New senior team appointed to Dreweatts

84 Pages·2015·61.09 MB·English

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Issue 2214 | 31st October 2015 UK £2.25 – USA $6.50 – Europe €3.95 oonnlliinnee wwiitthh......
New senior
team appointed
to Dreweatts
During Ludwig’s recent absence at
■ Woodham-Smith returns to
Mallett’s HQ in Dover Street, George
Mallett as TFAAG chief executive Bailey, chairman of Dreweatts &
Bloomsbury Auctions and founder of
Roland Arkell online firm The Auction Room, has been
reports responsible for major decision making.
He will now work together with James
Harvey and Thomas Woodham-Smith,
A NEW senior management who both become co-chief executives of
£155,000 tile saved from the jumble
team has been appointed The Fine Art Auction Group (TFAAG).
Stanley Gibbons chief executive Mike
to take on responsibility for
Hall informed staff of the changes in an THERE was drama at the Stonepark grandfather who had worked as a
the group of businesses that
email of October 22 seen by ATG. auction rooms of Rendells near consultant mining engineer in Turkey.
includes Dreweatts, Baldwin’s Harvey, who spent almost 20 years Ashburton on October 16 when this Cataloguer and valuer David Ship
and Mallett, ATG has learned. sourcing and selling paintings for Mallett Isnik fritware tile was hammered instantly recognised it as Ottoman
before setting up as James Harvey down at £155,000 (plus 12% buyer’s and subsequently dated it to the
The appointments follows the surprise British & Sporting Art, was appointed premium). 1580s-’90s. It is one of only a small
departure of Stephan Ludwig and Ian international head of traditional art at The 9½in (24cm) square tile number known in this pattern, using
Goldbart who, as reported in ATG No Dreweatts & Bloomsbury last August. featuring parrots flanking a pedestal the emerald green first used to
2211, both left parent company Stanley fountain was brought into a valuation decorate tiles of the mausoleum of
Gibbons last month. continued on page 3 day after the vendor, who had kept it Suleiman the Magnificent in 1566,
in the garage, had second thoughts and the first to be offered for auction
about sending it to the local church in two decades.
A £90,000 bungalow with a £900,000 studio
jumble sale.
THE FIRTH COLLECTION: pages 16-19 It had belonged to her step- continued on page 4
koopman rare art
koopman rare art
N. & I. FRANKLIN
Are actively looking to buy
fine 16th-18th century silver and
Art inIndustry:
ThAe Wrto rikn ofI PnAdUuL SsTtOrRyR:
silver-gilt, silver-mounted wares,
The Work of PAUL STORR
A major exhibition at
Gothic and medieval revival A mKoajooprm eaxnh iRbiatrioe nA artt
OKctooobeprm 1a3n– R31ar, e2 0A1r5t
October 13–31, 2015
Ends October 31st
Contact: [phone]
[email protected]
53/64 Chancery Lane
5L3o/6n4d oCnh WancCe2rAy L1aQneS
11 BURY STREET, +L4o4n (d0o) n2 W07C 224A2 716Q2S4
info@+k4o4o (p0m) a2n0r7a r2e4a2r t7.c6o2m4
ST JAMES’S, SW1Y 6AB
[email protected]
www.koopmanrareart.com
Benjamin Yates, 1688
Antiques Trade Gazette: Harlequin Building, 65 Southwark Street, London SE1 0HR. PRINTED IN THE UK antiquestradegazette.com
PAGE 001-3 2214.indd 1 10/23/2015 4:33:52 PM
Geoffrey Key
oil 51 x 61 cms 20 x 24 ins oil 51 x 61 cms 20 x 24 ins
oil 51 x 76 cms 20 x 30 ins
Hill Road, 2014 The Menu, 2013 Spindleback with Violin, 2013
oil 41 x 51 cms 16 x 20 ins
oil 51 x 61 cms 20 x 24 ins oil 61 x 61 cms 24 x 24 ins
Dark Road, 2013 Still Life with Vegetables, 2014 Still Life with Chinese Objects, 1998
oil 41 x 51 cms 16 x 20 ins oil 51 x 61 cms 20 x 24 ins
oil 51 x 61 cms 20 x 24 ins
VisiItno rms, a20n1y2 ways Key’s signature post-cubistSicte satmy laen dis C clhouadnsg, i2n0g14 t he face of Northern contemporary art, refleWcitnine gB atrh Fei gruergeiso, n20’s1 3s h ift from industry
to urban affluence. Now found in collections from Geneva to Beijing, his works have recently set record prices for Northern painting.
