Tiffany & Co. Aesthetic Movement Pitcher leads our five auction highlights

Circa-1885 Tiffany & Co. Aesthetic Movement pitcher, which hammered for $32,000 and sold for $41,920 with buyer’s premium at Toomey & Co.

Tiffany & Co. Aesthetic Movement Pitcher, $41,920

CHICAGO – The Aesthetic Movement lived by the phrase ‘art for art’s sake.’ Its adherents rebelled against the more functional thinking of the Victorian era, instead opting to make everyday things as beautiful as possible. The trend flourished in the 1870s and 1880s, and its influences were felt everywhere, including in the products emerging from the New York studios of Tiffany & Co.

This Tiffany pitcher is dated to around 1885 and features all the hallmarks of the Aesthetic Movement. Made from handwrought sterling silver with gold and copper plating, it includes Japonesque natural motifs including a cricket, a beetle, and a broadleaf plantain. On the underside it is marked Tiffany & Co 6463 Makers 5027 Sterling Silver 925-1000 M 2090 4 1/4 Pts, with the engraved initial M. Its gross weight is 29.8 troy ounces.

Estimated by Toomey & Co. at $6,000-$8,000, the pitcher would go on to hammer for $32,000 and sell for a shiny $41,920 at its February 29 Great Estates sale.

Antique Bovet Pocket Watch Made for the Chinese Market, $38,400

ROSEMEAD, Calif. – Just as rich Europeans coveted Chinese porcelain and lacquer in the 18th and 19th century, so the Chinese were fascinated by Western horology. Many English and Swiss clocks and pocket watches were made specifically for the Far Eastern market. The colorful gem-set and enameled pocket watches made in the town of Fleurier in Switzerland by two companies, Bovet and Juvet, played a dominant role in the export trade to China after the 1820s. Edouard Bovet even went as far as naming his company Bo Wei, the Cantonese word for watch.

The example offered by Legend Artworks on March 8 was typical. The 56mm 18K gold case, pendant and bail set with half pearls, has a white enamel dial on one side and a polychrome enamel scene of a tiger hunt on the other. It opens to reveal a typical Fleurier ‘Chinese market’ duplex escapement, with all the components of the movement heavily engraved.

Although the auction house speculated that the watch may be more than 200 years old, it was probably made in the second half of the 19th century. It is signed both Bovet and with the Chinese characters for Bovet Fleurier.

The estimate was a broad $200-$10,000 but, as prices for these watches have risen sharply in the past two decades with renewed Chinese interest, there were a number of interested parties willing to push the price well above the top estimate. The hammer price was $30,000, and with buyer’s premium, it sold for $38,400.

Arturo Noci, ‘Man at Window,’ $32,000

Arturo Noci, ‘Man at Window,’ which hammered for $25,000 and sold for $32,000 with buyer’s premium at Roland NY.
Arturo Noci, ‘Man at Window,’ which hammered for $25,000 and sold for $32,000 with buyer’s premium at Roland NY.

GLEN COVE, N.Y. – Roland NY’s March 2024 Estates Sale, which took place on March 9, was a classic mix of art and furnishings from homes being decommissioned after the passing of their owners. Among the 927 lots was a framed oil on canvas that the house titled Man at WindowSigned by Arturo Noci (1874-1953) and dated 1917, the work is strikingly evocative, with the viewer’s perspective as a voyeur of a man lost in thought as he scans what could be the French or Italian countryside.

Born in Rome, Noci was evidently an active painter who, from a review of his works sold at auction, specialized in portraiture. He would move to New York in 1923 and would spend his final 30 years there, often creating portraits of wealthy clients who he had befriended.

With a modest estimate of $4,000-$6,000, Noci’s canvas was noted to have some flaking issues and craquelure throughout. Bidders were not deterred; after 40 raises, the winner finished off the competition with a $25,000 purchase ($32,000 with buyer’s premium).

Circa-1500 French or Flemish Boxwood ‘Love Token’ Comb, $12,100

Circa-1500 French or Flemish boxwood ‘love token’ comb, which hammered for £7,000 and sold for £9,450 ($12,100) with buyer’s premium at Timeline Auctions.
Circa-1500 French or Flemish boxwood ‘love token’ comb, which hammered for £7,000 and sold for £9,450 ($12,100) with buyer’s premium at Timeline Auctions.Circa-1500 French or Flemish boxwood ‘love token’ comb, which hammered for £7,000 and sold for £9,450 ($12,100) with buyer’s premium at Timeline Auctions.

HARWICH, UK – The familiar heart-symbol – that today is ‘read’ as love – made its first appearance as a rebus in the late medieval era. This French or Flemish boxwood comb dating to circa 1490-1510 is meticulously carved with the inscription ‘de bon [coeur] donne’qui de bon [coeur] eyme’, translating to ‘He who loves from the heart, gives with a good heart’. It was probably given as a love token in much the same way as posy rings were gifts between lovers.

As they could touch the beloved directly, combs were considered intimate objects and were often included in bridal trousseaus. The tradition of using boxwood for combs is also an ancient one: the Latin word for boxwood, buxum, also signifies comb.

Such a well-preserved example is a rarity. A similar piece, dated circa 1500, is illustrated in Edward Pinto’s collecting bible Treen and Other Wooden Bygones, while another similarly inscribed front and back ‘A ma tres douce amie pour bie le done’ sold for $6,000 at Christie’s New York in June 2022.

