Huge Japanese silver incense burner pushes Heritage sale to $1.5M

Detail of massive Japanese dragon-form incense burner featuring almost 45 pounds of nearly pure silver, $250,000. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions, ha.com
Massive Japanese dragon-form incense burner featuring almost 45 pounds of nearly pure silver, $250,000. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions, ha.com
Massive Japanese dragon-form incense burner featuring almost 45 pounds of nearly pure silver, $250,000. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions, ha.com

DALLAS — The origin of the massive dragon incense burner that helped lead Heritage Auctions‘ Fine Silver & Objects of Vertu Signature ® Auction to a $1,501,201 finish on May 16 might be a mystery, but what’s no longer in question is the final selling price of this exceptional example of Japanese Meiji period craftsmanship. The dragon-form incense burner, which contains nearly 45 pounds of 99% pure silver, sold for $250,000, shattering its estimate of $70,000 and prompting an enthusiastic round of applause in the auction room.

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Punch bowls allow master artisans to flaunt their talents

A circa-1900 Dorflinger Montrose pattern green-to-clear punch bowl set with matching bowl, base, ladle and 13 cups achieved $110,000 plus the buyer’s premium in September 2014. Image courtesy of DuMouchelles and LiveAuctioneers
A circa-1900 Dorflinger Montrose pattern green-to-clear punch bowl set with matching bowl, base, ladle and 13 cups achieved $110,000 plus the buyer’s premium in September 2014. Image courtesy of DuMouchelles and LiveAuctioneers
A circa-1900 Dorflinger Montrose pattern green-to-clear punch bowl set with matching bowl, base, ladle and 13 cups achieved $110,000 plus the buyer’s premium in September 2014. Image courtesy of DuMouchelles and LiveAuctioneers

NEW YORK – Let’s make one thing clear right away: No one technically needs a punch bowl. In his delightful 2010 book, Punch, author, cocktail expert and historian David Wondrich spends a long paragraph recounting the many receptacles in which he has prepared the crowd-pleasing tipple, including, in part, “pasta pots, Le Crueset Dutch ovens, spackle buckets, salad spinners, five-gallon water-cooler jugs, candy dishes, candy jars, Lexans of all sizes, nameless orange plastic things from Home Depot, large earthenware pots, galvanized washtubs and a host of other miscellaneous vessels I’m not recalling.” But wanting a nice punch bowl has a long and honorable history. Wondrich states in Punch that the term “punchbowl” emerged by 1658 and silversmiths were producing them by 1680.

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Chinese porcelain, Japanese prints grace Capsule Auctions’ Nov. 18 lineup

Chinese Export Hong punch bowl, est. $10,000-$20,000
Chinese Export Hong punch bowl, est. $10,000-$20,000
Chinese Export Hong punch bowl, est. $10,000-$20,000

NEW YORK — Capsule Auctions presents Asian Art and Antiques, a curated sale of ceramics, woodblock prints, sculptures and paintings from the ancient to the contemporary and sourced from New York and New England estates and collections. The sale takes place Thursday, November 18 at 10 am Eastern time. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

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Art Deco ice cream sign a cool addition to May 20 NHADA auction

Art Deco ice cream sign, circa 1930, estimated at $4,000-$5,000
Art Deco ice cream sign, circa 1930, estimated at $4,000-$5,000
Art Deco ice cream sign, circa 1930, estimated at $4,000-$5,000

NEW YORK – Once again, the New Hampshire Antiques Dealers Association (NHADA) has offered a strong selection of items, and once again, Clifford Wallach, an expert in tramp art, folk art, and Americana has selected the best for Jasper52. A total of 344 lots comprise the May 20 auction, which commences at 6 pm Eastern time. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

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