Spotlight exhibition of 16 selected works 26th October – 6th November 2015
Geoffrey Key is represented internationally by Messum’s
M ’
essuM s
28 Cork Street, London W1S 3NG Tel: [phone] [email protected] www.messums.com
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2 24th October 2015 antiquestradegazette.com Antiques Trade Gazette 3
news
Martinware flock migrates to NY
Frieze Week to
move in 2016
TWO single-owner collections of
Martinware – each exceptional in their Two of the 19 Martinware birds to
own way – will appear for sale on either be offered by Phillips in New York LONDON’S Frieze Week, an annual high point
side of the Atlantic this autumn. on December 16. of Modern and Contemporary art fairs and
Phillips have chosen New York to auctions, will take place one week earlier
sell a UK collection of figural groups than usual in 2016, as the organisers of Frieze
assembled over 21 years since the early fairs have moved their dates forward to avoid
1990s. The 23 pieces (19 wally bird jars clashing with the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur.
and four grotesques) comprise items Frieze London will run from October 5-8
with provenances to previous major and Frieze Masters from October 5-9 (both
sales and exhibitions. These include the with previews on October 4).
1978 Richard Dennis show at Sotheby’s PAD London, the art and design fair in
Belgravia, Boobies, Boojums & Snarks Mayfair, has also moved its dates to coincide,
at the Jordan-Volpe Gallery (1982), The from October 3-9.
Martin Brothers at Gallery 532 (1995) Sotheby’s confirmed their Contemporary
and the Harriman-Judd collection sold at art sales series will also move forward one
Sotheby’s New York in 2001. week to correspond, and it is expected
Alexander Payne, director of design Christie’s and Phillips will follow suit.
at Phillips, told ATG the decision to sell The new dates leave a difficult nine-day
in New York was part of an effort to gap before FIAC (October 20-23, 2016),
broaden and internationalise the market. the Contemporary art fair in Paris which
He promised an exhaustive catalogue traditionally runs immediately after Frieze
revealing the fruits of research into the at Christie’s in New York in 1994 has Phillips’ HQ in Berkeley Square before they Week.
early history of some of the pieces and been identified as the same piece sold by are sold in New York on December 16. For a review of this year’s PAD London
an essay placing the Martin brothers, and Sotheby’s in 1935 as part of the collection Just as remarkable is the collection and Frieze Masters, turn to pages 26 and 28.
Robert Wallace Martin in particular, in the of Charles Martin. of 65 Martin miniature gourds that will
context of Victorian sculpture. The catalogue description back then appear at auction for the first time at
dreweatts appointments
Alongside a jar modelled as a caricature described “a fine group of three birds, Woolley & Wallis on November 25.
of Victorian Prime Minister, Benjamin all joined together with moveable heads, These have come from a descendant
Disraeli (last seen at Phillips in 1996 and brilliantly modelled to get the maximum of Sydney Greenslade (1867-1955), the Left: Thomas
now estimated at $80,000-120,000), humorous effect, the centre bird with architect and critic who was among Woodham-Smith is
Payne is hoping to identify through wing extended drawing the other two in the brothers’ greatest patrons. It was returning to Mallett as
archives of Victorian prints the human to hear a good story”. Greenslade who took Edwin, Walter co-chief executive of
inspiration behind the distinctive avian The works, with a combined estimate and Charles Martin to the 1900 Paris The Fine Art Auction
faces of other jars in the collection. of around $1m, will be on view in London Exhibition. Group.
A triple bird group of 1908 last sold from October 30 to November 3 at Most of his collection was dispersed
shortly after his death (the Plymouth City
Museum and Art Gallery acquired many
continued from front page
pieces in 1965) but this array of miniatures
(most of them thrown by Edwin and According to Hall’s email, he has
Walter Martin) descended in his family. now agreed to take on a broader
Specialist Michael Jeffery was sent a management role.
digital image of the collection nestling Thomas Woodham-Smith returns
Right: a detail of some of the together in a bed cover. Estimates will run to Mallett where he was a director
65 miniature gourds, acquired from £200-1000. until 2010. He was creative director at
directly from the Martinware Martinware remains the strong suit of Masterpiece until 2013 and has latterly
studio in Southall by Sydney the Victorian art pottery market. Woolley been dealing independently.
