Auction Report

Christie's

Sale of Indian and Southeast Asian Art, New York 

September 13

203 lots were offered for sale at Christie's New York on September 13, 2011. Of the 203 items 137 were sold at a total of (inclusive of buyer's premium) $4,130,000. The Highest winning value was for lot 270, a bronze figure of Chandeshvara South India, Chola period, 12th Century. Standing in slight tribangha on a lotus base over a square plinth, with his hands folded before his chest and cupping a ball of flowers, clad in a short dhoti and adorned with beaded jewellery, his face with serene expression, large almond-shaped eyes and pointed nose 22¾ in. (57.8 cm.) high. It was sold for $482,500, though its estimated price was $400,000 - $600,000.

Sale of South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art, New York

September 13

111 lots were offered for sale at Christie's New York on September 13, 2011. Of the 111 items 77 were sold for a total of (inclusive of buyer's premium) $7,375,775. The Highest winning value went to lot 19, Maqbool Fida Husain's Sprinkling Horses, oil on canvas. Signed 'Husain' and further signed in Hindi and Urdu (lower center); further signed, inscribed and titled SPRINKLING HORSES Husain (on the reverse). 43¼ x 92½ in. (109.9 x 235 cm.) in size, it was sold for $1,142,500.

Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Part I and II, New York 

September 15 and 16

Christie's put Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on auction on September 15 and 16. A total of 573 lots were auctioned from which 456 were sold for a total of $38,842,525 (inclusive of buyer's premium). The highest price went to lot 1547, a Rare Blue and White Ming-Style Moonflask, Qianlong Seal Mark in Underglaze Blue and of the Period (1736-1795) which had an estimated price of $500,000 - 700,000. The convex sides finely painted in rich cobalt blue in imitation of Ming fifteenth-century style with eight petals enclosing the bajixiang radiating from a narrow petal band that encircles a domed boss centered by a spoked flower head within a key-fret border repeated at the edge of the sides, the narrow sides painted with bands of lingzhi scroll repeated on the spreading foot, and cylindrical neck below a single rib and ruyi and key-fret bands, with a pair of arched leaf-scroll handles, with size 13¾ in. (35 cm.) high  It was sold for $2,658,500.

Impressionist & Modern Art, New York

September 20

Christie's New York had offered 181 lots of Impressionist & Modern Art for auction on September 20, 2011. Out of the 181 lots 156 were sold for a total of $2,412,563 (inclusive of buyer's premium). The Highest winning value went to lot 39, Jean-Pierre Cassigneul, De dos, signed 'CASSIGNEUL.' (lower right), 39¼ x 31¾ in. (99.5 x 80.5 cm.), oil on canvas, 1967. Though the price estimated for the lot was $18,000-25,000, it was sold for $116,500.

Sotheby's

The Philatelic Collection of Lord Steinberg British Mint Multiples, London

September 6

Sotheby's auctioned the Philatelic Collection of Lord Steinberg British Mint Multiples from September 6, 2011 till September 8, 2011 at London. The highest price went to lot 1118
1927 De Pinedo Air Mail 60c. black, S.G. 163. Though its estimated price was 120,000- 150,000 GBP, the hammer price with buyer's premium was 168,000 GBP. The high price went to lot 492
1939-51 2½ D, magenta and sage- green imperforate horizontally, S.G. 64a. Its estimated price was 60,000- 80,000 GBP and the hammer price was 60,000 GBP.

Indian & South Asian Modern & Contemporary, New York

September 15

87 lots were offered for sale at Sotheby's, New York on September 15, 2011. Out of 87 lots 51 were sold for a total of (inclusive of buyer's premium) $2,262,000. The Highest winning value went to lot 26, Sayed Haider Raza (B.1922) Eglise for $362,500. The estimated price was $300,000 - 500,000.

The next high priced item was lot 16, Raja Ravi Varma, Untitled (Himalayan Beauty), oil on canvas which was sold for $266,500. Its estimated price was $1000, 000  150,000.

Bonham's

Period Design at Bonham's Knightsbridge   

September 6

Bonham's had put 330 lots of Period Design on auction on September 6.  Out of 330 lots 215 lots were sold for a total of £245,693. The highest winning value went to lot 296, which was sold for £10,625 (inclusive of Buyer's Premium). It is an Edwardian mahogany, satinwood, fruitwood and ivory marquetry serpentine display cabinet by Edwards and Roberts inlaid with scrolling foliage, strapwork, cherubs, fruit filled urns, masks and cornucopia, with boxwood and ebony stringing overall, the broken swan neck pediment and dentil moulded cornice above a glazed panelled door with conforming sides, enclosing two shelves over three drawers, on four square tapering legs terminating in spade feet, the top drawer stamped Edwards And Roberts, 153cm wide x 57.5cm deep x 214cm high, (60" wide x 22.5" deep x 84" high).

