antiquesandartireland.com

Information about Art, Antiques and Auctions in Ireland and around the world
  • ABOUT
  • About Des
  • Contact
  • Archive for the ‘FURNITURE’ Category

    WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE MY PICASSO ETCHING?

    Saturday, August 23rd, 2025

    Pablo Picasso (Spanish 1881-1973) Jeune couple accroupi, l’homme avec un tambourin at Lynes and Lynes. UPDATE: THIS MADE 5,000 AT HAMMER

    A marine chronometer, a Picasso etching, a c1730 bureau bookcase or a modern burr poplar and satinwood side cabinet inlaid with mother of pearl? The choice is yours at upcoming sales at James Adam in Dublin on Wednesday August 27 and Lynes and Lynes in Carrigtwohill, Co. Cork next Saturday (August 30).

    The etching of a young couple by Picasso is the top lot at Lynes and Lynes. Published by Vollard in Paris in 1939 and signed in pencil from an edition of 260 it is from a private source in Cork. The estimate is €5,000-€8,000.  Lynes and Lynes will offer three ships chronometers, one by Whyte Thompson and Co., makers to the admiralty, Glasgow (€900-€1,200), another by Thomas Mercer (€700-€1,000) and a third manufactured by the First Watch Company, Moscow (€300-€500).

    A c1730 bureau bookcase at James Adam. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

    Antique furniture is more difficult to sell nowadays. A c1730  bureau bookcase at the At Home sale at Adams might break the mould.  Capable of lending grace and utility to many modern homes it comes with twin mirrored panel doors, a fall front, desk, shelves and drawers and measures just 103 cms wide.  The estimate is €1,500-€3,000.  By way of contrast an inlaid demi lune side cabinet by Restall Brown & Clennell at Adams is a modern piece with an estimate of €2,000-€3,000.

    With nearly 900 lots in total each sale offers a wide variety of lots at affordable price points, online catalogues and in person viewing.

    Marine chronometers at Lynes and Lynes. UPDATE: THESE MADE 1,300, 850 AND 260

    Lynes and Lynes will include contents from the recently sold Montenotte House and lots from the estate of late surgeon Tom Burke and his wife Kay of Blackrock, Cork.  There are tables to choose from including a large 19th century dining table, a Cork Regency tea table and a Georgian wine table. There are Cork 9-bar chairs and Arts and Crafts dining chairs, a Cork Regency linen press and a fine painted cabinet.  The sale offers silver and jewellery, a specialist collection of antique continental dolls and old advertising signs including one for the Metropole Hotel in Cork.  Viewing gets underway in Carrigtwohill today and continues all next week.

    A pair of red ground 19th century Chinese silk scroll wall hangings and a George V silver epergne feature among the lots adding interest to the At Home sale by James Adam in Dublin. The auction offers silver, furniture, a longcase clock, paintings, a 19th century gilt surround continental headboard, sofas, rugs, lamps, mirrors and an Irish silver Art Deco style three piece coffee service.

    A c1960 Louis Vuitton train vanity case at James Adam. UPDATE: THIS MADE 460 at hammer

    Or how about a Louis Vuitton c1960 train vanity case identified as reference model M23820 (€500-€800), a 20th century Aubusson style needlepoint tapestry,  an Anglo-Indian carved ebony side chair or a brass dinner gong? 

    Auctions like these offer endless variety and objects to suit all tastes.  Go on. Be inspired….

    FROM MOSCOW TO BANDON AT HEGARTY’S

    Saturday, August 23rd, 2025

     Imperial Russian casket. UPDATE: THIS MADE 575 AT HAMMER

    A 19th century Imperial Russian silver filigree casket is among the more unusual lots at Hegarty’s online sale in Bandon on August 27.  With assay marks for Veniamin Vasilyevich Savinsky, Moscow 1873 it is egg shaped. A hinged cover opens to reveal a standing lion.  The estimate is €200-€400.  There is an estimate of €150-€300 on a bright pair of c1900 Chinese silver filigree enamel bird figures.

    Gold sovereigns are selling like hot cakes at auction right now and this one has a 9 carat 1895 half sovereign set in a pendant at an estimate of €400-€600.  The jewellery selection is headed by a gold cluster diamond ring and a sapphire and diamond ring. There is a suite of  Chinese jade and gold jewellery and the sale includes a variety of silver, art, furniture and collectibles.

    A pair of Chinese silver filigree enamel birds UPDATE: THESE MADE 360 AT HAMMER

    AUCTION BY LYNES AND LYNES ON AUGUST 30

    Monday, August 18th, 2025

    Cork Regency tea table. UPDATE: THIS MADE 750 AT HAMMER

    The sale at Lynes and Lynes on August 30 features contents from the sales of two large houses in Cork city. There is furniture, silver, jewellery, old advertising signs and an unusual collection of antique dolls from Germany, Holland, Belgium, France and two Steiff dachshunds.  The catalogue is online.