Greenslade. Estimates at & Wallis posted a record £75,000 for a The new team comes together roughly
Woolley & Wallis on November bird in June 2014. two years after Stanley Gibbons acquired
25 range from £200-1000. Roland Arkell the Dreweatts group in November 2013.
A founding shareholder in The Fine
The appliance of science – a discussion for AAL Art Auction Group, Ludwig negotiated
both the merger of Dreweatts and
Bloomsbury Auctions in 2010 and the
LEADING specialists will debate the use of scientific especially Chinese, is one that repeatedly comes up in £8.6m purchase in 2014 of Mayfair
testing in Asian art at an event to coincide with Asian our daily business,” Young said. dealership Mallett where he held the
Art in London (November 5-14). “There are broadly two bodies of opinion on the position of chief executive.
The panel debate, New Perspectives on subject: those who rely on their years of handling Asian Integration of the auction and retail
Connoisseurship – an open discussion with the Antiques art to establish authenticity and people who advocate enterprises is now under way with
Trade Gazette, on November 9 is hosted by Edinburgh the role of science in the process. Both sides of the Dreweatts-Bloomsbury using Ely House,
auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull and was inspired by an debate will be represented at this event, and it promises Mallett’s Dover Street showroom, as both
article in the recent ATG Asian Art supplement. to be a lively and educational experience.” an office space and a London sale venue.
The panel features Roger Keverne, the Mayfair- The debate, to be held at Tomasso Brothers Fine Art Goldbart, a former stockbroker
based specialist dealer, Pamela Kember, the head of Gallery in Duke Street, London, on November 9 at 2pm, Above: Lee and coin collector, founded Noble
arts and learning at pan-Asian organisation Asia House will also cover changing tastes and the fresh perspective Young, head of Investments in 1993, acquiring
and Dr Peter Northover, Metallurgy and Archaeology, brought by a new generation of collectors. Lyon & Turnbull’s numismatic specialists AH Baldwin in
University of Oxford (retired). Admission is free but as places are limited, booking is Asian Art 2004 and The Fine Art Auction Group in
Lee Young, head of Lyon & Turnbull’s Asian Art essential via [email protected]. department. December 2013.
department, said “the time is right” for a debate on the Please note this is not a seated event. ATG contacted Stanley Gibbons but
role of science in Asian art connoisseurship. n Print copies of the Asian Art supplement are still no one was available to comment at the
“The question of authenticity around Asian art, available by emailing [email protected] time of going to press.
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4 31st October 2015 Antiques Trade Gazette 5
contents news
International Events
SCANDINAVIA A piece of the Pye in Bond Street
Beyond the mid-century mindset Page 46-51
NOTTINGHAM-based John Pye Managing director Adam Pye
London Selection Page 7-9
Auctions are expanding into Mayfair. said the space will primarily act
Established in 1968 by fine art as a boutique showroom and the
Auction Reports Page 16-19
and chattels auctioneer John Pye, the headquarters for valuation, appraisal
company has grown to become the and property services to clients in
Auction Previews Page 20
UK’s largest independent commercial London and the south-east.
auction house with 15 trading sites and The first assets to go under the
Dealers’ Diary Page 24-28
six different divisions. hammer will be a 345-lot sale of
They offer more than one million gemstones available for preview at
Art Market Page 32-34
lots a year counting leading names in Standbrook House from November
UK banking, lending, retail, insolvency 11. These will be offered via three
Antiquarian Books Page 36-38
and Central Government authorities online auctions in November and
among their clients. December.
International Events Page 46-68
As their interest in the jewellery and The Bond Street operation expects
wristwatch market grows, from mid- to conduct fortnightly sales from their
Index of Auction Advertisers Page 69
November Pye will open for business at online platform.
Auction Calendar Page 69-75 Standbrook House, 5 Old Bond Street, As well as the John Pye Auctions
Page 8 basing their Luxury Assets, Property boutique in Mayfair, the firm is also
Fairs & Markets Page 76-79 and Business Assets divisions in set to open a Scottish auction hub on
London’s premier luxury heartland. the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Classified Page 80 Follow us on Twitter
Royal Institution to sell ‘non-core’ items
Subscription Form Page 81
Letters to the Editor Page 81 SCIENTIFIC, medical and natural history
books from the library of the Royal
The Back Pages Page 82-83 Institution are to be sold at Christie’s on
@ATG_Editorial
December 1. Books de-accessioned for
sale at King Street could raise £750,000
CONTACTS Find us on: to help safeguard the charity’s future.