This example, formerly in an American collection, was consigned by a Suffolk, England vendor to the Antiquities sale at Timeline Auctions. Offered on the first day of the March 5-9 sales series, it was estimated at £1,000-£1,400 ($1,280-$1,790) but hammered for £7,000 and sold for £9,450 ($12,100) with buyer’s premium.

Benny Carter, Tall Case Clock, $2,625

Benny Carter tall case clock with Statue of Liberty art, which hammered for $2,100 and sold for $2,625 with buyer’s premium at Ledbetter.
Benny Carter tall case clock with Statue of Liberty art, which hammered for $2,100 and sold for $2,625 with buyer’s premium at Ledbetter.

GIBSONVILLE, N.C. – Benny Carter (1943-2014) came to the world of folk art like so many of his kind – an upheaval in his life caused him to begin to express himself through art. In Carter’s case, it took the form of painting everyday objects with his bright color palette and his Baptist- and Americana-infused metaphors.

The lifelong North Carolinian had been a supervisor at a metal product fabricator near his home, but a business downturn compelled a layoff, resulting in Carter losing his only job of 29 years. He took to painting, and, as he would often tell his admirers, “Buy art.” And buy it they did, making Carter a leading member of the outsider art movement.

This tall case clock appeared at Ledbetter Folk Art Auction on March 1. A lengthy battle between LiveAuctioneers bidders sent the $200-$400 estimate into the trash and resulted in an astounding $2,100 ($2,625 with buyer’s premium). The clock’s door features Carter’s high attention to fine details, and includes one of his favorite themes, the Statue of Liberty. She carries the phrase “come up and see me some time” against a New York City skyline backdrop.

Sparkling Splendor: Exquisite Jewelry Auction set for New York March 29

Tiffany & Co. 18K gold orchid or calla lily pin or brooch dating to the 1950s, estimated at $5,000-$6,000 at Jasper52.

NEW YORK – On Friday, March 29, beginning at 8 pm Eastern time, Jasper52 will conduct a sale titled Sparkling Splendor: Exquisite Jewelry Auction, featuring more than 200 lots of brooches, pins, bangle bracelets, necklaces, rings, earrings, and other pieces by renowned designers and houses. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

Precious metals are fundamental to all forms of jewelry, but few are more beloved than gold in its original color, yellow. The three highlights of this sale all showcase 18K gold.

First among them is a large Tiffany & Co. 18K gold pin or brooch, taking the form of an orchid or a calla lily. It dates to the 1950s, comes with a Tiffany & Co. pouch and box, and is estimated at $5,000-$6,000.

Adding power and ferocity as well as elegance to an outfit is a vintage 18K gold, emerald, ruby, and diamond lioness bangle bracelet by the Greek designer Ilias Lalaounis. It sports 88 emeralds, 22 diamonds, and four rubies in total, and it is estimated at $16,000-$19,000.

Certain to elevate any wardrobe is a vintage Mario Buccellati 18K gold wide cuff bracelet. It weighs in at slightly more than two ounces and sports a pattern of rippling chevrons, and has an estimate of $20,000-$24,000.

Promotional model for the Lewis American Airomobile leads our five lots to watch

1937 Airomobile promotional model, estimated at $3,000-$5,000 at Grant Zahajko Auctions.

Promotional Model for the Lewis American Airomobile

DAVENPORT, Wash. – Lewis American Airways may sound like an airline, but it was actually the brainchild of one Paul M. Lewis. The company attempted to market an airplane with rotating wings – a prototype did apparently achieve flight – but found no takers. Its 1937 Airomobile, a curious attempt at three-wheeled vehicle design that toured the country, suffered the same fate. Interestingly, the vehicle’s opposing-four air-cooled engine design, which predated Volkswagen’s by a handful of years, did survive and became successful as a motor for small aircraft manufacturers such as Piper.

Grant Zahajko Auctions has one of two promotional models made by Lewis American to help market the Airomobile. Painted red and faithful in dimensions and proportion, the model is 18in in length. A star lot in the Wednesday, March 6 Bicycles, Transportation, Aviation & Trains sale, it carries an estimate of $3,000-$5,000.

Keith Haring for New York City Skateboards, Inc. Skateboard Deck

1986 Keith Haring for New York City Skateboards silkscreen-on-wood deck, estimated at €30,000-€35,000 ($32,425-$ 37,830) at Setdart.
1986 Keith Haring for New York City Skateboards silkscreen-on-wood deck, estimated at €30,000-€35,000 ($32,425-$ 37,830) at Setdart.

BARCELONA, Spain – Though most commonly found as a later reproduction, Setdart Auction House has received a consignment of an original 1986 Keith Haring for New York City Skateboards, Inc. skateboard deck, which will be one of the top lots in its Skateboard Decks sale scheduled for Monday, March 4.

Haring (1958-1990) emerged from the street art scene to become a savvy entrepreneur, making millions from licensed goods bearing his frenetic stick figures. He opened his New York City Pop Shop in 1986 and filled it with all sorts of goods. The skateboard deck was produced in association with New York City Skateboards, and as such it bears their mark on the underside. Later reproductions lack this element. Setdart has placed a remarkable €30,000-€35,000 ($32,425-$ 37,830) estimate on the skateboard.

Tiffany & Co. Silver Oyster Plate

Tiffany & Co. eight-well silver oyster plate with Portuguese hallmarks, estimated at $500-$1,000 at Market Auctions.
Tiffany & Co. eight-well silver oyster plate with Portuguese hallmarks, estimated at $500-$1,000 at Market Auctions.

