The ancient Maya had a deeply serious relationship with chocolate. They used cacao beans as currency, in ritual ceremonies and when Cortes reached Tenochtitlan in present day Mexico City, accounts dictate that Montezuma presented him and his emissaries with their chocolate drink, known as xocolatl, in solid gold cups. And we all know how that ended. But cacao was not reserved exclusively for nobility; it was for everyone to enjoy and was revered in a religious sense, being thought of as a gift from the gods. In fact, the Maya had a god of cacao. A Mayan polychrome vessel used to drink xocolatl will cross the block at Artemis Gallery, along with other notable lots from around the world in this week’s picks.
ARTEMIS GALLERY
Sale Date: April 12, 2017
Lot 101
Mayan Ulia Valley Polychrome Cylinder — Seated Lord
Pre-Columbian, Honduras, Mayan Ulua Valley, circa 550 to 850 CE. A wonderful polychrome cylinder vessel with rich iconography. The theme is of a seated lord with an immense, elaborate headdress, shown kneeling. A fantastical bird creature in a square border is between the repeated lords. Top and bottom have glyphoid registers, with a painted base, which is a rarity. The lord may be a stylized painting of a real individual; the bird probably refers to a god like Kukulkan (Quetzalcoatl), a powerful “feathered serpent” venerated throughout ancient Mesoamerica. Residue analysis on similar vessels suggests that this cylinder jar was almost certainly used for the ritual ingestion of a drink made from cacao (chocolate).
Estimate: $5/7,000
JAMES D. JULIA, INC
Sale Date: April 11, 2017
Lot 1129
Colt Single-Action Army SN 5773
Positively proven to have been used by one of Custer’s men during the infamous Battle of the Little Bighorn.
Estimate: $175/275,000
COPAKE AUCTION
Sale Date: April 22, 2017
Lot 39
Gormully & Jeffery High Wheel Safety Bicycle
Circa 1880s, restored, a scarce example with a 47-inch wheel. From the James Carpenter Collection Part II.
Estimate: $12/15,000
CHRISTIE’S
Sale Date: April 13, 2017
Lot 225
A Pair Of Massive French Parcel-Gilt And Patinated Bronze-Mounted Chinese Cloisonne Enamel Urns
Attributed to Ferdinand Barbedienne, based on a design by Edouard Lievre, Paris, circa 1870, the enamel Chinese and Nineteenth Century. Each turquoise-ground urn with polychrome floral and dragon reliefs to each side, the lip set with six dragons heads and two large pierced scrolled handles, the base mounted with four turtles, on scrolled-trunk elephant head legs, on bronze-mounted hardwood plinths with paw feet, each stand indistinctly stamped under base. Overall 79 inches high.
Estimate: $80/100,000
SOTHEBY’S
Sale Date: April 10, 2017
Lot 27
Pablo Picasso (1881–1973) Vase
“Gros Oiseau Visage Noir,” terre de faïence vase, 1951, numbered 3 from the edition of 25, with the d’Après Picasso and Madoura stamps, 21¼ inches high.
Estimate: $125/188,000
MORPHY AUCTIONS
Sale Date: April 14, 2017
Lot 122
Panorama Bank
J.&E. Stevens Co. Designed by James Butler, patented 3/7/1876. Insert a coin in the slot in the roof and the next picture appears in the window, 7 by 5 inches.
Estimate: $4/6,000
GRAY’S AUCTIONEERS
Sale Date: April 12, 2017
Lot 195
A Late Fifteenth or Early Sixteenth Century Franco-Flemish Gothic Biblical Tapestry Fragment
Possibly depicting the life of David, the shepherd boy who became King of Israel. Also includes depictions of courtly figures with lavish robes, a shield-form cartouche woven with a scene of David slaying the lion. The fragment may have formed part of a large narrative tapestry depicting the life of David. This type of tapestry, known as a stage-set or altar tapestry, is characterized by the jeweled columns dividing various narrative scenes usually depicting allegorical figures pitted against each other; 92 by 84 inches.
Estimate: $30/50,000
WRIGHT
Sale Date: April 14, 2017
Lot 175
M.C. Illions and Sons, Monumental Oyster Shell from Coney Island
Early Twentieth Century, carved wood with traces of paint, iron, 53 inches high.
Estimate: $10/15,000
BRUCE KODNER GALLERIES
Sale Date: April 9, 2017
Lot 7
Louis Solon Decorated Minton Pate-Sur-Pate Vase & Lid
7½ inches high.
Estimate: $6/8,000
