A late 17th/early 18th century Aubusson silk and wool tapestry UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
An antique Aubusson tapestry or an Irish 18th carved giltwood mirror? The choice is yours at Victor Mee’s Escape from the Chateau sale with more than 1,900 lots on October 1, 2, 3 and 4 from 6.30 pm each day. The primary vendor is an Irish antique dealer who is moving home from his chateau in the Charente region.
With an estimate of €6,000-€12,000 the tapestry is one of the top lots from his collection which features antique, interior and decorative lots including an Irish mahogany side table (€4,000-€6,000), a Sheraton four poster bed (€3,000-€6,000), an 18th century Dublin pier mirror, a c1765 giltwood mirror with C scroll carving (€3,000-€6,000 each), Middle Eastern decorative items including coffee tables, lanterns, chargers and coffee pots (€50 to €100) and even a 19th century Dublin pawnbrokers sign from Queen St. (€600-€1,200). The auction is on view in Co. Cavan and the catalogue is online.
Irish 18th century carved giltwood pier mirror. UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,900 AT HAMMER
A pair of Cork lithographs by Robert L Stopford (1813-1898) UPDATE: THE PAIR MADE 460 AT HAMMER
A set of rare Cork 8-bar dining chairs, a pair of lithographs by Robert Stopford of The Cork River from Fota Park and Cork Harbour from Spy Hill, an early lithograph of Cork Opera House and a collection of drawings including one of St. Multose Church in Kinsale from the estate of late architect Bill Murphy of Coolim, Castle Road, Blackrock, Cork will feature at Lynes and Lynes sale in Carrigtwohill on September 28.
A landscape by William Sadler II leads a large collection of pictures from this house. A c1690 English walnut and marquetry longcase clock by John Bates, Atherstone, an Irish rosewood duet music stand by Williams and Gibton, an Omega De Ville gold wristwatch made for the American market, an antique brass fire grate, terracotta garden pots and a collection of Dinky toys are included. Among lots from other estates in the sale are an antique oak filing cabinet and a Churchill 22 carat gold commemorative medal along with a selection of jewellery, coins, glassware, books and collectibles. UPDATE: THE CHURCHILL COMMEMORATIVE MEDAL MADE €6,800 AT HAMMER
An English c1690 walnut and marquetry inlaid longcase clock UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,400 AT HAMMER
A framed linen handkerchief on Michael Collins at the time of his death at Hegarty’s. UPDATE: THIS LOT WAS WITHDRAWN AND SOLD PRIOR TO THE AUCTION
As the autumn season moves into high gear an impressive selection of highly collectible lots is available to collectors up and down the country next week. The range on offer right now includes everything from a rediscovered painting by Frank O’Meara at Adams, a Rolls Royce Silver Spirit at Sheppards and a linen handkerchief which Michael Collins had in his pocket when he died at Hegarty’s in Bandon.
When the autumn art selling season kicks off at Adams in Dublin on the evening of September 25 there will be much interest in A Knitting Shepherdess painted in 1880 by Frank O’Meara. This small scale transitional work by a short lived though renowned Irish artist, unknown to researchers, has been in an Irish private collection for decades. It is estimated at €10,000-€15,000.
Frank O’Meara (1853-1888) – A Knitting Shepherdess at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 24,000 AT HAMMER
The Bog Pool by Paul Henry is at €120,000-€160,000, the most expensively estimated lot in this auction of 150 lots which features work by Jack B Yeats, Paul Henry, Colin Middleton, Louis le Brocquy, Sean Keating, Frank McKelvey, Gerard Dillon and Lilian Davidson. On the contemporary side there is a large work painted in 2008 by Hughie O’Donoghue – No. 37, Stuttgart 7 Hours 20 Minutes 24.7.44 – of a Lancaster bomber during the Second World War setting the night sky ablaze (€30,000-€50,000). Painting and sculpture by Neil Shawcross, Colin Harrison, Edward Delaney, Melanie le Brocquy, John Behan and many others add enormous interest to this sale.
The petrol driven 1984 Rolls Royce at Sheppards Legacy of the Big House auction of more than 1600 lots on September 24, 25 and 26 in Durrow is estimated at €20,000-€30,000. A west Cork collection assembled in Ireland, Europe and America has a strong emphasis on 17th and 18th century furniture. An Irish 17th century leather bound marriage trunk with metal and stud decoration and domed lid, inscribed 1693, is certain to create interest. The estimate is €4,000-€6,000.
An Irish 17th century leather bound marriage trunk at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
An Italian 18th century carved gilt console table with marble top is estimated at €3,000-€5,000. There are Regency tables, an Irish oak rent table, a Grand Tour marble specimen table, a 17th century walnut and crossbanded chest, a Cork Regency carved giltwood mirror and a pair of early 19th century Viennese salon chairs among an appetising selection.