LAKE WORTH, Fla. – For centuries, fresh or pickled oysters were a staple diet of the poor in London. However, by the Victorian period, the once vast natural oyster beds were in decline, threatened by pollution and over-fishing, and the consumption of oysters became a luxury. As shellfish made its transition from cheap foodstuff to dinner party delicacy, the oyster plate came into being.

A good collection of around 50 of these serving pieces will appear at Market Auctions as part of its Wednesday, March 6 sale titled Springtime in Palm Beach. In addition to classic 19th-century examples in majolica glazes by Minton, George Jones, Copeland, and Wedgwood are porcelain oyster plates by Union Porcelain Works, Haviland Limoges, and Carl Tiesch. Pictured here is an unusual sterling silver dish with wells for eight half-shells that has 20th-century Portuguese hallmarks and the retailers’ stamp for Tiffany & Co. It is estimated at $500-$1,000.

Signs Declaring the Pearly King and Queen for 1879

Pair of signs declaring Hattie and Albert Groves the Pearly King and Queen of Hackney for 1879, estimated at $400-$600 at Rivich Auctions.
Pair of signs declaring Hattie and Albert Groves the Pearly King and Queen of Hackney for 1879, estimated at $400-$600 at Rivich Auctions.

CHICAGO – Pearly kings and queens were once a familiar image in East London. From the 1870s, local street traders were in the habit of wearing clothes decorated with mother-of-pearl buttons in the hopes of raising money for various local charities. The best-dressed men and women would be awarded the annual titles of Pearly Kings and Queens.

This pair of signs, each 14in across, declare Hattie and Albert Groves as the Hackney King and Queen for 1879. Together they have an estimate of $400-$600 as part of a Chicago Gold Coast estate at Rivich Auctions on Sunday, March 3. They were owned by Edward Lowe (1920-1995), an entrepreneur who made his fortune in cat litter, and his wife Darlene, an interior designer and owner of Haymarket Antiques and Designs.

Victorian-era Silver Lantern Clock

Victorian silver lantern clock by Alexander Chalmers, estimated at £1,200-£1,500 at Lyon & Turnbull.
Victorian silver lantern clock by Alexander Chalmers, estimated at £1,200-£1,500 at Lyon & Turnbull.

EDINBURGH, UK – Lantern clocks, the first type of clock widely used in private homes, were largely obsolete as timekeepers by the mid-18th century. However, during the Victorian era, they began to attract the interest of antiquarians. 

This unusual example was made in silver by Alexander Chalmers of Edinburgh in 1887. An inscription on the back in mock olde English reads: ‘I serve ye here wythe all my myghte to tell ye hours by daye and nyghte, therefore example take by me and serve thy God as I serve ye.’ It carries an estimate of £1,200-£1,500 ($1,510-$1,890) as part of Lyon & Turnbull’s Tuesday, March 5 sale of Silver & Objets de Vertu.

A Harold Harvey painting, Goudji silver, and a 5-gallon stoneware churn scored at South Bay

Harold Harvey, 'On the Thames,' which sold for $45,000 ($56,250 with buyer’s premium) at South Bay.

EAST MORICHES, N.Y. – A stunning 1907 oil on canvas by Newlyn School artist Harold Harvey was the top earner for South Bay Auctions at its January 31 Art, Antiques, Silver, Jewelry & Sporting Goods sale. Complete results are available at LiveAuctioneers.

Harvey (1874-1941), like his Newlyn contemporaries, focused his eye on depictions of everyday life for the working people of England. On the Thames is a perfect representation of Harvey’s work, with two young men and their elder in a rowboat on the famed English waterway. Estimated at $10,000-$12,000, the painting hammered for $45,000 ($56,250 with buyer’s premium).

A sterling silver aquamanile, or ewer, in the form of an animal by Goudji (b. 1941-) took $23,000 ($28,750 with buyer’s premium) against a presale estimate of just $3,000-$5,000. Made with mother-of-pearl eyes, the aquamanile featured a hammered body with inlaid tiger iron panels.

Abstract expressionist Mary Abbott (1921-2019) had three works in the sale, and they all handily beat their high estimates. The leader was an untitled abstract of a woman’s blouse, made from oil, oil crayon, gouache, and graphite on paper. Estimated at $5,000-$7,000, it tripled its high estimate at $21,000 ($26,250 with buyer’s premium).

A 19th-century American stoneware 5-gallon churn with a cobalt leaping deer decoration delivered remarkable results. The product of John Burger, Jr. of Rochester, New York, the churn was estimated at $600-$800 but hammered for $5,600 ($7,000 with buyer’s premium).

A Tiffany & Co. sterling silver center bowl in the Olympian pattern sold for $3,000 ($3,750 with buyer’s premium). Dating to the early 20th century, the bowl carried a presale estimate of $700-$900.

Chinese Export silver, Thomas Hart Benton, Peter Max share stage at Quinn’s Feb. 23

FALLS CHURCH, Va. – Works by Thomas Hart Benton, Paul Reed, sculptor Bill Mack, and Old Lyme Colony Impressionist Will Howe Foote will join European and modern furniture and beautiful objets d’art at Quinn’s Friday, February 23 online Fine & Decorative Arts Auction. The catalog is now available for bidding at LiveAuctioneers.

