Claude F. Devosge III’s (French, 1697-1777) “Jupiter et Antigone” graphite drawing of an allegorical scene with a sleeping Antigone visited by a faun with cupids above, vied for top lot status, selling for $11,875.
Review by W.A. Demers, Photos Courtesy Roland NY
GLEN COVE, N.Y. – There was something for everyone at the July 16 Roland NY estate sale, attested by the event’s two top selling lots, each finishing at $11,875. One was a lot comprising two Chinese carved jade ornaments – a figure of a man holding a censer, 2 inches high, and a green and orange jade carved leaf ornament, 1½ inches high. From the estate of Florence and Herbert Irving, the jades had been estimated $150/250 but bidders clearly saw a greater value. Likewise surpassing its low estimate, in this case $300/500, was Claude F. Devosge III’s (French, 1697-1777) “Jupiter et Antigone” graphite drawing of an allegorical scene with a sleeping Antigone visited by a faun with cupids above. Inscribed in ink at lower right “F. Devosge Invenit et Fecit,” the drawing’s reverse bore a Swiss Galerie G. Lador, Geneve label.
Also smoking its estimate was a large antique bronze censer. Likely Nineteenth Century in Seventeenth/Eighteenth Century style, the jardiniere/bombé-form vessel with lion head handles and an inscription in Chinese characters surpassed $2,5/3,500 to settle at $8,750. Very heavy, it measured 10 by 20 by 17 inches. Also, a Chinese archaic jade bracelet and early belt hook in a presentation box found a buyer at an above-estimate $5,312. The brown and celadon jade bracelet, 2½ by 3 inches, and the pale green jade early belt hook, 4 inches long, also came from the Florence and Herbert Irving estate.
The sale featured hundreds of lots of fine art, decorative arts, Twentieth Century modern, antique and vintage furniture, textiles, silver, gold and silver jewelry, rugs and more. Presented were many more items from the collection of Palm Beach socialite June Hirsch Jones, a former Upper East side gallery owner who sold high-end postwar art, Chinese art and antiquities, along with items from other estates.
Bidders liked these two Chinese carved jade ornaments — a figure of a man holding a censer, 2 inches high, and a green and orange jade carved leaf ornament, 1½ inches high, taking them from an estimated $150/250 to a final price of $11.875.
In the furniture category, a pair of Hawaiian flame mahogany and koa wood bookcases shelved the $1,5/2,000 estimate and brought $8,125. The arch-top, two-part bookcases, 104 by 44 by 26 inches, were signed and dated “Mike Riley 2001.” According to the catalog, Mike Riley moved to Volcano, Hawaii, in 1972 and is a self-taught woodworker. His knowledge of local woods has come from hands-on experience developed over the past 25 years. He designs many of the pieces he builds, starting from a three-dimensional sketch to work out ideas with the client. He runs a one-man shop, meaning every piece is built, sanded and finished by him.
For the Midcentury Modern crowd there were rattan furniture pieces, namely, a Henry Olko “Rib” series sofa and two matching club chairs, each lot selling for $3,750. The sofa had a cream-colored frame with loose tan cushions; ditto the club chairs. The sofa measured 27 by 85 by 36 inches and each of the club chairs was 27 inches high.
Fine art in this sale was also diverse. An Andy Warhol (1928-1987) Cow poster, estimated $100/300, sold for $6,875. Pink on purple with Andy Warhol stamp from Modern Art Pavilion, Seattle Center, Nov. 18, 1976 to Jan. 9, 1977, it bore the AWF copyright.
On the other end of the spectrum was an oil on canvas cataloged as after Caravaggio (1571-1610), which depicted John the Baptist. Bringing $5,312, the mid-Eighteenth Century painting, 52 by 40 inches, was mounted in a gilt wood frame by Lowy. The original is in the Capitoline Museum in Rome.
An Old Master painting attributed to Pieter de Hooch (Dutch, 1629-1684) was of a courtyard scene of a festive gathering around a table with figures enjoying music and seafood. Catalog notes stated that it had provenance to Galerie G. Paffrath, Dusseldorf, Germany, and that attribution had been made by William Reinhold Valentiner (1880-1958), who was a German-American art historian, art critic and museum administrator. He was educated and trained in Europe, first working at the Mauritshuis in The Hague and at museums in Berlin. In 1907, he moved to the United States to become the first curator of the department of decorative arts in the Metropolitan Museum in New York City. It sold for $4,375.
Very heavy, large and likely Nineteenth Century in Seventeenth/Eighteenth Century style, this jardiniere/bombé-form censer with lion head handles and an inscription in Chinese characters surpassed $2,5/3,500 to settle at $8,750.
A pair of abstract gouaches by Joseph M. Glasco (1925-1996), each 20 by 26 inches, finished at more than ten times the low estimate at $4,062, while another abstract painting by Vladislovas Zilius, a Modern painter from the Soviet school, was a blend of colors, geometric and morphic shapes and was bid to $3,520.
Decorative arts highlights included a framed Chinese embroidery textile, a section of a Chinese child’s garment, embroidered with floral motifs, that left the gallery at $5,937, more than ten times its high estimate, a pair of Buccellati silver water pitchers with bamboo handles bringing the same price and an Art Deco Georg Jensen sterling silver service tray with sculpted faux ivory handles and ¾-inch gallery taking $5,000.
Finally, a Mallon Simon mahogany tall case clock rounded out the top highlights, earning $4,688. It had a dome top and full column sides, a painted moon dial under a mixed metal face, with Westminster and other chimes, with 13 tubes, three weights and lyre pendulum. It stood 90 inches high.
Prices given include the buyer’s premium as stated by the auction house. For additional information, 212-260-2000 or www.rolandantiques.com.
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