    Antique dolls at Lynes and Lynes. UPDATE: A NUMBER OF DOLLS SOLD FOR FROM 90 TO 190 AT HAMMER

    THE MOST VALUABLE DESIGNATED COLLECTION EVER OFFERED IN EUROPE

    Sunday, August 17th, 2025

    The most valuable designated collection ever to be offered in Europe from the London home of trailblazing surrealist collector Pauline Karpidas comes up at Sotheby’s in September. Masterpieces by Hans Bellmer, Max Ernst, Yves Tanguy, René Magritte, Leonora Carrington, Salvador Dalí, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol and Jeff Koons will be offered alongside unique furniture personally imagined and crafted for Pauline by Claude and François-Xavier Lalanne, Mattia Bonetti andAndré Dubreuil. The 250 lots on offer at evening, day and online sales on September 17, 18 and 19 have a combined estimate of around €70 million. Meantime Pauline’s London home, a journey through the realms of Surrealism, will be brought to life at a landmark exhibition at Sotheby’s conceived by the designer of the blockbuster Freddie Mercury exhibition which brought 140,000 visitors to the auctioneers New Bond St. rooms over four weeks in 2023. Pictured here is a view of the salon at her London home.

    RARITY AND CELEBRITY ADD VALUE TO MEMORABILIA MARKET

    Saturday, August 16th, 2025

    An original c1900 enamel Fry’s Chocolate ad UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

    A Fry’s Five Boys c1900 advertisement at Victor Mee’s next auction underlines how rarity and celebrity add value in a memorabilia market which continues to grow strongly in Ireland.

    This particular enamel sign is rare. It harks back to days when chocolate – taken in moderation and highly prized – was a special treat for children. The enamel sign, which depicts five boys expressing desperation, pacification, expectation, acclamation and finally realization that it’s Fry’s chocolate, leads the online August sale of 930 lots by Victor Mee on August 19 and 20. The estimate is €4,000-€6,000.

    An embossed copper figure of a fiddle player from Slattery’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 300 AT HAMMER

    Copper figures of musicians on painted boards from Slattery’s of Capel St. in Dublin are of interest.  This pub venue and early house licensed since 1821, steeped in music, history and character, has long been a gathering place for market traders, musicians and storytellers. Slattery’s is a much loved hub of Irish culture and traditional music known for performances by everyone from Christy Moore, Donal Lunny and Seamus Ennis to the Arctic Monkeys, Bloc Party, Kate Nash and Townes van Zandt.

    The unique embossed figures of a fiddle player, a button accordionist, a bodhran player, a pip player and a tin whistler, a banjo player and a flute player are estimated at €300-€600 each.  With hand drawn illustration by Brian McCormack and copper work by John A Brennan they are redolent of the cultural atmosphere which  Slattery’s is renowned for. 

    An Old Irish Reindeer Whisky Kiloh and Co. Cork framed showcard is estimated at €1,200-€1,800 and the auction kicks off with an Allman’s of Bandon Old Irish Whisky advertising sign (€50-€80). A Beamish Stout light up box for a counter dating to the 1970’s has an estimate of €50-€100.

    A framed advertising mirror for Bendigo Tobaccos UPDATE: THIS MADE 4,200 AT HAMMER

    A framed advertising mirror for Bendigo Tobaccos produced for W & M Taylor Ltd., Dublin and manufactured by A & H Pemberton of Liverpool has an estimate of €3,000-€5,000. In Art Nouveau style it features hand gilded and reverse painted lettering in rich red, gold and cobalt blue and few examples survive in such well preserved condition.  An original Will’s Woodbine Cigarettes enamel sign, 150 cm x 92 cm, in well preserved condition is the sort of lot that is sought after by collectors.  The estimate is €300-€500.

    Sales like this serve to remind us of how quickly things move on and can stir many memories.  Lot  159, for instance, is a framed February 1952 poster for A Royal Jester by Youghal Choral Society at the Town Hall (€40-€80).  The catalogue is online.

    A Youghal Choral Society poster from 1952. UPDATE: THIS MADE 35 AT HAMMER

    ADAMS COUNTRY HOUSE COLLECTIONS AT TOWNLEY HALL

    Friday, August 15th, 2025

    JAMES SEYMOUR (1702-1752) – Sir Edward O’Brien, 2nd Baronet of Dromoland, in Hunting Costume of his Day. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

    This painting by James Seymour of Sir Edward O’Brien of Dromoland is already consigned to the James Adam annual Country House Collections sale at Townley Hall near Drogheda. The curated sale of Irish Georgian furniture, paintings and collectibles is scheduled to take place on October 13 and 14. Adams is now seeking final consignments with a deadline of August 22. This painting is estimated at €50,000-€80,000.