A selection of fine prints is led by a 1955 Thomas Hart Benton (1889-1975) lithograph titled Running Horses. The print is from an Associated American Artists edition of 75 and is artist-signed in pencil. Its estimate is $6,000-$8,000.

Other noteworthy prints and lithographs run the gamut of genres and individual artistic styles. A circa-1997 Peter Max mixed media and acrylic on paper artwork titled Liberty Head II is signed and estimated at $600-$800, and three 19th-century Frederic S. Remington (1861-1909) cowboy-themed photogravures are entered with individual estimates of $500-$700.

Six lots in the sale represent artworks by Washington DC artist Paul Reed (1919-2015). At the time of his death, Reed was the last living member of the Washington Color School, an art collective that gained national acclaim in the 1960s. Reed’s #21, a 1962 acrylic on canvas depicting green organic shapes in a circle, is signed, dated, and titled on the verso. It is estimated at $2,000-$3,000.

Two bas-relief bonded-bronze sculptures by Bill Mack (b. 1944-) will be auctioned. One of them, measuring 54in wide, depicts a reclining woman draped glamorously in a bedsheet. Signed at the lower left, it is estimated at $2,000-$3,000.

There are three lots of sterling silver from Tiffany & Co., topped by an elegant Model 17880A tea set comprising a teapot, a lidded sugar, and a creamer with tray. Made between 1907 and 1947, the set carries a $2,000-$3,000 estimate.

At the forefront of the Asian Art category is a five-piece Chinese Export sterling silver tea set decorated in high relief with a dragon-and-cloud pattern. The set consists of a hot water kettle on its matching stand with a burner, a teapot, a lidded sugar bowl, and a creamer, each marked ‘STERLING,’ plus a waste bin marked ‘Chun Yin.’ All have dragon and/or pearl-form figural adornments or handles. The lot estimate is $3,000-$5,000.

In addition to Japanese woodblock prints (Hiroshige, Koson, Kimura, et al.), an array of Asian decorative art will be presented, including porcelains and antique netsukes from the Estate of Maybelle Dore, past chairwoman of the International Netsuke Society, Northern California chapter. Among the prominent pieces in the Dore collection is a 19th-century netsuke of Ashinaga and Tenaga with an octopus, which was acquired sometime between the early 1960s and late 1980s. It is signed ‘Tomochika’ and carries an estimate of $3,000-$4,000.

Jasper52 presents The Gold Standard: Designer Jewelry Feb. 20

Tiffany & Co. 18K gold and diamond double infinity cuff bangle bracelet, estimated at $6,000-$7,000 at Jasper52.

NEW YORK — Prepare to be captivated as Jasper52 presents an exquisite collection of designer jewelry crafted with the utmost artistry and adorned with the brilliance of gold. Highlighting the finest creations from renowned designers and master jewelers, The Gold Standard: Designer Jewelry Auction promises to be a celebration of craftsmanship, creativity, and timeless elegance. The catalog is now available for bidding exclusively at LiveAuctioneers.

Leading off the highlights is a Tiffany & Co. 18K gold and diamond double infinity cuff bangle bracelet. Measuring 7in and marked and professionally tested for gold quality, the bracelet weighs 22.8 grams and has round brilliant diamonds with a total weight of .65ct. It is estimated at $6,000-$7,000.

This Bulgari vintage 18K gold and VVS diamond ring was made in Italy to a size 6. Professionally cleaneed and polished, the center square cut diamond weighs .20ct while the accent diamonds clock in at 0.15ctw. The ring is estimated at $4,500$5,500.

And here’s something different: a large oval key charm pendant made of 18K gold by Tiffany & Co. At 2.4in in length, the charm will make a statement. It carries an estimate of $3,000$3,500. 

Paloma Picasso creates jewelry that has sparkle and substance

A bicolor gold and diamond bangle bracelet set with a large aquamarine, designed by Paloma Picasso for Tiffany & Co., achieved $30,000 plus the buyer’s premium in May 2023. Image courtesy of Hindman and LiveAuctioneers.

NEW YORK – Once upon a time, not that long ago, men were the purchasers of most women’s jewelry, which they gave as gifts to the women they loved. As social mores and fashions have evolved, that has changed. By the 1960s, propelled by the feminist revolution, women began buying their own jewelry as well as making it. Independent-minded women with sophisticated tastes actively sought out women-designed jewelry, and Paloma Picasso, Marina Bulgari, Suzanne Belperron, and Elsa Peretti were among the women who made jewelry for them. Paloma Picasso (b. 1949-) remains a standout among her peers. To reach the upper echelon of the industry, as she did, took aplomb and talent. “Women might have been thought of as fashion jewelers, but when you got into the highest level of jewelry manufacturing and designing, she really broke into that, and that’s really important,” said Dianne Batista, director of jewelry and watches and senior specialist at Rago Arts and Auction Center in Lambertville, New Jersey.

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Gene Moore for Tiffany & Co. Silver Circus Lion in Wagon leads our five auction highlights

Silver circus lion and parade wagon by Gene Moore for Tiffany & Co., which hammered for $8,000 and sold for $10,240 with buyer’s premium at Hill Auction Gallery.

Gene Moore for Tiffany & Co. Silver Circus Lion in Wagon, $10,240

SUNRISE, Fla. – Gene Moore (1910-1998) came from humble beginnings in Alabama to become one of the defining architects of the Tiffany & Co. brand image — not as a jewelry designer, but as the man who put a public face on the firm through decades of window displays at its flagship New York store. The public came to see Tiffany through his incredible ‘window dressings,’ which were a key marketing element that captivated passersby and helped cement Tiffany as the pinnacle of luxury and taste.