Curiosities include a 19th century Cork ebony and ivory octant and a bronze model of a Venetian Lion of St Mark. There is a collection of fountain pens, jewellery from Atelier Jacobi, Stuttgart and art by James Arthur O’Connor, Guido Reni, Norah McGuinness, James Humbert Craig and others. Viewing starts in Durrow today.
A framed white linen handkerchief which Michael Collins had with him on the evening of his death on August 22, 1922 comes up at Hegarty’s sale in Bandon on the evening of September 25. It is accompanied by a manuscript letter in pencil signed by Collins’ brother Sean O Coileain dated August 31 to General Sean MacMahon asking him to: ‘accept enclosed as a souvenir of Michael – in his pocket at time of death’ . The estimate is €10,000-€20,000. The provenance of the handkerchief is General Sean MacMahon and thence by descent.
The online sale features antique furniture, art, silver and jewellery including a Victorian emerald and diamond shamrock bar brooch.
A Cork Regency carved giltwood mirror at Sheppards. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
These chairs are from a set of 12 plus two carvers which Sheppards will offer at their Legacy of the Big House sale in Durrow from September 24-26. Described as 19th century stately home chairs each one has a gadrooned crest rail above an upholstered panelled show framed back, and an upholstered seat, raised on turned and fluted legs to the fore. The estimate for lot 1162 is €5,000-€8,000. More than 1600 lots will come under the hammer. The catalogue for the auction is online and there will be viewing in Durrow from September 21 – 23. UPDATE: THESE WERE UNSOLD
A model of the Irish Hazel. UPDATE: THIS MADE 800 AT HAMMER
Viewing us underway in Doneraile, Co. Cork for Aidan Foley’s two day onllne sale of antique furniture, art, interiors and outdoor furnishings on September 16 and 17. Art on offer includes a mixed media print work by Banksy of The Walled Off Hotel Bethlehem (€1,400-€1,600, a pencil sketch of A Day at the Races by Jack B Yeats (€800-€1,200), and art by John Butler Yeats, George Gillespie, Marie Carroll, Martin Finnin, Elizabeth Cope, Graham Knuttel and many more.
The top lot is a Killarney wood sewing table (€4,000-€6,000), there is also a Killarney wood box and a Killarney book slide and the sale offers Persian rugs, Tiffany style lamps, tractor seat high stools, vintage model ships, a pair of fern decorated cast iron garden seats and a 19th century marble and gilt consul table. The catalogue is online.
A pair of tractor seat high stools UPDATE: THESE MADE 220 AT HAMMER
Shell petrol pump. UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,000 AT HAMMER
In an era when the market for collectibles is expanding Cavan based Victor Mee Auctions has led the charge on pub memorabilia. Nostalgia is sure to reign supreme during three days of sales with over 1,400 lots on September 17, 18 and 19 from 6.30 pm on each day.
UPDATE: THE DATES FOR THIS SALE HAVE BEEN CHANGED TO SEPTEMBER 24, 25 AND 26.
The lots on offer in this sale are freighted with memory. The way we lived then is making good business for auctioneers in Ireland. How about a rare 19th century Cadbury’s Chocolate mahogany and glass floor display cabinet from some long vanished sweetshop of yore? Or an early 20th century chrome National till of a sort that graced so many retail establishments, or even a Michelin Man.
19th century Cadbury’s floor display cabinet. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
A yellow Shell petrol pump complete with white scallop shell light and vivid red writing recalled filling stations up and down the country and Edward Hopper’s famous 1940 painting Gas. This too represents a vanished era but the petrol pumps Hopper depicts are selling Mobil.
The good news is that 21st century collectors like the sort of lot that was once to be found everywhere. “We’ve been doing the advertising and memorabilia for a long time now,” said Victor Mee. “It’s a very, very interesting area of antiques because there’s so much history, and in that there existed such competition. The variety of merchandise and advertising made over the eras makes hunting for rarities an exciting game”.
Mirrors advertising whiskey are always sought after and there is a share of them of offer in this auction. One off items like the 20th century Guinness mahogany bar back from The O’Conor Don pub in Marylebone, with a central mirror flanked by Guinness Harps, are unlikely to come our way again. This establishment claimed to be the oldest Irish pub in London. The estimate is €600-€1,200.
There are signs of damp on an old framed Allman’s Irish Whisky pure pot still framed advertising showcard. This memento of the rare old times in Bandon and beyond is estimated at just €400-€600.
Craven A cork tipped Virginia cigarettes advertising print: Will not affect your throat. UPDATE: THIS MADE 80 AT HAMMER
If you thought social media misinformation was something new then lot 636 might inspire a rethink. A framed advertising card for Craven A Cork tipped Virginia cigarettes claims they will not affect your throat. The estimate here is €120-€220. The petrol pump is estimated at €3,700-€4,700, the Cadbury’s display cabinet at €3,000-€5,000, the chrome till at €800-€1,200 and the most expensively estimated lot is a 19th century McConnell’s Old Irish Whisky Cromac Distillery, Belfast mirror at €3,000-€6,000. What this sale has in spades is variety.
