The first lot in the Sculptures and Old Master paintings sale on March 12 scored not only top lot status for the day but for the week as well. This French Romanesque carved Madonna and Christ Child, attributed to Auvergne, circa 1150-1200, had damage and restorations but still significantly outpaced expectations, bringing $115,961 from a phone bidder from Switzerland.
Review by Madelia Hickman Ring, Photos Courtesy Hargesheimer Kunstauktionen
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY – In the span of four days, March 9-12, Hargesheimer Kunstauktionen offered a total of nearly 2,750 lots in categories ranging from jewelry, fine art, antiques, Nineteenth Century paintings, sculptures and Old Master paintings. By the time the final lot had crossed the block, the house had successfully sold $2,858,973 worth of property, to buyers around the world.
The first sale on March 9 offered more than 1,000 lots of jewelry; diamonds were popular with bidders as evidenced by the top two lots in the sale. Leading the sale at $61,391 was a Rene Kern diamond ring, in white gold with a 2.38-carat brilliant cut diamond flanked by two trapezoidal cut diamonds. Made by Rene Kern in Dusseldorf in 1982, it was accompanied by a GIA certificate and a Diamond Grading Report dated 1984. It sold to a European buyer, bidding online.
That sparkler was followed at $34,788 by a Bulgari “Trika” diamond necklace in yellow gold, with a total of 3.10 carats of diamonds. Accompanied by a Bulgari box, it went home with a German phone bidder.
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Leading the jewelry sale March 9 was this Rene Kern white gold and diamond ring with a central brilliant cut 2.38-carat diamond and two trapezoid cut diamonds weighing an additional 0.2 carats. An online bidder from Europe prevailed against competition to take it for $61,391.
Fine and decorative arts, offered on March 10, the second day of the auctions, saw strong results in all categories. Leading the session was a Sixteenth Century German bartender jug with floral decoration, attributed to Cologne, which was also decorated with a small owl on the back and a small bearded mask on the neck. It had been consigned to the sale from a private Rhineland collection and related to examples at the Koeln Museum of Decorative arts. A German buyer, bidding by phone, paid $16,371 for it, nearly 20 times its high estimate.
The top lot of almost 500 lots of Nineteenth Century paintings offered on March 11 was “The Eavesdropping Bricklayer” by Maximilian Antoni Piotrowski (Germany and Poland, 1813-1875). Measuring 30¼ by 26¼ inches, it led the March 11 sale of Nineteenth Century paintings and sold to an online bidder from Germany, for $30,094.
Selling within estimate, for $68,397 to a phone bidder from Australia, was John Glover’s (English and Australian, 1767-1849) monumental lake landscape with herd of sheep, cattle and shepherds.
The highest prices of the entire event were realized on the fourth and last day of the sales, March 12, when more than 450 lots of sculptures and Old Master paintings crossed the block. The top lot, making $115,961 from a Swiss phone bidder, was an important French Romanesque carved figure of the Madonna and Christ child, circa 1150-1200, which stood 26 inches tall. It came from a private Rhineland collection, which had acquired it from art dealer George Britsch. Despite damages and restoration, it still nearly tripled its high estimate.
Rounding out the sale highlights at $68,397 was a monumental lake landscape with a herd of sheep, cattle and shepherds resting in the foreground, by John Glover (English and Australian, 1767-1849). The 66½-by-102¾-inch oil on canvas had provenance to a 1920 sale at Christie’s London, a private trust and a Westphalian private collection. An Australian buyer, bidding by phone, had the winning bid, which was within estimate.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house and have been converted into US dollars.
For additional information, www.kunstauktionen-duesseldorf.de.
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