During his time working with Tiffany, Moore also created a line of decorated silver figures drawn from the American traveling circus milieu. Though circuses have generally fallen out of favor, they were central in pre- and postwar American popular culture; a day at the circus was a must for most American families.

Moore’s designs are whimsical and were intended to be collected serially upon each item’s release. What appears to be a single-owner collection of 17 Moore figures came to market November 30 at Hill Auction Gallery. Most were in good but shelf-worn condition, clearly from years of loving handling, and nearly all sold within or above estimate.

The top lot was a silver circus lion and its accompanying circus parade wagon. Estimated at $2,000-$4,000, it hammered for a stunning $8,000 ($10,240 with buyer’s premium), illustrating that though circuses may have gone out of style, collectibles associated with them that bear the Tiffany & Co. mark have not.

Ambrose Gardner English Quarter Repeating Table Clock, $71,500

Late 17th- or early 18th-century English quarter repeating table clock signed by Ambrose Gardner, which hammered for $55,000 and sold for $71,500 with buyer’s premium at Hindman.
Late 17th- or early 18th-century English quarter repeating table clock signed by Ambrose Gardner, which hammered for $55,000 and sold for $71,500 with buyer’s premium at Hindman.

PALM BEACH, Fla. – Very few English Golden Age clocks signed by Ambrose Gardner are recorded. However, his name is well-known as he worked for many years as an apprentice in the household of the ‘father of English clockmaking,’ Thomas Tompion.

A member of the Goldsmiths’ Company, who was perhaps hired for his skills as an engraver, Gardner was the foreman at Tompion’s workshop on Water Lane off Fleet Street in London. Elements of Tompion clocks stamped with the initials ‘AG’ are thought to have been his work.

The only two clocks fully signed by Gardner have appeared for sale in the past decade. Both are high-status ebony veneered table clocks with quarter repeating movements dated to around 1700. They include many details identified as ‘Tompion’ features to both the cases and movements, and may have been made under his supervision. Whether or not Gardner branched out on his own around the turn of the 18th century is a matter of speculation.

The example offered by Bonhams in London in 2015 was signed to the backplate only. Although now missing its repeat work, the deluxe complication that meant the clock would once have chimed the hours and quarters on the pull of a cord, it sold at £20,000 (roughly $25,100).

The similar clock that appeared for sale at Hindman in Palm Beach on December 7 was in better condition, with the repeating mechanism still intact. It was fully signed by Ambrose Gardner to both the dial (above the numeral XII) and to the back plate and was consigned from the estate of Joanna Hoffman, whose father John Hoffman had been a member of the British Antique Dealers’ Association. The best of several clocks from this source in the sale, it soared well above its estimate of $15,000-$25,000, hammering for $55,000 and selling for $71,500 with buyer’s premium.

Alain Prost’s Race-Worn Helmet from the Infamous Formula One 1984 Dallas Grand Prix, $88,400

Alain Prost’s Formula One race-worn 1984 Dallas Grand Prix helmet, which hammered for £55,000 and sold for £70,400 ($88,400) with buyer’s premium at Bonhams.
Alain Prost’s Formula One race-worn 1984 Dallas Grand Prix helmet, which hammered for £55,000 and sold for £70,400 ($88,400) with buyer’s premium at Bonhams.

GUILDFORD, U.K. – As Formula One fans readied for the final grand prix of the season, Bonhams’ Abu Dubai Auction Online sale on November 30 included plenty of car racing memorabilia. Leading the lineup was the helmet the four-time drivers’ champion Alain Prost wore at the infamous Dallas Grand Prix at Fair Park in Texas on July 8, 1984.

Prost, driving for Maclaren, was among those who tried (and failed) to have the race stopped. Instead, driving in intense heat on a disintegrating track surface repaired with quick-drying cement, the rate of attrition was brutal. Of the 26 drivers who started the race, only eight made it to the checkered flag, with some of them three laps behind winner Keke Rosberg.

Prost himself had led the race with 10 laps to go, but was forced to retire after hitting a wall and breaking a wheel rim. He had given his helmet to a McLaren employee who worked closely with many of its drivers during his 25 year-tenure. As a fine memento of one of the most memorable races of the 1980s F1 era, it was estimated at £10,000-£12,000 but hammered for £55,000 and sold for £70,400 ($88,400). The 1984 edition was the only running of the Dallas Grand Prix.

1585 First Edition Book on Virginia’s Roanoke Colony, Written by English Settlers, $15,125

1585 first edition of ‘A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia,’ which hammered for $12,500 and sold for $15,125 with buyer’s premium at Leland Little.
1585 first edition of ‘A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia,’ which hammered for $12,500 and sold for $15,125 with buyer’s premium at Leland Little.

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. – In 1585, English colonists Thomas Hariot and John White recorded their first impressions of life on Roanoke Island in present day North Carolina. Hariot published A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia, with White composing a suite of watercolors illustrating the region’s flora and fauna and also its native peoples.

The efforts of both men came to the attention of Belgian engraver Theodor de Bry, who published an edition that combined Hariot’s text and engravings based on White’s original watercolors. De Bry chose to portray Roanoke as a garden of Eden and likened its native inhabitants to the ancient Britons and Scots. Printed in English, Latin, French and German, it proved hugely influential in encouraging European settlement of the vast lands that would become British North America.

