BOULDER, Colo. – Just as millions turned back their clocks last weekend, Artemis Gallery will take it a step further on November 9, turning back time with a 384–lot auction of fine antiquities and ethnographic art. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
The auction lineup includes classical antiquities, art and relics from cultures spanning the globe. The timeline begins in Ancient Egypt and traverses the important civilizations of Ancient Greece and Rome, as well as those of the Near East, Africa, Oceania, Europe/Russia, and the New World, including indigenous Pre-Columbian peoples.
From the mysterious land of the Sphinx and Great Pyramid of Giza, Artemis Gallery will offer a fascinating selection of antiquities, including an 8.4-inch-tall Egyptian faience ushabti of Sema Taui (circa 380-343 BCE), with a translation of the hieroglyphs inscribed around its base, est. $7,000-$9,000; and, shown above, a limestone panel (circa 1550-712 BCE) with carved images of an owl, tilapia (fish), a building component, human face and other subject matter. It is estimated at $12,000-$16,000. Prestigious provenance accompanies two lots, in particular: a superb bronze figure of Osiris (ex Parke-Bernet), est. $40,000-$60,000; and a papyrus fragment from The Book of the Dead (ex Christie’s), which is framed together with a polychrome stucco cartonnage fragment depicting a procession of female deities, est. $4,000-$6,000. A museum-exhibited Egyptian Coptic period (Byzantine Empire) textile from circa 4th to 6th century CE, depicts dancers/musicians and is estimated at $6,000-$9,000.
A beautiful selection of Ancient Greek pottery and metalwork are entered in the sale. Two top highlights are: an Apulian red-figure plate decorated with a Lady of Fashion, $2,400-$3,600; and a Hellenistic bronze kylix/drinking vessel, $2,500-$3,500. Three Greek sculptural artworks are worthy of special mention, as well. An expressive circa 500 BCE terracotta relief of the satyr Marsyas that has been TL tested is expected to reach $4,000-$6,000; while a larger-than-lifesize bronze of a sandaled foot from a statue, complete with lead weights inside its hollow foot, is estimated at $9,000-$12,000. An important circa 600-400 BCE Etruscan votive bust of a young man, TL tested and from a Swiss private collection, comes to auction with a $14,000-$18,000 estimate.
A stunning Roman Imperial Period bronze oil lamp, circa 1st to 3rd century CE, has a bifurcated handle depicting a three-dimensional male head, most likely a god. Its pre-sale estimate is $5,000-$7,000. Another wonderful Roman figural piece is a high-quality cast bronze finial in the form of a prancing horse, shown above. This well provenanced circa 2nd to 3rd century CE artwork is estimated at $3,500-$5,000.
Viking jewelry and relics continue to attract new collectors to Artemis sales, which consistently contain an excellent array of Nordic rarities from which to choose. This time the Viking trove includes a rare 20K gold filigree pendant, shown above, circa 10th to 11th century CE, with the image of a dragon on the obverse. Weighing 10.4 grams, it is estimated at $3,000-$4,500. Additional treasures in this section include a magnificent silver torq of lunate form with stippled and stamped designs, $4,000-$6,000; and a superior example of a cast-silver Thor’s Hammer pendant, $2,000-$3,000.
Near Eastern highlights include two remarkable swords: a circa 1100 BCE Luristan iron sword with elaborate handle, $4,000-$6,000; and a Caspian Sea bronze sword cast as a single piece, with provenance that includes the Harmer Rooke Gallery, NYC. Estimate: $3,500-$5,000.
The auction is brimming with Asian highlights from distinguished collections. One of the most intriguing is a 19th-century Naga (northeastern India/northwestern Burma) shield and spear, shown above, from the last quarter of the 19th century. The wicker, leather and fur shield is decorated with six bone carvings of anthropomorphic faces below five monkey skulls. It is estimated at $4,000-$6,000.
Shown below consecutively, a sandstone head of Dvarapala (Cambodia, Khmer) from the Angkor Period (circa 11th century) stands 13 inches high on its included custom stand, $6,000-$9,000; while a set of 12 Chinese Ming Dynasty pottery figures designed as tomb attendants in draped “gowns” represents all of the various signs of the zodiac. TL tested, this visually appealing set is expected to make $6,000-$8,000.
Pre-Columbian artworks range from a Valdivian redware Venus figure, $4,000-$6,000; to an Olmec robin’s-egg blue jade maskette, $8,000-$12,000; and a published Mayan Peten polychrome tripodal bowl with Sotheby’s provenance, $15,000-$20,000. Shown at the top of the page, a very large and important Tihuanaco (Bolivia, circa 400-900 CE) kero-form vessel is designed with a projecting three-dimensional jaguar effigy head. The piece was examined and certified authentic by Nicholas Stoetzer of Stoetzer, Inc. fine Art Services, Miami. It will convey with the report from that examination. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000
The auction also includes tribal art from the Northwest Coast USA, including two carved totems and a Haida Tree of Life button blanket; a published early 20th-century Maori carved-wood couple, and early Russian icons. Shown above, a premier example of European artistry is the late 19th- to early 20th-century Austrian cold-painted bronze with glass sculpture titled The Musician. It stands 15 inches high and is an exquisite example of the type of work for which the Bergmann foundry was so renowned. Previously auctioned at Christie’s NYC, it comes with a COA and is estimated at $20,000-$40,000.
The sale begins at 10 a.m. Eastern Time, with absentee and online bidding available through LiveAuctioneers. For additional information about any item in the auction, call Teresa Dodge at 720-502-5289 or email teresa@artemisgallery.com.
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