Goodwood Revival, Collector's Motor Cars and Automobilia

September 16

Bonham's presented 290 lots of Collectors' Sports Cars on September 16. Out of the 290 lots 167 lots were sold for a total of £53, 53,919. The highest winning price went to lot 228, one of only 25 specification, 1971 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 'Daytona' Spyder Chassis no. 14605 Engine no. B1594. It was sold for £595,500. The next high priced lot was 230 which was an ex-Richard Solove and John M. O' Quinn Collections, one of only five surviving 1908 Silver Ghosts, 1908 Rolls-Royce 40/50 hp Silver Ghost Roi-des-Belges Engine no. 60747, which was sold for £485,500.

Bonhams

Bonhams' Power by BMW auction  

October 1

Nine 40-Year-old delivery mileage private collections of BMW Motor Cars will be offered without reserve, at the BMW Museum in Munich, Germany. Among the many highlights already consigned for the auction is a remarkable and quite possibly unique collection of mostly extremely low/delivery mileage 'single owner from new' BMWs.

Bonham's

Sale of Indian and Islamic Art

October 4

Bonham's will present 441 lots of Islamic and Indian Art for auction at Bonham's, New Bond Street. The auction starts from October 4, 2011. Out of the 441 lots the expected high priced lot is lot 261, a rare and important gem-set gold Cruciform Pendant Mughal India or Deccan, 17th Century, comprising three perpendicular rectangular sections and a pointed section, all set with diamonds, centred on an oval medallion with a large central diamond within a band of cabochon rubies, the gold borders finely engraved with a trailing foliate vine; the reverse engraved with lions and lionesses hunting gazelles, against a dense ground of fruit and flower-bearing foliage, the bottom with an emerald bead suspension, the top with suspension loop, 5 cm. high (excluding emerald bead). Its estimated price is £70,000 - 100,000.

The next high priced lot is lot 147, an important Iznik pottery Water Bottle (Surahi), Turkey, Circa 1575. The bulbous body rising through a recurved band to a tubular neck with torus moulding and flaring mouth, on short foot, the brilliant white ground of the body painted with red carnations and blue hyacinths, a band of plaited ribbon above, the upper neck with similar floral motifs, the lower neck with lobed panels with cusped ends and medial blue stripes, the moulding with split-palmette interlace, of size 38.3cm high. Its estimated price is £60,000 - 80,000.

Phillips de Pury

New York Photographs Auction 

October 4

Phillips de Pury & Company will present The New York Photographs Auction on October 4 in New York at Phillips de Pury 450 Park Avenue. Works by Richard Avedon, Irving Penn, Robert Frank, Man Ray, Bernd & Hilla Becher, Robert Mapplethorpe, Garry Winogrand, Lee Friedlander, Larry Clark & Candida Höfer will lead sale of important photographs.

The auction will include Richard Avedon's The Beatles Portfolio: John Lennon, Ringo Starr, George Harrison and Paul McCartney, musicians, London (1967) which will be put on sale at an expected price of $350,000-$450,000. Irving Penn's Black and White Vogue Cover (Jean Patchett), New York (1950) will also be auctioned at an estimated price of $200,000- $300,000, it is a platinum palladium print that embodies the understated, minimalist elegance that Penn heralded in the 1950s; Bernd and Hilla Becher's Cooling Towers, Ruhr District (1983) which expected for $80,000-$120,000; Man Ray's Torso (1930); Robert Mapplethorpe's Calla Lily (1987) estimated at $50,000-$70,000, which captures the majestic grace and understated sensuality of Mapplethorpe's flowers; Ansel Adams's mural size Mt. Williamson, Sierra Nevada, from Manzanar, CA, 1944, displaying the iconic photographer's boundless affinity for the Great West will also be put on sale.

The Arc of Photography: A Private East Coast Collection

October 4

The Arc of Photography: a Private East Coast Collection will be auctioned by Phillips de Pury & Company on October 4, 2011 at its 450 Park Avenue location, New York. Works by Nadar & Adrien Tournachon, Alfred Stieglitz, Man Ray, Edward Weston, Lee Miller, Alexander Rodchenko, André Kertész, Gertrude Käsebier, Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz, Henri Cartierbresson, August Sander, Gerhard Richter and Bruce Nauman will be on sale.

The Arc of Photography include Nadar & Adrien Tournachon's Pierrot with Fruit (1854-1855) at an estimated price of $150,000-$200,000; Alfred Stieglitz's Georgia O'Keeffe: A Portrait (1935), at an estimated price of $120,000-$180,000, André Kertész's DistortionSelf-portrait with Carlo Rim (1930), at $40,000-$60,000; as well as Self-portrait with Still Life of Vase & Book, Paris (1926-1927), which is estimated at $40,000-$60,000.

Examples of early and late Modernism will also be put on sale, like Alexander Rodchenko's Film-maker Esther Shub (1924) with an expected price of $40,000-$60,000 will be auctioned; as well as his Peizazh (The View) (1925), at an estimated price of $30,000-$50,000 will also be auctioned.

