Eero Saarinen womb chair for Knoll, Kamelot Auctions image.
PHILADELPHIA – Currently under preparation at Kamelot Auctions in Philadelphia is the company’s Town & Country Estate Sale, which will take place on Saturday, June 9, 2012, starting at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide the Internet live bidding.
Comprising 800 lots, the sale will feature fine antiques, decorative art, and fine art and modern furniture suitable for both interior design schemes and a variety of porch and garden settings.
The sale opens with a sustained stretch of 20th-century furnishings comprising seating, servers, desks, dining tables, lighting and more. A host of ever-popular midcentury designers such as Eames, Bertoia, Saarinen, George Nelson, Herman Miller, Knoll and Richard Shultz are well represented. Many pieces are being sold directly from the Estate of Bob Longwell, a dearly loved vice president at Knoll who, over the decades, became close friends with these legendary designers.
Lot No. 228 is a womb chair by Eero Saarinen for Knoll from this estate valued at $1,800-$2,400. Other fine modern consignments hail from the historic John Roberts House (Gladwyne, Pa.), which, until very recently, contained an important private collection of furniture and objets d’arts spanning three centuries. Among several original designer items from this estate are four lots of early and rare circa-1952 Eames ESU200 storage units (Lots No. 246, 247, 248 & 249) with sliding doors, open shelving and sleek drawers. Estimates range from $2,000-$12,000 on these four lots.
More traditional antiques and decorative arts include a 19th-century silver-over-bronze figural group signed ‘Christofle et Cie’ (Lot No. 690: $3,000-5,000), and a signed Handel bronze table lamp with unique art glass shade (Lot No. 516: $800-$1,200). Lot No.707, is an exquisite and rare Chinese jade frame embellished with amethyst quartz, estimated at $800-$1,200.
Virtually every category in this sale is studded with unusual pieces of very high quality and notable provenance. Fine art is hardly an exception. Directly from the estate of Betty Skinner, Lot No.659 is a signed oil painting by Anna Mary Robertson (Grandma) Moses circa 1961, titled Quiet Village. It is valued at $50,000-$70,000.
Good garden furniture, statuary, ironwork, planters and other outdoor décor offered in this sale exhibit the beauty and functionality that Kamelot Auctions buyers have come to expect. The sale as a whole is certain to expand the circle of discerning collectors, interior designers and other private or professional buyers who regularly watch and participate in this Philadelphia company’s events.
For additional information on any lot in the sale, call 215-438-6990.
View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.
# # #
ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE
Eero Saarinen womb chair for Knoll, Kamelot Auctions image. Rare Chinese jade frame, Kamelot Auctions image. Grandma Moses signed oil painting ‘Quiet Village,’ Kamelot Auctions image. Signed Cristofle silver-on-bronze figural group, Kamelot Auctions image. Rare Eames ESU200 storage unit, Kamelot Auctions image.
