RIGA, Latvia — The emphasis is very much on 19th- and early 20th-century Russian and Continental European works of art when Antiqon holds an auction in the capital city of Latvia on Saturday, November 25. The 756-lot sale includes pieces by many of the great 19th-century revivalists that added the ‘belle’ to the Belle Epoque. Bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.
Signed for the celebrated late 19th-century maker Paul Somani (1817-1877), a kingwood, vernis martin and ormolu secretaire is estimated at €4,000-€6,000 ($4,200-$6,400), while another splendid example of the Rococo style with the provenance to match is a Meissen chandelier made to a model by J.J. Kaendler in the late 19th century. It once hung in the Biarritz residence of Alfonso XIII, who was the king of Spain until the beginning of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931. An impressive 3ft 4in (1m) high, it is estimated at €6,000-€8,000 ($6,400-$8,500).
A Napoleon III ladies’ writing table set with gilt bronze mounts and porcelain plaques has an estimate of €5,000-€10,000 ($5,350-$10,700). Very much in the manner of the ancien regime ebeniste Adam Weisweiler (1746-1820), the writing surface incorporates a large Sevres-style panel decorated with a pastoral scene of shepherdesses and a shepherd.
One of the earlier pieces in the sale is a Brussels tapestry made in the first quarter of the 18th century in the workshop of Reydams-Leyniers and Van der Borcht. The Triumph of Apollo, from a set designed by Jan van Orley (1665-1735) et Augustin Coppens (1668-1740) has been reduced in size but still measures and impressive 6.4ft (1.97m) wide by 8.8ft (2.7m) high and is notable for its still-vibrant colors. Expect to bid around €5,000-€8,000 ($5,350-$8,500).
Leading the sale with an estimate of €50,000–€80,000 ($54,727-$87,564) is the painting Working Afternoon by the St. Petersburg artist Pavel Bryullov (1840-1914). Working Afternoon from 1890 depicts peasant life in western Ukraine at the time of the harvest. In the foreground a family of gleaners takes a moment’s rest in the shade of a haystack as the work to bring in the harvest continues in the background.
An extraordinary example of Russian majolica is guided at €5,000-€7,000 ($5,450-$7,631). The design for this jardiniere made by the Kuznetsov factory in Dulevo circa 1890 is known from a sketch by the Moscow architect and artist AS Kaminsky (1829-97). The model was first produced by the Maslennikov factory before it was destroyed by fire. An identical vase is in the State Historical Museum in Moscow.
The many examples of Russian metalwork include a fine Art Nouveau style silver and cloisonne enamel kovsh. Bearing marks for the 11th Artel workshop that operated from 1908-1917, the estimate is €2,000-€3,000 ($2,180-$3,270).
