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  • Posts Tagged ‘BONHAMS PARIS’

    A GUITAR THAT SEGOVIA WAS NOT PERMITTED TO PLAY

    Friday, May 16th, 2025

    La Inédita by legendary luthier Santos Hernández.

    Specifically created for the Spanish virtuoso Andrés Segovia – who never played it – the classical guitar known as La Inedita was crafted in Madrid in 1935 by legendary luthier Santos Hernández (1874-1943). Through twists of fate, this exceptional instrument never reached the master’s hands, becoming a mysterious piece of musical lore. Upon completion, instead of personally visiting Santos Hernández’s workshop, Segovia merely requested that the guitar be delivered to his hotel. This deeply offended the master luthier, who felt slighted and decided not only to refuse to sell it to Segovia but also to store it away untouched, ensuring no one else could play it. In the early 1970s Spanish Mexican businessman, philanthropist and renowned art collector Plácido Arango Arias acquired the guitar.  Now this long-lost treasure emerges from history. It will be sold by Bonham’s an online sale from May 19-28 in Paris. The estimate is €125,000 – 185,000 with all proceeds benefitting children battling cancer through Fundación Aladina.

    THE CLASSICS SALE AT BONHAMS IN PARIS

    Thursday, April 4th, 2024

    A pair of Sèvres hard-paste Vases Hollandois or flower-pots and stands, 1775-85. UPDATE: THESE SOLD FOR 19,200

    Important furniture, Old Master paintings and drawings and Italian ceramics from Italian collections lead the Classics sale at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr in Paris on April 16. A selection of 60 works from an important Italian collection from Rome will feature  old master drawings, paintings and furniture, drawing interest from international buyers with classical tastes. Among the highlights are a pair of Sèvres hard-paste Vases Hollandois or flower-pots and stands, 1775-85. These vases were in the celebrated collection of Edouard Chappey (c1858-1907) and are estimated at €6,000-8,000. A pair of northern Italian amaranth, bois citronnier, green-stained sycamore and tulipwood marquetry commodes, Lombard or Genoese, in the taste of Giuseppe Maggiolini, late 18th century are estimated at €20,000-25,000.

    A pair of late 18th century northern Italian commodes. UPDATE; THESE SOLD FOR 48,640

    POCKET WATCH FROM ULYSSES AT BONHAMS PARIS SALE

    Wednesday, October 20th, 2021

    A pocket watch mentioned in Ulysses by James Joyce comes up at Bonhams Time is Precious sale in Paris on November 4. The 18 carat gold hunter case pocket watch and chain was owned by John O’Connell, Superintendent of Glasnevin Cemetary. The reference to O’Connell’s watch comes in Hades, the sixth episode of Ulysses. The novel’s central character Leopold Bloom travels with the funeral procession from Paddy Dignam’s house to Glasnevin cemetery where O’Connell was Superintendent (or caretaker as Joyce calls him). O’Connell regales the small group of mourners with an anecdote, an event described by Joyce as follows: “The caretaker hung his thumbs in the loops of his gold watch chain and spoke in a discreet tone to their vacant smiles.”

    John Kileen O’Connell (1844-1925) was Superintendent of Glasnevin Cemetery, and a well-known and respected Dublin character. In Ulysses, Joyce described him as a ‘portly man’, who “ambushed among the grasses, raised his hat in homage” as the coffin of the deceased Paddy Dignam passed by on a barrow.

    Curator of the Time is Precious sale, James Stratton, said: “This watch has the most fascinating and unusual provenance of any I have ever encountered. To offer a tangible item from one of the most famous and influential novels of modern times is a rare privilege and something I never expect to be able to do again.” The watch is estimated at £50,000-£80,000.

    18ct gold hunter case pocket-watch and chain. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD