The top lot overall was this Chinese celadon glazed double gourd vase that set a new high for the auction house when it attained $62,500 ($400/800).
Review by Andrea Valluzzo
BELLPORT, N.Y. — A powerhouse selection of Asian arts and fresh-to-market items across the board from a New York collector with a keen eye for items he acquired on frequent travels around the world, particularly in Asia, was the foundation of Cornell Auctions, Objects & Trade’s June Jubilation auction on June 13.
Knowledgeable buyers recognized quality when they saw it as soon as the auctioneer’s catalog hit online bidding platforms. A Chinese celadon glazed double gourd vase with wood stand that came from a Bridgehampton, N.Y., collection was the top lot of the auction, attaining $62,500. Conservatively estimated at $400/800, the vase had a six-character underglaze blue Qianlong seal mark on the underside and stood 14 inches tall, including its stand.
“We were very pleased; it was overall a great sale,” commented co-owner Carlo Libaridian, saying that the sale’s total was in line with where they want to be for the summer. However, he noted this vase was a “wonderful addition” that took the sale to a whole new level and is now the most expensive item the auctioneers have sold, breaking the record held by a midcentury sculpture that sold last year for $30,000. The consignor traveled well and bought from reputable dealers, so this Qing dynasty piece stood out for what the auctioneer described as “insanely good condition,” rarely seen for its age. While the Qianlong mark, associated with the Qing dynasty emperor who reigned from 1735 to 1796, has been frequently copied, bidders were confident that this was the real thing and pushed the vase far over its estimate.
The selection of Asian arts included this antique Chinese Shiwan ware glazed pottery warrior statue that fetched $6,250 ($500-$1,000).
“We were excited,” Libaridian said, adding that as soon as the auction catalog hit the internet, the vase began attracting interest. “People started asking for more images and videos, different photographs, and that usually tells us that we’ve got something special.”
Also coming from the Bridgehampton collection was a circa Fifteenth Century Chinese blue-and-white bowl decorated with floral sprays and spiky foliate motifs in cobalt underglaze that made $2,125.
The selection of Asian arts crossing the block also featured a large polychrome lead-glazed sancai figure depicting a warrior immortal or deity clothed in traditional scale armor from a New York collector. Made with real hair and standing 33 inches tall, the figure also outperformed its estimate, selling for $6,250. From the same collector was an antique Chinese famille rose pierced porcelain cricket box, 2 by 5 by 3 inches, decorated with scenes of boys playing in a garden, that was a nice surprise at $1,062.
An example of having an item speak for itself and letting the market play out was with a rectangular Chinese cinnabar red lacquered table from the same New York collector. Having chinoiserie decoration of landscape scenes, birds and floral motifs over a scalloped apron and flowing cabriole legs, the table was estimated at $300/600 but went out at $2,625. “We all knew it was a spectacular table, and we were hoping for the best, but in the auction world, we have to leave it up to the fates to see if the right people find it and recognize it as the beautiful thing it is,” Libaridian explained. “And we’ve really started to see them showing up every auction and they’re finding the special pieces. So when we have a special piece, it’s getting noticed, which is really great for consigners because they know that if they give us something that is worth something, then it’s going to get the right eyeballs. It’s nice when the internet works in your favor, you know?”
This Italian pendant chandelier with a marbled alabaster bowl lit up at $2,375, well over its $900-$1,200 estimate.
Given the firm’s Long Island location and a growing client base not only in the area but among established dealers in the South and in Palm Beach, Fla., the auctioneers often handle striking design pieces. A highlight in this auction was a vintage Italian marbled alabaster pendant chandelier in the neoclassical style that sold for $2,375. The fixture’s alabaster bowl shade had dramatic dark grey and black veining.
The auction offered a variety of material across the board, ranging from a pair of Nineteenth Century Wedgwood blue jasperware covered urns on square pedestal stands that soared over its $500-$1,000 estimate to bring $5,000, to a large Irving Amen painting titled “Game of Kings” that brought $2,250 ($700-$1,000). The Midcentury Modernist oil or mixed media painting on canvas was signed by the artist in the lower corner.
Furniture offerings can be a mixed bag, but this sale featured some nice buys in the form of a set of ten Louis XVI-style Rogers & Goffigon velvet upholstered chairs that took $3,250 and a modern example of the Cassina Le Corbusier LC4 chaise lounge chair, originally designed in 1928, at $1,500.
Rounding out the auction were an antique French crystal and gilt bronze jewelry box, attributed to Baccarat, which sold over its high estimate at $2,000, and a 76-piece Gorham sterling silver Chantilly flatware service that performed well at $4,687.
Cornell’s next auction will be conducted on July 11. Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, www.cornellauctions.com or 631-289-9505.