Allman’s Irish Whiskey Pure Pot Still framed advertising showcard. UPDATE: THIS MADE 380 AT HAMMER
A tall cloisonne garlic head vase or a Killarney wood sewing table? The choice is yours at upcoming sales by Hegartys in Bandon on September 11 and at Aidan Foleys in Doneraile on September 16 and 17. Decorated with flowers and birds in inlaid enamel the vase is estimated by Hegartys at €180-€250. The Killarney wood sewing table, last sold at Woodwards in 2010 for a hammer price of €5,200, is estimated by Aidan Foley at €4,000-€6,000.
Hegartys will offer garden furniture, antique furniture, silver, art and collectibles in an auction where feature lots include pink topaz diamond studded pendant, a late Qing Dynasty garden stool, a west of Ireland oil on canvas by Mabel Young and an etched glass jar. Aidan Foley’s sale features a country house contents from Co. Limerick and lots from a town house in Thurles.
Killarney wood sewing table at Aidan Foley’s sale. UPDATE: THIS MADE 4,400 AT HAMMER
Upholstered Howard style sofa and some maritime art. UPDATE: THE SOFA MADE 2,600 AT HAMMER, THE PAINTING BY HERMAN DIETZ MADE 3,600
In their appealing catalogue for an At Home sale in Dublin on August 28 Adams has very consciously set out to stage antique pieces in fresh contemporary settings. The aim is to highlight the versatility of antique furniture and show how easy it is to adapt to a 21st century interior, not to mention sustainability in a country where the EPA reckons over 1.2 million reusable bulky items, primarily furniture, go into landfill each year.
So how about it? Take a long look at this photograph of an upholstered Howard style sofa (lot 22, estimated €400-€600) in a New England style painted panelled setting under a maritime oil on canvas of the clipper Manalope painted in 1889 by the Russian American artist Herman R Dietz (1860-1923) (lot 21, estimate €2,000-€3,000). Howard & Sons created this iconic chair design in 1866. It is not old and stuffy – timeless and classical is a description that would fit the bill, which in any case will not be large.
The online only sale, on view in Dublin from August 24, presents 394 lots of interesting and affordable furnishings for the home. The idea that you do not need an old house to own antiques should not be a novel one, but at a time of crisis in the antique furniture trade not nearly enough auctioneers in Ireland market furniture in a way that shows this.
Victorian harewood and satinwood Carlton House Desk at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,600 AT HAMMER
Antique furniture is beautiful and serviceable yet an entire generation of younger buyers appear to be uninterested. In an era when many fine old pieces are practically given away at auction new ways of selling day to day antiques must be found to get this cohort back to the saleroom. A presentation which demonstrates that antique pieces can stylishly embellish a contemporary setting might be the answer. Maybe a sale presented and marketed like this one points to a better way forward.
You could build an atmospheric and comfortable room around a Chesterfield sofa like the one in this sale (€ 800-€1,200) and if you must have a big brand and only a big brand there is a Louis Vuitton trunk on offer (€2,000-€3,000). With estimates from €60 (for a Victorian stationary box) to €3,000-€5,000 for an oil of an American Clipper in full sail by Henry Scott and everything from silver goblets to hall chairs to a Chinese camphor wood blanket chest in between there is much to choose from here.
The Camilla Mirror at de Veres. UPDATE: THIS MADE 750 AT HAMMER
Many lots will be sold without reserve at de Veres house contents auction of antique and designer modern furniture, art, collectibles and garden pieces at 25 Wellington Road, Dublin at 2 pm on August 27. The online auction embraces everything from the Camilla mirror designed by Christopher Guy to commemorate the hat Camilla Parker Bowles wore at her royal wedding (€600-€1,000) to a watercolour of Wexford by Maurice MacGonigal, an Afghan carpet and a club fender. There is viewing at the house from August 24 and the catalogue is online.
KEN PARKER – BALLYCOPELAND WINDMILL CO. DOWN. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
This acrylic on wooden panels by Ken Parker comes up at Hegarty’s online auction in Bandon on August 28. The sale of 300 lots offers antique furniture including a 19th century Killarney davenport in country house condition (€3,500-5,500), silver, jewellery, garden furniture and 44 lots of paintings. The one illustrated here is estimated at €400-600. The catalogue for the auction is online.
19TH CENTURY PAINTED AND PARCEL-GILT BUREAU BOOKCASE. UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,600 AT HAMMER
Auctions deliver unlikely lots and the timed online At Home sale running at James Adam until August 28 is no exception. Take lot 264, this 19th century painted and parcel gilt bureau bookcase. Complete with mirrored doors, slope front, moulded cornice, drawers, gilt handles and lock plates and bracket feet it is painted with Mongolian warriors in the midst of battle. Mongolian warriors were part of a genuine meritocracy, the more heroic their deeds, the more enemies they vanquished the more they were awarded. Funny old world. Then it was women and gold. Now, in the western world on a scale of unattainability, successful young warriors might instead seek a house. The estimate for this unusual object of furniture is 1,500-2,500.
