Spectacular estate jewelry and art lead Case’s Jan. 29-30 auction

estate jewelry

Ring with 4.01-carat GIA-certified diamond solitaire, est. $40,000-$44,000

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The forecast is for plenty of ice – as in diamonds – at the upcoming Winter Case Antiques Auction. Jewelry from estate collections headlines the January 29-30 sale, along with a Charles Marion Russell western bronze, Mid-century Modern furniture by Paul Evans and Knoll, and silver by Georg Jensen and Paul Storr. The 1,172-lot auction also features American and European paintings; early Southern decorative arts; historical items and Asian antiques. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

The sale contains more than 150 lots of fine jewelry and watches, much of it from the estates of three prominent women: healthcare executive Nicole Maslanka of Atlanta; a private Nashville philanthropist; and late antique jewelry dealer Virginia Jared of Hillsboro, Tennessee.

Featured are several excellent diamond rings with sizable stones. Among them are a square cut solitaire and a modified brilliant cut stone in a platinum setting accented by princess cut and baguette diamonds that add 1.68 carats; a 3.79 carat old European cut diamond in a platinum ring setting; and a 4.01 square emerald cut solitaire in a 14K gold four-prong setting. This last is estimated at $40,000-$44,000.

Designer jewelry pieces include an 18K Cartier Le Baiser Du dragon diamond and ruby ring plus bracelets and necklaces by Tiffany, Omega and Michelleto. Among the timepieces are an 18K and diamond Cartier watch; a Cartier Panthere bracelet watch; a Tiffany 18K split second chronograph pocket watch; a 1906 Vacheron & Constantin Milan Grand Prix 15K pocket watch; and a collection of railroad-related pocket watches.

Detail of Charles Marion Russell’s bronze ‘Spirit of the Buffalo,’ est. $16,000-$18,000

Detail of Charles Marion Russell’s bronze ‘Spirit of the Buffalo,’ est. $16,000-$18,000

A 1929 bronze casting of Charles Marion Russell’s Smoking with the Spirit of the Buffalo, estimated at $16,000-$18,000, highlights the art offerings. It is one of two known castings commissioned by Russell’s widow from the California Art Bronze Foundry three years after the sculptor’s death. It was acquired directly from Mrs. Russell by a Detroit tycoon and descended in his family to the present estate.

Caio Fonseca, ‘Piesantra P.09.30,’ est. $6,000-$7,000

Caio Fonseca, ‘Piesantra P.09.30,’ est. $6,000-$7,000

Contemporary paintings include a large expressionist oil, Ship Channel, by Texas painter William Lewis Lester and also an abstract mixed media painting from 2009 by Caio Fonseca, titled Pietrasanta P.09.30. Both works are individually estimated at $6,000-$7,000.

Paul Evans Cityscape console, est. $10,000-$12,000

Paul Evans Cityscape console, est. $10,000-$12,000

Leading the furniture offerings is a 1970s Paul Evans Cityscape console constructed in burlwood and brass. Its estimate is $10,000-$12,000. Also available are two Pierre Paulin ABCD sofas by Artifort and a collection of Knoll furniture including a Florence Knoll credenza with marble top; 12 Brno leather flat bar chairs designed by Mies van der Rohe; and a pair of chairs by Kazuhide Takamaha.

Chinese Qing dynasty lacquer and polychrome altar stand or table, est. $1,400-1,800

Chinese Qing dynasty lacquer and polychrome altar stand or table, est. $1,400-1,800

The Asian arts category features a Chinese Qing dynasty black lacquer incense stand or altar table with geometric carved fretwork and its square top decorated with a polychrome landscape, estimated at $1,400-$1,800; an elaborate carved jade temple lion on silver inlaid stand; Asian silver objects; and a collection of bronze and giltwood Buddha figures brought back to the U.S. by a former CIA field officer who worked in Asia in the 1970s.

 

View top auction results on LiveAuctioneers here: https://www.liveauctioneers.com/pages/recent-auction-sales/