Christie's

Christie's Interiors, London, South Kensington

October 4

635 lots will be put on sale by Christie's Interiors London on October 4, 2011. The 635 lots will be up for sale for a total estimate of approximately £ 61, 63, 00. The highest price is expected for lot 569, Maud Earl (1864-1943) Best Friends, signed 'Maud Earl' (lower right), oil on canvas, 38½ x 54 in. (96.5 x 137.2 cm.). The estimated price for the item is £7,000 - £10,000.

The next high priced item is expected to be lot 582, A Pair Of Royal Crown Derby Cobalt Blue-Ground Vases Date Cypher For 1902, Iron-Red Crowned with an estimated price of £4,000 - £5,000. Date Cypher for 1902, Iron-Red Crowned Monogram Marks, Incised Shape No. 1251, Signed A. (Lbert) Gregory. Each oviform vase flanked by upright angular handles, finely painted front and back with a lush bouquet including roses, tulips, poppies, convolvulus, bluebells and other flowers within a beaded gilt foliate scroll cartouche on a gilt caillouté ground, the lower body moulded with stiff-leaf tips, on a conforming stepped socle base, 15¾ in. (40 cm.) high (2), date cypher for 1902, iron-red crowned monogram marks, incised shape no. 1251, signed A.(Lbert) Gregory.




Christie's Interiors, New York, Rockefeller Plaza 

October 4 and 5

Christie's Interiors, New York will put for sale 894 lots on October 4, 2011 and the auction will continue till October 5, 2011. The auction will take place at Rockefeller Plaza. The highest price is expected for lot 938, a pair of French gilt-bronze white marble, lapis, and tigers eye center tables, 20th century, 31in. (78.5cm.) high, 41in. (104cm.) wide, 25¼in. (64cm.) deep (2). Its estimated price is $25,000 - $35,000. The next high priced lot is 942, a patinated, gilt-bronze and micro mosaic-inlaid specimen marble center table, late 20th century, 32in. (81.3cm.) high, 29 in. (73.7cm.) diameter. The lot is estimated at $10,000 - $15,000.

Art from the Islamic and Indian Worlds, London

October 6

Christie's will put 445 works of art dating from the 7th century through to the 20th century - from Europe in the west to South East Asia in the east, lots for auction on October 6, 2011.

The auction is expected to realise in excess of £10 million.

The sale is led by a highly important recent discovery- previously unknown 8th century, a lot 20 Umayyad sculpture of a deer in bronze with copper inlay, from Iran. Standing on four slender legs, the body with short slightly curved tail,  long thin head with copper-inlaid eyes and small pointed rear-facing ears and antlers, thin slender muzzle with mouth slightly open showing engraved teeth, nostrils and fur on head engraved, further engraved lines showing texture of fur on side of rear flanks, chest, underneath of jaw and on tail, small apertures to neck and back where handle would have been attached, further smaller hole in back, green surface patination with some small red highlights, 13 5/8in. (34.7cm.) high; 11 15/16in. (30.3cm.) long, with an estimated price of £2,000,000-3,000,000.

The next high priced item is lot 50, an engraved and nielloed silver bowl, from Western Iran, last third 11th/early 12th. It is of squat rounded form tapering to cyclindrical neck with slightly everted rim, the silver body plain but for one band of naskh and scrolling vine on a ground of engraved scrolls, below this three similarly worked arabesque roundels on similar ground, a later applied simple loop handle with large extending palmette finial decorated with similar arabesque roundel and small drop shaped palmette, remains of niello 5in. (12.7cm.) high; 4¼in. (10.7mc.) diam. at rim, with an estimated price of £700,000 - £1,000,000.

Art from the Islamic and Indian Worlds Including Works from the Collection of the Late Simon Digby, London, South Kensington

October 7

610 lots will be auctioned by Christie's London on October 7, 2011. The highest price has been estimated for lot 395, an Illustration From The Baghavata Purana: Krishna Quelling The Naga, Possibly Attributable To Fattu, Guler-Basohli Style, Punjab Hills, Circa 1760-65 AD, Gouache heightened with gold on paper, depicting Krishna jumping into the water and wrestling with the demon, Yashoda and a crowd of women watching from the riverbank, with red borders, the reverse with gurmukhi or nagari inscriptions, mounted, framed and glazed, miniature 9¼ x 13¼in. (23.5 x 33.8cm.); panel 12 x 16in. (30.8 x 40.6cm.). The price estimated is £12,000 - £18,000.

The next high priced expected lot Is 396, an illustration from The Baghavad Gita: Krishna And Arjuna Hunting Basohli-Guler Style, Punjab Hills, Circa 1760-65, Miniature 10 7/8 x 14 5/8in. (27.8 x 37.4cm.); panel 11¾ x 15½in. (29.9 x 39.5cm.), with an estimated price of £10,000 - £15,000.