CRANSTON, R.I. – To say that Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers’ Feb. 3 auction featured an eclectic mix of merchandise would be an understatement. The top three lots in the 353-lot sale were a partial set of Chinese carved jadeite zodiac animal seals, which sold for $8,750; a U.S. flag rug made by the Boston Wool Association, $5,625, and a palace-size Persian rug, $5,000. Absentee and Internet bidding were available through LiveAuctioneers.
“Prior to the sale we had been sure of the quality of the jade, but we weren’t sure how receptive collectors would be with only nine of the seals present,” said Kevin Bruneau, the president and auctioneer of Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers. “Bidders were attracted to the excellent quality of the seals’ carving and the fact that each one showed a figural animal perched on a rectangular base.”
Travis Landry, a Bruneau & Co. specialist and auctioneer, added, “Overall it was a great sale, with strong results across all fields. I was delighted to see the appreciation for the Boston Wool Association carpet, a truly one-of-a-kind piece.”
The 77-by-144-inch rug, depicting the American flag with the Boston Wool Association’s logo, was made for its museum in Lowell, Mass. The museum was part of the American Textile History Museum, which closed in 2016.
The 19th-century Persian rug was truly palace-size, at 31 feet 4 inches by 12 feet 3 inches. The rug – decorated with an allover red floral and tendril pattern over a blue ground within a contrasting border – came out of the collection of the Worcester Club in Worcester, Mass., where it had been since 1913. It was a great rug in good condition.
The day began with 43 paintings, followed by a mix of merchandise ranging from 36 lots of guns and antique ammunition to antiquarian books from a fine estate out of Coventry, R.I. The auction grossed $144,112, including the buyer’s premium.
Following are additional highlights from the auction. All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium.
A gorgeous Handel table lamp, 18 ½ inches tall, with a leaded stained-glass Dogwood pattern shade sold for $2,325. The lamp, made in Connecticut around 1915, retained its original Handel cloth label on the bronze base.
A Danish .999 silver sculpture of a cheetah, 14 ½ inches long, by the Dutch-American artist Loet Vanderveen (1921-2015) sold for $3,750. The sculpture had an edition designation of “20/250” and “142 T.” Loet Vanderveen was known for combining patina and polished finishes to his sculptures.
An oil on canvas figurative portrait painting of a girl by Israeli social realist Ruth Schloss (1922-2013), titled Batya of Jerusalem, 35 ½ inches by 30 ½ inches (framed), coasted to $2,125. The painting was signed lower left by Schloss and still has its original label from the Safrai Art Gallery in Israel.
Another large Persian rug – this one a Keshan wool carpet made in the first quarter of the 20th century and measuring 10 feet 4 inches by 18 feet 7 inches, in overall good condition – brought $2,500. The rug was decorated with central hanging and standing urns and flowers.
A fine 18th-century Connecticut Queen Anne highboy, crafted from cherry with poplar and pine secondary woods, topped out at $2,250. The 76-inch-tall by 41-inch-wide piece was a fine example of a period Connecticut highboy and retained its original brasses and backer boards. It stood on cabriole legs with pad feet rising into a shaped apron with acorn dropped finials.
A circa 1790 American Federal carved gilt wood and gesso bull’s-eye mirror, adorned with reticulated gilt acanthus leaves and tendrils throughout, with a lower three-arm sconce, went for $1,625. The handsome mirror was 51 inches tall by 24 inches in diameter.
Also selling for $1,625 was a 19th century group of Italian micromosaic specimen plaques, 41 in all, the largest of which measured 1 ¾ inches by 1 ½ inches. Each green, blue and black glass plaque was nicely inlaid with beautiful depictions of birds, baskets and flowers.
For details contact Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers via e-mail: info@bruneauandco.com.
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