A night of surprises at Auction Gallery of the Palm Beaches’ June 26 sale
July. 13, 2006
The June 26 third-anniversary sale of Auction Gallery of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach was a night of fun, strong prices and several surprises according to auction co-owner Brian Kogan. “It was a nice evening and lots of people had lots of fun.”
The event, with Internet bidding facilitated by LiveAuctioneers in association with eBay Live Auctions, featured lots from the estate of Palm Beach antiquarian and third generation English porcelain dealer Alfred Peter Rochelle-Thomas, a French Art Deco perfume bottle collection from the estate of New York artist Arthur Holland, French and Italian furniture from a Miami home and American furniture from a home in the Plantation, Fla., area.
The biggest surprise of the sale was a pair of porcelain bowls from the reign of the fifth emperor of the Chinese Ch’ing dynasty, known as Chia Ch’ing, 1796-1820. Bearing the seal of the reign, the two red ground finely painted bowls, 4in high by 8 1/8in wide, with scenes of Chinese children at play, were estimated at $500-$1,000 the pair. Fierce online competition quickly shot past the high estimate, and the lot sold for $26,400, including buyer’s premium. The bowls will eventually be sent to Hong Kong.
Another very pleasant surprise appeared in the form of a French display cabinet, circa 1900, with a drop front desk in the center section and curved glass display areas. The kingwood cabinet, 65in high and 63in wide, was decorated with ormolu ribbon and floral swags and caryatids that had been added after the original manufacture. Estimated at $6,000-$8,000, a local bidder and New York buyer went head to head until the New Yorker won it with a bid of $20,700.
American artifacts also were in demand. A pair of 18th-century gilt wood convex mirrors with eagle finials and finely gilt-carved scrolling additions was warmly received in the house. The 40in tall fixtures had some paint faults and loosened finials and parts, but were estimated at $5,000-$7,000 nonetheless. The flaws did not deter bidders, who competed the pair to $17,250.
Art was well represented at the sale. An oil on canvas, 36in by 54in, with no visible signature but with a strong attribution to English artist Edward Mathew Ward, 1816–1879, depicted a scene in Exchange Alley from the 1790 “South Sea Bubble,” when the financial speculation in that part of the world caused a market collapse. The painting went to a local floor bidder for $14,950.
Even a bird got into the act. A 17in tall majolica pottery hanging wall bracket with a parrot figure and an illegible maker’s mark, in fair condition with some loss to the feathers, estimated at $100-$150, sailed off to a winner of $2,530 with premium
The off-peak season auction was well attended, with 300 registered bidders through LiveAuctioneers. Kogan reported the online version of the sale went off without a hitch. The next Auction Gallery of the Palm Beaches Art and Antique sale is scheduled for Monday, August 21. View the entire illustrated catalog and bid live online at www.liveauctioneers.com.
# # #