    TIMED ONLINE AT HOME SALE AT JAMES ADAM IN DUBLIN

    Wednesday, August 13th, 2025

    IRISH GEORGE III INLAID MAHOGANY SECRETAIRE BOOKCASE. UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,000 AT HAMMER

    This large secretaire is lot 315 at the James Adam timed online At Home sale which runs until August 27. With broken pediment and scroll rosette terminals centred by a carved eagle the crest on the pediment is that of the Seymour family, Marquesses of Hertford and Dukes of Somerset. The base is fitted with a fall-front secretaire drawer formed as three short cockbeaded dummy drawers with inlaid decoration which opens to reveal a compartmented interior and baize lined writing surface. The estimate is €1,500-2,000. The catalogue for the auction is online.

    LONG BEFORE SOFA BEDS THERE WERE SETTLE BEDS

    Wednesday, July 30th, 2025

    Early 19th century settle bed

    This early 19th century or late 18th century settle bed from Co. Kerry made a hammer price of €400 at Victor Mitchell’s auction in Roscrea today. The settle was a high backed seat adapted in Ireland in the 18th century into a settle bed, where the seat part can be folded outwards to make a bed, providing extra space for family members or guests to sleep. This precursor of the sofa bed was a common feature in rural homes in Ireland and is a fine example of Irish vernacular furniture. This one is in original condition and came from Co. Kerry.

    SET THE IMAGINATION FREE AT THIS SALE BY VICTOR MEE

    Saturday, July 19th, 2025

    A set of vintage wishbone Danish dining chairs. UPDATE: THESE WERE UNSOLD

    Danish wishbone chairs, bronze boxing hares, a 19th century French oak refectory table and a Black Forest musical chair are included among nearly 1,000 lots at online evening sales by Victor Mee on July 22-23.

    There is nothing in this eclectic selection to prevent the imagination of a collector from soaring to new and unexplored heights.  Where to place a pair of cast iron pier caps in the form of a stag standing on a ball?  Maybe not to the taste of  everyone but they can be yours for an estimated €1,000-€2,000.  There is a similar estimate on a fine sturdy three seater cast iron garden bench, a pair of moulded sandstone lifesize models of Great Danes and a pair of 19th century wrought iron entrance gates.

    French wrought iron glasshouse. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD

    Hand cut granite gate posts, a 19th century sandstone trough, a wrought iron portable glasshouse, a pair of sandstone lattice urns and an early 20th century French wrought iron greenhouse are all on offer.

    A 19th century brass bound campaign chest (€1,400-€1,800), a French William IV centre table with marble top (€800-€1,200), a 19th century lime washed oak chest (€600-€1,200), a walnut inlaid credenza with three glazed doors (€400-€800), a Regency rent table with leather top (€400-€800), a Victorian rosewood and satinwood inlaid side table (€350-€650), a pair of Art Deco bedside lockers (€350-€650) and a bank of four graduated drawers in the shape of drums €300-€600) are included among nearly 400 lots of furniture with estimates of from a little as €10 for an Edwardian three tier cake stand.

    A set of eight vintage Danish wishbone dining chairs with woven rush seats carry an estimate of €1,000-€2,000.  A 19th century Black Forest rosewood and burr walnut musical chair and table is slightly more expensive, at €1,500-€2,500.  This inlaid furniture contains a hidden musical box.

    Black Forest musical chair and table. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,000 AT HAMMER

    CHRISTIE’S PROJECTS AUCTION SALES OF $2.1 BILLION FOR FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2025

    Wednesday, July 16th, 2025

    Piet Mondrian – Composition with Large Red Plane, Bluish Gray, Yellow, Black and Blue 

    Auction house Christie’s has projected auction sales of $2.1 billion in the first half of 2025. Piet Mondrian’s Composition with Large Red Plane, Bluish Gray, Yellow, Black and Blue from the Leonard & Louise Riggio Collection sold for $47.6 million to become most valuable work of art sold at auction so far. Key performance indicators, including overall sell through rate at 88% and hammer versus the low estimate index at 115%, have all showed strength and demonstrated the market leadership of Christie’s. The global auction house sold seven of the top 10 artworks and all top four works of art sold at auction in the six months. In addition, overall auction sales in the leading 20/21 category were stable to last year at $1.3 billion. Luxury sales were up 29%, which includes car sales at Gooding Christie’s (up 12% without Gooding Christie’s).  In Jewels, Christie’s sold nine of the top 10 jewels at auction in the first half of the year. This has driven growth of 25%. The Old Master Group drove a 15% rise in auction sales in the first half of the year. Confidence for this continued momentum in the second half has been demonstrated by the record breaking $43.9 million sale in London of Canaletto’s masterpiece Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day.