Two years ago the RI was saved
Antiques Trade Gazette, Harlequin Building,
from having to sell its Mayfair home
65 Southwark Street, London SE1 0HR
by an anonymous gift of £4.4m, but
020 3725 5500
still has debts to pay following a major
CEO Anne Somers CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING 020 3725 5604 refurbishment.
Erim Ahmet The sale has provoked criticism that
Chairman, Art & Antiques Simon Berti
[email protected] the RI is selling the family silver. Nobel
Publishing Director Matt Ball prize-winning physicist Sir Andre Geim
INTERNATIONAL ADVERTISING
Editor Noelle McElhatton Nadia Brice [phone] was reported as saying that the RI, which
Deputy Editor Roland Arkell [email protected] has “a proven record of not being a
good caretaker”, should reconsider a many significant and desirable works
Commissioning Editor Anne Crane Ines Sordo de la Pena [phone] suggestion made two years ago that it – the most highly valued at £140,000-
News Editor Tom Derbyshire [email protected] merge with the Royal Society. 220,000 being a 1543 first of Vesalius’
Dealers’ Diary Anna Brady However the RI say that the books pioneering anatomical study De humani
SUBSCRIPTIONS 020 3725 5507 de-accessioned for this one-off sale corporus fabrica.
Art Market Alex Capon
Polly Stevens [email protected] are “non-core heritage items” subject Pictured above is a 1616 first
Reporter Gabriel Berner
to strict selection criteria, something of William Barlow’s Magneticall

Head of Sales Sharon Davies confirmed to ATG by the head of Advertisements..., containing his findings
ATG PRODUCTION 020 3725 5620
Office Manager Bea Barber Production Editor Muireann Grealy Christie’s book department, Thomas on the properties of the compass needle.
Workflow Manager Clair Perera Venning. It is valued at £12,000-18,000.
Print & Production Director Justin Massie-Taylor
Nevertheless, the sale does include Ian McKay
ONLINE SERVICES

EDITORIAL 020 3725 5520
[email protected] antiquestradegazette.com Precious metals £155,000 isnik tile
Web Content Manager Alex Capon
[email protected]
ADVERTISING On Friday, October 23, Michael Bloomstein continued from front page

[email protected] the-saleroom.com of Brighton were paying the following for
A near identical tile is in the Fitzwilliam
Operations Manager Carl Nestor bulk scrap against a gold fix of $1171.55
ATaUmCsTynIO MNa sAoDnV ERTISING 020 3725 5602 [email protected] (€1052.83, £760.70) Museum, Cambridge, given by South
African collector Alfred Aaron de Pass
[email protected]
i-bidder.com GOLD and another featured in the 2008
NON-AUCTION ADVERTISING Head of Operations George Wade 22 carat – £672.90 per oz exhibition titled Three Empires of Islam:
[email protected]
020 3725 5605 (£21.64 per gram) Istanbul, Isfahan, Delhi. Masterpieces of
Daniel De’Ath ONLINE SUPPORT LINES 18 carat – £550.56 (£17.70) the Louvre Collection.
[email protected]
15 carat – £458.80 (£14.75) All ten of the phone lines were booked

FAIRS & MARKETS 020 3725 5603 the-saleroom.com: [phone] carat – £428.21 (£13.77) and commission bids saw bidding open at
Paul Toberman i-bidder.com: [phone] carat – £275.28 (£8.85) £11,000 – well above the top estimate of
[email protected] HALLMARK PLATINUM £5000. In the end a bidding war ensued

£17.90 per gram between the last two lines manned by
members of the London trade.
Antiques Trade Gazette is published and originated by Metropress Ltd atgmedia SILVER n Highlights from London’s Islamic
trading as ATG Media Ltd and printed by Buxton Press Ltd SK17 6AE £8.55 per oz for 925 standard hallmarked
week sales are reported on page 7-9.
