First editions of His Dark Materials, the trilogy by Philip Pullman UPDATE: THIS MADE 600
Fonsie Mealy’s timed online rare book and collectors sale, which continues until March 1 at 10 am is brimful of interest. The first English edition of James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, one of only 750 copies published by The Egoist in 1916, leads the auction. It is estimated at €1,500-€2,000. The sale ranges from a complete set of 18th century Irish Georgian Society Records to signed album sleeves by Jimi Hendrix and Wings, a Brazil jersey signed by Pele, literature from Anthony Trollope to John McGahern to Seamus Heany to sporting and political memorabilia. The catalogue is online. Viewing takes place in Castlecomer on February 27-28.
Sir William Orpen RA RHA (1878 – 1931) – Portrait of Yvonne Aupicq as a Nun (Sister X) UPDATE: THIS MADE 125,000 AT HAMMER
She was his lover and his model and Sir William Orpen kept this portrait of Yvonne Aupicq as a nun in his own collection. It comes up as lot 61 at the James Adam sale of Important Irish Art in Dublin on March 1 with an estimate of €30,000-€50,000. Adams understand that Yvonne had met Orpen while working as a nurse during the war. He had been admitted to hospital with a suspected case of scabies which ended up being a far more serious case of blood poisoning as he recounts in his wartime memoir ‘An Onlooker in France’. Their relationship continued after 1918 when Orpen was appointed as the official artist to The Paris Peace Conference. He gifted to her another version of this portrait with Yvonne set against a completely white background.
Brilliant cut yellow diamond of 15.93 carats UPDATE: THIS MADE 260,000 AT HAMMER
THE collection of film director Sir John Boorman – whose many credits include Point Blank, Deliverance, Excalibur and Hope & Glory – will be included at Sheppards three day sale in Durrow on February 28, March 1 and 2. Sheppards say the diverse group of works on offer exhibit a lifetime emphasis on beauty and a keen eye for quality. Exceptional collectibles range from vernacular pine to period furniture and two and three dimensional works of art. The sale includes an assemblage of exceptional jewellery, diamonds and other stones from private collections including a 15 carat yellow diamond with an estimate of €250,000-€350,000. There are a number of brilliant cut diamonds of over three carats each and a variety of rings. An interesting collection of silver including a rare pair of Limerick serving spoons by Maurice Fitzgerald (€3,000-€5,000), a Cork silver sugar bowl by Daniel McCarthy (€1,500-€2,500) and a large, heavy silver soup ladle by the Cork maker Carden Terry (€2,500-€3,500). This section offers 73 lots in total.
An Irish William IV side table. UPDATE: THIS MADE 9,000 AT HAMMER
An important Irish William IV side table heads up more than 300 lots of furniture and is estimated at €10,000-€15,000. A large neo classical marble chimney piece is estimated at €8,000-€12,000 as is a George III breakfront library bookcase. There are plate buckets, centre tables, chests of drawers, butlers trays, chairs, couches, nests of tables, bookcases, desks including an unusual 19th century campaign brass bound desk and mirrors in various woods and lacquers on offer. A 19th century Killarney arbutus wood miniature cabinet depicts Ross Castle and Muckross Abbey on two panel doors which open to a series of drawers. An Audemars Piguet Royal Oak wristwatch is estimated at €30,000-€50,000. It heads up a selection of fine wristwatches at this sale.
A 17th century Dutch School portrait of a gentleman with a red hat UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,000 AT HAMMER
This oil on board of a group of musicians by Brendan McDonagh from Killoran’s Pub in Co. Sligo was prominent on the set of Normal People. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,000 AT HAMMER
A treat is in store for fans of Sally Rooney’s Normal People. A great selection of collectibles from Killoran’s Pub in Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo, used for the filming of the global hit TV series will feature at the pub and memorabilia sale by Victor Mee on February 28, March 1 and 2. Large paintings of traditional Irish musicians and an Irish country scene were seen in positions of prominence in episode 10. Many of the lots on offer feature inconspicuously in the Emmy and Golden Globe nominated series. Killoran’s is steeped in historic memorabilia. Among the lots from the pub is a pair of boots worn by late GAA midfielder Eamonn Mongey in the 1951 All-Ireland final – the last time Mayo took home the Sam Maguire. There is a collection of rare advertising mirrors, an early 20th century Paddy Pure Pot Still mirror and an Ogden’s cigarette dispensing cabinet of similar vintage. With more than 1,300 lots the sale is on view at Cloverhill, Co. Cavan today, tomorrow and Monday and the catalogue is online.
