line “we will put no man to death in cold blood, the prisoners which first fall into our hands shall be treated with respect” predates the first Geneva Convention by 60 years. After the Rebellion he was found guilty of treason. Robert Emmet was hung, drawn and quartered at Thomas St. in Dublin, one of the last prisoners to be subjected to this barbaric form of execution.
Kurt Cobain “Smells like Teen Spirit” Fender Mustang guitar. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR $4.5 million
Kurt Cobain’s Fender Mustang electric guitar, Madonna’s Material Girl dress inspired by Marilyn Monroe, the original drum kit used in the pre-Beatle group The Quarrymen and Bruce Springsteen’s handwritten lyrics for “Born to Run” are all due to come under the hammer this month. Popular culture is big business – and in our global village auction houses are cashing in on the big time. Julien’s Auctions, conveniently located in Hollywood, leads the charge. Their Music Icons sale live and online from the Hard Rock Cafe in New York on May 20, 21 and 22 offers dedicated fans of all ages a heady mix. For the information of us non specialists the Quarrymen was formed by John Lennon in Liverpool in 1956 as a skiffle rock and roll group. Ultimately it evolved into the Beatles. Another lot sure to attract attention from around the world is a single sheet of handwritten lyrics by Bruce Springsteen for Glory Road, later re-named Born to Run. Kurt Cobain’s legendary blue “Smells Like Teen Spirit” music video 1969 Fender Mustang electric guitar will appeal to a different generation.
Madonna’s Material Girl dress UPDATE: THE COMPLETE ENSEMBLE SOLD FOR $287,500