PAGE 001-3 2214.indd 4 10/23/2015 4:24:03 PM
Antiques Trade Gazette 5
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Saturday Sale: 31st October
Antiques & Interiors Sale:
4th, 5th, 6th November
November Antiques & Interiors Auction
Lot 1972. An Empire Lot 1914. A Steiff
ormolu striking mantel teddy bear,
clock, Charles Oudin, circa 1910.
mid-19th century. Estimate £700-1,000
Estimate £600-900
Lot 1066. Louis Bosworth Hurt (1856-1929),
Autumn Beeches.
Estimate £1,000-1,500
Lot 1760. A diamond set brooch circa 1920. Lot 1154. A group of nine 19th century Lot 1850. A diamond and vari-coloured
Estimate £3,000-5,000 English boxwood framing moulds. cultured pearl brooch.
Estimate £400-600 Estimate £600-800
Lot 1201. A 19th Lot 1214. An early
century oak cigar 19th century straw
box with concealed work prisoner of war
Turkish harem lap desk retaining
erotic scene. good colour to
Estimate £120-180 the interior.
Estimate £200-300
Lot 805. Rocque (John), A Topographical Map of the
County of Surrey by Peter Andrews, circa 1775.
Estimate £1,000-1,200
Lot 1280. A late 19th/early 20th
century ebonised bentwood
chaise longue,
with paper label ‘Thonet’.
Estimate £200-400
Lot 1870. A gold, sapphire and diamond set Lot 1705. A gold, emerald and diamond set
shaped oval cluster ring. oval cluster ring.
Estimate £3,500-4,500 Estimate £600-900
01403 700858 VIEWING:
www.bellmans.co.uk Friday 30th October 12 noon-4pm
[email protected] Saturday 31st October 9am-12.30pm
Newpound, Wisborough Green,
Monday 2nd November 10am-4pm
Billingshurst, West Sussex RH14 0AZ www.the-saleroom.com
Tuesday 3rd November 10am-4pm
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Antiques Trade Gazette 7
london selection
Gahlin’s £3.7m in miniature
■ Single-owner collection Left: this large gold-heightened gouache
on paper laid on cloth comes from
shines in choosy Islamic week
Tanjore and depicts a state procession
of Rajah Tulsaji c.1765. Most Tanjore
miniatures show castes and occupations
Anne Crane
of the regions and were commissioned by
& Gabriel Berner report
European visitors.
Large processional scenes are much
rarer, and if this scene depicts the ruler’s
FAR and away the highest
accession to the throne, then it is probably
selling rate in a London the earliest such subject known.
Islamic sale series generally Its former owners include General Sir
John Dalling (commander-in-chief of the
characterised by selective
forces at Madras from 1784-86) who
bidding came in the only commissioned a pair of related scenes
single-owner catalogue of the showing himself and fellow officers in
procession and watching a nautch which
week.
are now in the British Museum.
Of the 157 lots offered in the Sven It is likely that he acquired this painting
Gahlin auction of Indian miniatures and at the same time. It sold for £38,000 after
works of art at Sotheby’s on October 6, a contest between two phones.
146 got away.
This was the personal collection of the
collector/dealer whose tastes were first Right: this 9 x 12in (21 x 30cm) mid
drawn to Old Master drawings before, as 17th century study of a horse and
a young dealer in the 1960s, he purchased groom in a Mughal-related style
an Indian miniature of an elephant for attributed to the so-called Master
£4-10s. of the Early Court of Mandi or his
On taking it to Bill Archer at the workshop, combines early date with
Victoria and Albert Museum, the curator great decorative appeal.
asked him, “are there any more where It was pursued by three bidders in
this one came from?”. Gahlin learned that the room and various phones before
he had unwittingly acquired his first 17th selling to a phone bidder for a triple-
century Mughal miniature. estimate £68,000.