A first edition copy in Latin printed in Frankfurt in 1590 was offered for sale at Leland Little on December 1. Deemed ‘a very good copy with all plates and map,’ it had been expertly conserved and bound in leather-covered boards by Don Etherington, director of the Book Conservation Program at the American Academy of Bookbinding. It was estimated at $20,000-$30,000 but it sold short of that range, hammering for $12,500 and selling for $15,125 with buyer’s premium.

Persian Terracotta Figure, 1st Millennium BCE, $30,720

Persian terracotta figure dating to the 1st millennium BCE, which hammered for $24,000 and sold for $30,720 with buyer’s premium at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery.
Persian terracotta figure dating to the 1st millennium BCE, which hammered for $24,000 and sold for $30,720 with buyer’s premium at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery.

WINDSOR, Conn. – This terracotta figure is typical of the highly stylized pottery models honoring a fertility or mother goddess made in Persia in the first millennium BCE. They are sometimes called Amlash culture figures, a reference to the small village in the north of modern-day Iran where excavations uncovered similar fragmentary pieces. This example, standing slightly more than 12in (30cm) high, is depicted nude with voluptuous hips and buttocks, thick tapering legs, curving arms and a disc-shaped face. It wears a three-tiered crown with concentric circles incised as decorative elements over the shoulders.

The figure was offered sale at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery on October 21 as part of the estate of Dina Recanati (1928-2021), an Israeli artist who lived in New York City and Tel Aviv. The very best figures of this type can bring six-figure sums, so the estimate of $1,000-$2,000 was modest. It attracted plenty of admirers before hammering at $24,000 and selling for $30,720 with buyer’s premium.

Italian Micromosaic Mythical Plaque leads our five top auction results

Circa-1820 Italian micromosaic plaque depicting the mythical tale of the Rape of Europa, which hammered for $13,000 and sold for $16,250 with buyer’s premium at Millea Bros.

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BOONTON, N.J. – Estimated at $2,500-$3,500, this micromosaic plaque depicting the Rape of Europa hammered for $13,000 and sold for $16,250 with buyer’s premium as part of Millea Bros.‘ three-day sale on November 15-17.

Dated circa 1820, the central scene, depicting the Phoenician princess’s abduction by Zeus, is one based on Michelangelo Maestri’s influential series of gouache drawings of the frescoes of Pompeii. The painstaking and meticulous decoration is probably from the workshop of the virtuoso Antonio Aguatti. Considered the most talented mosaicist of his time, in 1810 his work was awarded a gold medal at the Capitoline exhibition of Roman Works of Art and Industry, held at the Campidoglio, and from 1832 until his death in 1846 he was professor of ‘mosaico in piccolo’ at the Vatican workshops. 

Aguatti based his distinctive palette of glass tesserae – bold reds, blues and yellows set against a contrasting white ground – on the frescoes uncovered at Herculaneum and Pompeii in the 18th century.

René Lalique Satyre Perfume Bottle, $15,000

GLENVIEW, Ill. – For René Lalique, glass-making represented a second career. He had already proved himself a superb artist-jeweler but, as the fashion for Art Nouveau peaked, Lalique changed mediums and began to produce bespoke glass bottles for a near neighbor on the Place Vendôme in Paris. The bottles he made for François Coty are some of the very first experiments in commercial perfume bottle manufacture.

Perfume bottles remained an important part of his range into the 1920 and 1930s. The sale at Meadow Lane Auctions on November 19 included several examples, among them Bouquet de Faunes bottle made circa 1925 for Guerlian. There are multiple versions of this bottle, including a later issue from the post-war era, but this was an early example and in splendid condition. It came sealed with the original paper label to the stopper and the original packaging still intact. Hard to find a better example, it hammered for $6,000 and sold for $7,500 with buyer’s premium against an estimate of $200-$500.

Estimated at $800-$1,200, hammered at $12,000 and sold for $15,000 with buyer’s premium was a rare bottle from the Lalique factory line. The Satyre, issued circa 1933, has an elongated stopper decorated as a mythological figure with a long beard and horns. Model No. 527 in the Felix Marcilhac’s Lalique catalogue raisonné, this is a bottle that has sold for close to $20,000 in previous auctions.

Dutch Baroque Engraved Mother-of-Pearl, Bone and Hardstone-Inlaid Slate Panel by Dirck Van Rijswijck, $65,000

Dutch Baroque engraved mother-of-pearl, bone and hardstone-inlaid slate panel by Dirck Van Rijswijck, which hammered for £40,000 and sold for £51,200 ($65,000) with buyer’s premium at Bonhams.
Dutch Baroque engraved mother-of-pearl, bone and hardstone-inlaid slate panel by Dirck Van Rijswijck, which hammered for £40,000 and sold for £51,200 ($65,000) with buyer’s premium at Bonhams.

LONDON – Although originally training as a goldsmith, Dirck Van Rijswijck (1596-1679) developed his own characteristic style using less rarefied material. While working in Antwerp, he perfected an idiosyncratic technique using engraved mother-of-pearl, bone and hardstone inlays to create floral still life subjects. The natural variations in the shell and stone were used to suggest the colors and surface textures of the various flowers.

These Baroque curiosities are rare at auction, but a fine example was offered by Bonhams as part of its November 21 sale of the single-owner collection of Cornelis Paulus van Pauwvliet. He collected for close to 50 years, furnishing an Amsterdam home just a stone’s throw from the Rijksmuseum, with English and Dutch works of art from the 17th century to the late 19th century.