A pair of satinwood and inlaid pier cabinets. UPDATE: THESE WERE UNSOLD
This pair of 19th century satinwood and inlaid pier cabinets will come up at Sheppards three days sale of the collection of Sir John Boorman and other clients in Durrow on February 28, March 1 and 2. A series of shelves encloses a secret compartment in each one. The estimate on lot 1137 is 5,000-8,000.
In 2022, Boorman left the elegant Georgian rectory – The Glebe, Annamoe in Co. Wicklow – where he’d lived for more than fifty years. Now aged 90, he’s moved to England to be closer to the family. The auction is on view in Durrow from 10 am to 5 pm on February 25, 26 and 27.
Pen and ink portrait of Sir John Boorman by Anthony Palliser (2009). (300-500). UPDATE: THIS MADE 260 AT HAMMER
Wexford’s First All-Ireland Title G.A.A. – Hurling 1955. UPDATE: THIS MADE 85 AT HAMMER
The official programme for the 1955 All-Ireland Hurling Final comes up as lot 949 at Fonsie Mealy’s rare books and collectors online timed auction which runs until March 1. The final between Galway and Wexford took place at Croke Park on September 4 of that year. It was Wexford’s seventh attempt at the title and they won on a score of 3-13 to 2-8. The estimate is €100-150. The catalogue is online and the sale is open for viewing in Castlecomer today and on next Monday and Tuesday.
One of the earliest great portraits of a person of colour, Sir Joshua Reynolds Portrait of Omai is the subject of a major fundraising attempt in the UK. The portrait, bought by Irish stud owner and collector John Magnier in 2001 for £10 million, is on the market for £50 million. This is more than has ever been paid for an 18th century portrait. A British government ban on the sale of the painting runs out on March 10. The National Portrait Gallery is spearheading a bid to save the work before it is sold abroad. An innovative scheme would see the portrait bought jointly by the Getty Museum in California and the National Portrait Gallery. Omai was a Polynesian Islander who sailed to Britain one of Captain Cook’s ships, arriving in 1774. He was greatly admired by British Society, and returned to Polynesia with Cook’s third voyage in 1777.
CIARAN CLEAR (1920-2000) – Homing Hookers. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,200 AT HAMMER
Homing Hookers by Ciaran Clear comes up at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current Irish art online sale, which runs until March 7. The catalogue is online and the sale will be on view in Skibbereen from March 2. The estimate for this evocative oil on board with its hookers in full sail, moonlight, clouds, islands and rocks, which measures 10.20 x 17cm (4 x 6.7inches) is €600-€900. It is already proving to be very popular with bidders.
There is an interesting provenance to this 19th century High Gothic Revival hall mirror at Mullen’s timed classic and contemporary interiors auction which runs until February 26. Lot 192 at this auction of 894 lots last came up at the Shelton Abbey, Arklow sale in 1950. That auction on behalf of the Earl of Wicklow was conducted by Allen & Townsend, Dublin and Clark, Delahunt of Wicklow. The mirror, in the manner of Augustus Pugin, has arched gothic plates in a cluster column and a gilt foliate capped frame. Lot 192 is estimated at €1,500-€2,500.
Francis Bacon – Self-Portrait (1969). UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR $34,622,500
Francis Bacon’s landmark Self-Portrait from 1969 is among 16 exceptional modern and post war paintings from the collection of S.I. Newhouse to be sold at Christie’s in New York next May. There are masterworks by artists including Picasso, de Kooning, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Brice Marden and Lee Bontecou.The Bacon portrait is estimated at in excess of $20 million and the entire collection at more than $144 million.
Alex Rotter, Christie’s Chairman, 20th and 21st Century Art, remarked: “S.I. Newhouse’s brilliance was undeniable and his art collecting held a rare quality of excellence. As a collector, he bought and sold with the deepest levels of consideration and intention—which over decades, led to the evolution of a singular collection. Last November, we saw with the Collection of Paul. G. Allen that the market for true masterpieces is as strong as ever. Building on this momentum, we could not be prouder to present this selection of masterpieces from the S.I. Newhouse Collection this May.”
S.I. Newhouse (1927-2017) ranks among the most revered connoisseur art collectors in modern history. He is credited with redefining the contemporary art market in the 1980s, with his acquisition of Jasper Johns’s False Start; in the 1990s, with his acquisition of Andy Warhol’s Orange Marilyn; and in the 2010s, with the 2019 sale of Jeff Koons’ 1986 sculpture Rabbit at Christie’s New York for $91,075,000, establishing the record price for work by any living artist. As the co-owner of a media empire that included Condé Nast, publisher of leading publications such as The New Yorker, Vogue, Vanity Fair, and Architectural Digest, as well as newspapers across America, Mr. Newhouse was a visionary cultural figure whose enduring impact continues to inform and inspire generations worldwide.