A £75 purchase of what turned out
to be a large page from the Hamzanama Below: there were several examples
followed soon after and he decided “my of the more humorous side of Indian
serious interest and lifelong work had painting in the Sven Gahlin collection,
started with a bang”. He would later such as this 18th century gouache of
supply works to the Fondation Custodia in a turbanned officer leaning back in an
Paris and wrote their Indian catalogues. exaggerated pose while balancing a
What was on offer here was an small bird on his finger. He is followed
interesting mix of the academic and the by a keenly interested small dog.
commercial (sometimes both at once). The 8½ x 6in (22 x 16cm) leaf,
It took in early Mughal works including which comes from the state of
miniatures inspired by Western art and Kishangarh, c.1740, and is attributed on of foreground and background action and double the estimate, against stiff
a rich spread of Indian school paintings, stylistic grounds to the artist Bhavindas, incidental detail. It has been attributed by competition from two phones and the
both provincial Mughal and Rajput, sold over the phone for £36,000. the scholar Mark Zebrowski to an artist room before securing it.
through to later Company School trained at Golconda during the reign of Some of the other notable examples
creations. Abu’l Hasan Qutb Shah. from a £3.7m sale are shown here.
Sotheby’s promotion included taking Bidding came from London dealer Sam The event also afforded opportunities
highlights to New York’s Asia Week and Fogg in the room and at least two phones to pick up drawings and studies for
a Sunday reception in London with a and swiftly rose to £270,000. It was finished works from across all artistic
talk by historian William Dalrymple. The bought by a European Institution. centres of the subcontinent for lesser
catalogue came with extensive notes and Sam Fogg was the most active room sums. An ink and brush study of a hound
attributions for many individual works. bidder. Among his many prizes was the and its attendant from Kishangarh c.1765
There was a good turn-out on the sale third priciest miniature of the day, a 16 in x went for £3200, for example, while a 6 x
day with dealers and collectors plus 12in (42 x 30.5cm) Mughal gouache of the 7½in (15.5 x 19cm) Mughal ink sketch of a
institutional interest in the room and via Emperor Bahadur Shah I enthroned that is prince and maidens celebrating Holi from
the phones. attributed to Bhavanidas, c.1707. c.1720-40 was hammered down at £950.
The most expensive work, as expected, Acquired by Gahlin in 1965, this had an The highest price from a small section
was the 17th century Deccani Mughal impressive provenance. It had belonged of works of art that rounded off this event
miniature of a prince holding a falcon to Warren Hastings, Governor-General was for a 17th century Mughal carved jade
galloping through a landscape (see ATG of India; then John Rushout 2nd Earl of dagger hilt formed as a camel’s head. It
No 2210). Northwick and Captain Edward George went at £162,000.
This 12 x 8in (30 x 20cm) painting Spencer Churchill of Northwick Park, Highlights from the other Islamic
contained many popular ingredients: before appearing at Sotheby’s in 1928. week series are pictured and discussed on
hunting, horses, birds of prey plus plenty Fogg had to go to £150,000, over pages 9-10.
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8 31st October 2015 antiquestradegazette.com Antiques Trade Gazette 9
london selection
OTTOMAN CALLIGRAPHY
Among the finest examples of Ottoman calligraphy on offer in this Islamic
week series was an 18th century Qur’an copied by the celebrated calligrapher
Mahmud Celâleddin, shown right.
This is the only example to have been published by the self-taught scribe,
who is distinguished by his distinctive ‘hard and static’ style. Furthermore, it
boasted an illustrious history including a note on the final fly-leaf documenting
one of its former owners – Nazime Sultan, the eldest daughter of Sultan
Abdulaziz Khan (r1861-76).
By repute the Qur’an is later said to have entered the collection of King
Abdulaziz I of Saudi Arabia (r1932-53), by whom it was then given to Rashid
‘Ali al-Gaylani, the three-time prime minister of Iraq and Arab nationalist who
attempted to remove the British influence from his country.
It made a double-estimate £540,000 at Christie’s King Street on October 8.
islamic sales
INDIAN MANUSCRIPTS
As emphasised by the Sven Gahlin collection on page 8, said Romain Pingannaud, head of Christie’s South
when it comes to selling Indian paintings, provenance, Kensington’s Islamic department.
period and condition are key. Another case in point “The scale of the figures is very large and the
during this Islamic series was the property of the condition is fantastic. It is quite a dramatic composition,
American collector Phyllis Oja Jones offered at Christie’s as well as being very humorous in the depiction of the ASTROLABES
South Kensington on October 9. faces,” he added. An additional feature is the Ka’ba Huge strides in scientific enquiry were made during the
Oja Jones acquired the majority of the 22-lot group in the lower-right corner of the painting, unusually Islamic Golden Age from the 8th to the 13th century and
in the 1960s and ‘70s including from the Californian depicted as a Hindu temple with a Shiva Lingam and one offshoot of this was the refining of sophisticated
collector, William P Cleary. figure of Ganesh. It refers to the Ka’ba housing Pagan instruments. Perhaps the most famous of all was
A highlight was six large 19th century Deccani idols before the time of the Prophet Muhammad. the astrolabe.