Van Pauwvliet had bought this 6 by 4.5in (15 by 12cm) panel from London dealership Jeremy in the 1990s (it had previously sold at Sotheby’s in Monaco). Depicting a floral garland with a butterfly and a variegated stone tabletop with a dragonfly and a squirrel, it is signed and dated to the left-hand corner within a paper scroll reading Dirck Van Riswick, Invenit e Fecit, AD 1665.

One of many well-received items in the £2.86 million Pauwvliet sale, it was estimated at £12,000-£18,000, hammered for £40,000 and sold for £51,200 ($65,000) with buyer’s premium. As the item was brought into the U.K. from Holland for sale, import VAT (value-added tax) of 5% was due on the hammer price.

Unique Tiffany & Co. Silver and Mixed Metal Presentation Cup, $55,000

Unique circa-1885 Tiffany & Co. silver and mixed metal presentation cup, which hammered for $44,000 and sold for $55,000 with buyer’s premium at Revere Auctions.
Unique circa-1885 Tiffany & Co. silver and mixed metal presentation cup, which hammered for $44,000 and sold for $55,000 with buyer’s premium at Revere Auctions.

ST. PAUL, Minn. – This extraordinary Tiffany & Co. silver and mixed metal presentation cup has many of the characteristics of the firm’s chief designer and director of its silver works, Edward Chandler Moore (1827-1891). Similar pieces mixing a broad range of different decorative vocabularies were exhibited by Tiffany at international exhibitions in the last quarter of the 19th century. Moore was himself a great collector (he left his huge holdings to the Metropolitan Museum of Art) and he brought his deep knowledge of Islamic and Far Eastern design to bear on his work.

Dating from circa 1885, this 11in-tall and 83oz trophy combines the inlaying and patination techniques he had learned from Japanese metal-working with a form and geometric decoration borrowed from Pueblo pottery. The three naturalistic buffalo head and hoof legs decoration are a very much an addition characteristic of the Gilded Age.

To the gold-wash interior is the inscription Catharine Lorillard Wolfe To Clarence Cecil Pell Nov. 15th 1885 that documents its commission.

Catharine Wolfe (1828-1887), the daughter of a New York merchant and one of the heirs to the Lorillard Tobacco fortune, inherited $12 million (something close to $300 million in today’s money) in 1872. She combined art collecting with philanthropy and made two major bequests to the Met. Clarence Pell (1885-1964) of Newport, Rhode Island, who was evidently given this piece as a christening gift, was also a member of the Lorillard family, which sold cigarettes under the brand names Newport, Maverick, Old Gold, Kent, True, Satin, and Max.

The presentation cup appeared for sale in the capital of Minnesota on the first of two days of selling at Revere Auctions on November 14-15. With a clean bill of health – it had no dents, major scratches or signs of restoration – it was estimated at $5,000-$10,000, but found sufficient admirers to sell for $44,000 ($55,000 including buyer’s premium).

Unique circa-1885 Tiffany & Co. silver and mixed metal presentation cup, which hammered for $44,000 and sold for $55,000 with buyer’s premium at Revere Auctions.
Unique circa-1885 Tiffany & Co. silver and mixed metal presentation cup, which hammered for $44,000 and sold for $55,000 with buyer’s premium at Revere Auctions.

Grove’s Tasteless Chill Tonic Sign, $8,320

E. W. Grove advertising sign for Grove’s Tasteless Chill Tonic, which hammered for $6,500 and sold for $8,320 with buyer’s premium at New England Auction – Fred Giampietro.
E. W. Grove advertising sign for Grove’s Tasteless Chill Tonic, which hammered for $6,500 and sold for $8,320 with buyer’s premium at New England Auction – Fred Giampietro.

BRANFORD, Conn. – Malaria has been a plague on human populations for millennia, mostly transmitted through mosquito bites and resulting in terrible fevers, chills and occasionally death.

As a staunch prohibitionist, E. W. Grove was an unlikely patent medicine creator and salesman, as most so-called ‘cures’ of the day were largely alcoholic in nature. But his 1878 malarial treatment (and not ‘cure’), Grove’s Tasteless Chill Tonic, contained no alcohol, instead relying on a suspension of lemon-flavored syrup to mask the bitter taste of cinchonine, a derivative of quinine that involves alkaloids extracted from powered cinchona bark.

It was a huge seller and an internationally known product, and was even used by the British Army for malarial exposure in jungle climates. Grove’s advertising often relied on the anthropomorphic pig with a child’s head and the slogan “makes children & adults as fat as pigs,” perhaps in reference to the weight loss commonly suffered by malarial patients.

This early example of Grove advertising almost has a folk-art feel to it; later pig/child depictions are far more refined and standardized, dating this possibly to the late 1870s or early 1880s. Estimated at only $400-$800 at New England Auction – Fred Giampietro, floor and internet bidders battled all the way to a final hammer price of $6,500, or $8,320 with buyer’s premium, as part of the November 16 Collection of Peter Brams & Discovery Auction.

Original red carpet from the 20th Century Limited train leads our five lots to watch

Section of 20th Century Limited train red carpet, estimated at $2,500-$3,500 at Rail & Road Auctions.

Section of Red Carpet Used on the Legendary 20th Century Limited Train

LAFAYETTE, Ind. – When the phrase ‘rolling out the red carpet’ was first coined, it was used in relation to the railroads. Red carpet in a rail carriage meant VIP guests.

This section of carpet, measuring 6ft 4in by 5ft 10in, features the logo of the 20th Century Limited, the express passenger train that first traveled the New York Central line in 1902. Aimed at upper-class and business travelers, it cut hours off the trip from Chicago to New York City for those who could afford the ticket price of $51.30 (roughly equivalent to $900 today). In 1928, around the time this carpet was made, the 20th Century train earned revenue of $10 million.

Evoking the romance of the golden era of rail travel, and in remarkably good condition save some signs of daily use, the 20th Century Limited train red carpet carries an estimate of $2,500-$3,500 and will be offered on the second day of the Thursday, January 4 and Friday, January 5 sale at Rail & Road Auctions.

Set of 12 Mintons for Tiffany pâte-sur-pâte dinner plates

Set of 12 Mintons for Tiffany pâte-sur-pâte dinner plates, estimated at $6,000-$8,000 at Taylor & Harris.
Set of 12 Mintons for Tiffany pâte-sur-pâte dinner plates, estimated at $6,000-$8,000 at Taylor & Harris.

WILMINGTON, Calif. – The Decorative Arts Jewelry Auction taking place Saturday, December 30 at Taylor & Harris includes this lavish set of 12 Minton dinner plates. As indicated by the backstamp, they were made in Staffordshire specifically for sale at Tiffany & Co. in New York.

In the years before the Depression, Tiffany & Co. was one of the Minton factory’s biggest clients, commissioning elegant wares to furnish the houses of the American Gilded Age. These plates are decorated with slate blue cameos in the painstaking pâte-sur-pâte technique, with each medallion signed ABirks or AB to the lower edge.

Albion Birks (1862-1941) learned his trade at Minton as an apprentice to Marc-Louis Solon from 1877, and continued to work at the factory until he retired in 1937. These plates, which carry the date 1929, were made in his last decade and in the year of the stock market crash that ended much of the market for such deluxe porcelain. Described as being in great condition, the set has an estimate of $6,000-$8,000.

First Edition of Harriet Beecher Stowe’s ‘A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin'

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Following the publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe was accused by Southern commentators of having misrepresented the institution of slavery. In response, the following year she published A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin to document the veracity of her findings and push her own anti-slavery views.

The full title of the book was A key to Uncle Tom’s cabin presenting the original facts and documents upon which the story is founded together with corroborative statements verifying the truth of the work. It was perhaps not surprising that the reaction of Stowe’s contemporaries was again polarizing, with the book receiving both very positive and very negative reviews. This 1853 first edition copy by John Jewett of Cleveland, Ohio will be offered at Schilb Antiquarian Rare Books on Sunday, January 7 with no reserve and an estimate of $499-$1,000.

First edition copy of ‘A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ by Harriet Beecher Stowe, estimated at $499-$1,000 at Schilb Antiquarian Rare Books.
First edition copy of ‘A Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ by Harriet Beecher Stowe, estimated at $499-$1,000 at Schilb Antiquarian Rare Books.

Red Sox 1918 World Series Pennant

1918 World Series Red Sox pennant, estimated at $2,000-$3,000 at Saco River Auction.
1918 World Series Red Sox pennant, estimated at $2,000-$3,000 at Saco River Auction.

SCARBOROUGH, Maine – Whoever first owned this 1918 Red Sox World Series pennant acquired it when the team was at its historic peak. It had four other World Series victories under its belt, including the first-ever contest, played in 1903, as well as triumphs in 1912 (the year its now-classic stadium, Fenway Park, opened), 1915, and 1916.

Of course, there was no way to foresee the misery that was to come. While the team would make the playoffs in 1946, 1967, 1975 and 1986, it would not enjoy another World Series win until after the turn of the millennium.

In 2004, after an 86-year wait and a heart attack-inducing American League Championship Series (ALCS) in which they came back from a 3-0 deficit against the New York Yankees to win and advance to the World Series, the Red Sox defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game sweep to earn the highest prize in baseball.

Since then, the Red Sox won the World Series in 2007, 2013, and 2018. But this 34in long red pennant, estimated at $2,000-$3,000 and appearing in a Monday, January 1 sale at Saco River Auction, serves as a potent reminder of the joys and the agonies that come with following a beloved sports team.

Scale Model of the Empire State Building Once Owned by Frank Sinatra

Scale model of the Empire State Building that once belonged to Frank Sinatra, estimated at $6,000-$12,000 at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery.
Scale model of the Empire State Building that once belonged to Frank Sinatra, estimated at $6,000-$12,000 at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery.

WINDSOR, Conn. – The lasting impact of Frank Sinatra on American culture continues to reverberate, 25 years after his passing. The first pop star, he inspired a generation’s musical background, creating a litany of hits that are still familiar to the ear today.

Being such an icon, Sinatra was subject to numerous interviews and profiles towards the end of his life, as is typical. He was famously private, but did agree to work with producers of an HBO special about his life and career, and granted them a sit-down interview. During the interview, he sat next to a looming scale model of New York’s Empire State Building, a fitting metaphor for the man who made New York a central part of his musical lexicon.

When Sinatra’s family dispersed material from the singer’s estate at Christie’s in December of 1995, the Empire State Building model was one of the items to cross the block. It returns to market at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery as part of its 2024 Annual New Year’s Day Auction on Monday, January 1, with an estimate of $6,000-$12,000.