folios on gold paper from the illustrated manuscript of A private buyer with a keen interest in cross- Invented by the Greeks and used for measuring latitude,
the Hamla-I Haydari, a versified account of the life of cultural works secured it against strong interest from it was developed and perfected by Islamic astronomers, who
the Prophet Muhammad and his first four successors institutional buyers. improved its accuracy and used such devices as an aid to
according to Shi’ism. The top lot at the sale was a large 12½in (32cm) 12th finding the qibla (the direction of prayer), the beginning of
Yet to be properly studied, it is likely these are the first century turquoise glazed pottery vase, which, unusually Ramadan and the hours of prayer. Beautifully crafted and
such folios from this manuscript to come to market. for medieval ceramics, was fully intact and unrestored. elegant too, such instruments have become highly sought
The most expensive at £24,000 was this 9 x 15in (22 x Although catalogued as from Seljuk Iran, there was after today.
38cm) folio, left, depicting the Prophet Muhammad, his some suggestion it had been made in Raqqa (Syria) Two quite different later 17th century examples caused a
face veiled, with Umar and his companions at the Haram where ceramic production was much less common. stir in the latest Islamic series.
in Mecca. “There are other depictions of the Prophet In a Japanese private collection since the 1970s, it At Christie’s, a spherical astrolabe made in Medina during
in Mecca but this is generally a very popular subject,” sold for £35,000 against a £4000-6000 estimate. the 17th century by the astronomer Mohammed Al-Rudani
(above left) topped the October 8 auction, selling for an
estimate-busting £600,000.
Unique to Islamic astronomy, spherical astrolabes are
rare. This is one of only three known to exist and the only
MUGHAL JEWELLERY
While the £800,000 Gujarati tray (see ATG No Left: this c.1640 tortoiseshell
2212) stole the show at Bonhams, another stand- and mother-of-pearl box, a
out lot from the October 6 sale was this northern tour-de-force of Ottoman
Indian gem-set enamelled gold turban ornament. craftsmanship, stands at
Known as a jigha and worn exclusively by the 12in (30cm) high. It fetched
emperor, his family and entourage, this elaborate £255,000 (estimate £70,000-
creation dates from the 18th century and is set 100,000) at Sotheby’s on
with diamonds, carved emerald, pink tourmaline October 7.
in gold with a suspended pearl to the tip. It was described as a
The style was introduced by the 15th century “unique box” characterised by
Mughal emperor Jahangir but the wearer was “its octagonal form, luxurious
thought to have been the Maharaja Ranjit use of materials... as well
Singh. He gifted it to the Maharaja Sahib Singh as design, derived from the
of Patiala when the pair exchanged turbans in classic crescent moon and star
November 1808. with a cintamani motif on the
Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s treasury was fabled lid, an iconic Ottoman theme”.
as the greatest and largest ever found when
the British took control of the court in Lahore
between 1849-50.
The most famous and well-known jewels were
taken away as gifts for Queen Victoria, including
the Koh-i Noor diamond and the Timur ruby.
Well-preserved and with this impressive
provenance, the jigha sold for £55,000 against a
£30,000-40,000 estimate.
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8 31st October 2015 antiquestradegazette.com Antiques Trade Gazette 9
london selection
said Romain Pingannaud, head of Christie’s South
Kensington’s Islamic department.
“The scale of the figures is very large and the Above: this vast 2ft 4in (71cm)
condition is fantastic. It is quite a dramatic composition, ‘Byzantine’ ruby vase on a porphyry plinth
as well as being very humorous in the depiction of the ASTROLABES topped Bonhams’ second and final sale of
faces,” he added. An additional feature is the Ka’ba Huge strides in scientific enquiry were made during the extant example made and signed by the astronomer Al- Bohemian glass from a European collection
in the lower-right corner of the painting, unusually Islamic Golden Age from the 8th to the 13th century and Rudani who wrote the seminal work on the subject Al Nāfia on September 30 in New Bond Street.
depicted as a Hindu temple with a Shiva Lingam and one offshoot of this was the refining of sophisticated fī amal al jāmia. It was published in Medina in 1662, the Among the earliest examples of ruby
figure of Ganesh. It refers to the Ka’ba housing Pagan instruments. Perhaps the most famous of all was same year this instrument was made. coloured glass, the c.1843-45 piece had
idols before the time of the Prophet Muhammad. the astrolabe. The spherical astrolabe would have been used to perform been manufactured in four sections by
A private buyer with a keen interest in cross- Invented by the Greeks and used for measuring latitude, astronomical calculations as well as to cast horoscopes, Harrachov glassworks in Neuwelt (now
cultural works secured it against strong interest from it was developed and perfected by Islamic astronomers, who determine the time of prayers and indicate the direction of Novy Svet).
institutional buyers. improved its accuracy and used such devices as an aid to the qibla. The second sphere, placed inside the first on a Only a few were produced at the time
The top lot at the sale was a large 12½in (32cm) 12th finding the qibla (the direction of prayer), the beginning of different axis, is divided into two parts in which the zodiacal and then sold to a small number of dealers,
century turquoise glazed pottery vase, which, unusually Ramadan and the hours of prayer. Beautifully crafted and signs with their sections and regions are drawn. such as Berens, Blumberg & Co in London
for medieval ceramics, was fully intact and unrestored. elegant too, such instruments have become highly sought By contrast, Safavid brass astrolabes from the 17th and Josef Lobmeyr in Vienna. A Russian
Although catalogued as from Seljuk Iran, there was after today. century are a far more common sight in the saleroom. buyer secured the piece for more than
some suggestion it had been made in Raqqa (Syria) Two quite different later 17th century examples caused a Sotheby’s sale included one, an elegant 1674-7 example double the estimate at £45,000.
where ceramic production was much less common. stir in the latest Islamic series. signed by the celebrated craftsman Muhammad Khalil The sale also yielded £22,000 (estimate
In a Japanese private collection since the 1970s, it At Christie’s, a spherical astrolabe made in Medina during Ibn Hasan ‘Ali and decorated with foliate engraving by £4000-6000) for a rare signed cameo
sold for £35,000 against a £4000-6000 estimate. the 17th century by the astronomer Mohammed Al-Rudani Muhammad Mahdi al-Yazdi (above right). glass portrait goblet of Napoleon III.
(above left) topped the October 8 auction, selling for an Both men are well-known members of the prolific Thought to originate from Bohemia, it
estimate-busting £600,000. school of instrument-making that flourished in 17th century was signed by the little-known engraver
Unique to Islamic astronomy, spherical astrolabes are Isfahan. It bettered the £150,000-250,000 guide to sell for A Becker in 1851. The buyer was from
rare. This is one of only three known to exist and the only £270,000. the US.
Left: this c.1640 tortoiseshell
and mother-of-pearl box, a
tour-de-force of Ottoman PREVIOUSLY ON LOAN…
craftsmanship, stands at In 1954, the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University held the first US
12in (30cm) high. It fetched exhibition dedicated to Turkish history.
£255,000 (estimate £70,000- Two items from that exhibition, a 15th century Persian candlestick
100,000) at Sotheby’s on (left) and a 16th century Ottoman talismanic shirt (right), turned up in
October 7. Sotheby’s October 7 sale. Both had been on loan from the collection of
It was described as a Theron J Damon (d.1973) to the Worcester Art Museum in Massachusetts
“unique box” characterised by since 1940.
“its octagonal form, luxurious Offered first was the 10in (24cm) high candlestick which met plenty
use of materials... as well of competition and took £75,000 against a £20,000-30,000 guide.
as design, derived from the It belonged to a small corpus of similar Timurid openwork examples
classic crescent moon and star featuring intricately carved inscriptions around the body within
with a cintamani motif on the scrolling foliate vines.
lid, an iconic Ottoman theme”. Next up and bid to £150,000 (estimate £60,000-80,000) was the
talismanic shirt dated to 1583.
Probably intended for an official of high rank, it had retained
much of the original bold colours and gold highlights, and featured
a strong geometric design centred on prayers and invocations
from the Qur’an, offering the promise of protection to its wearer.
Although it is rare to find examples of Ottoman talismanic
shirts outside Turkey (and rarer still to find them in good
condition), Sotheby’s have sold a couple over the last few
years which have made well into five figures.
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