Yearly Archives: 2009

A stunning Safavid rug from late 16th or early 17th century Persia sold for £2,729,250 ($4.34M US) this afternoon at Sotheby’s in London . The rug was purchased by an anonymous buyer after a prolonged contest in which at least five bidders vied for the piece. The price of the silk and [Read More]

Bonhams Sale of Richard Hatchwell’s collection achieved an outstanding £435,024 with lots varying from Thomas Cranmer’s Herodian to the complete set of Bossuet’s masterpieces of French oratory. 95% of the lots were sold by value, indeed several lots achieved many times their estimate, with the first German edition of the Napoleonic code [Read More]

A Babe Ruth game-used bat, dating to the Boston Red Sox’ 1918 World Series winning season – arguably the most important piece of lumber from baseball’s most iconic player – realized $537,750 at Heritage Auctions Oct. 1-2 Signature® Sports Memorabilia Auction. The auction totaled just more than $4.2 million. All prices include [Read More]

On October 12th, collectors of fine writing instruments will be presented with a spectacular collecting opportunity. The second part of the Clavius Collection–a world-class assemblage of many rare, ultra-high-end, modern, limited edition writing instruments–will be offered at international auctioneers, Bonhams New York. Considering the successful sale of the first part of the [Read More]

On Friday, October 16, 2009, Sotheby’s London will present, for the first time, a significant section of Arab & Iranian Art in its annual October Contemporary Art Sale to coincide with the Frieze Art Fair. The Arab & Iranian component of the sale features 46 works by some of the foremost Contemporary [Read More]

At Sotheby’s Hong Kong 20th Century Chinese Art Autumn Sale 2009, Sanyu’s monumental Lotus et Poissons Rouges commanded HK$36,500,000/ US$4,680,000, selling to a Chinese buyer over the telephone after heated competition with five other bidders from across Asia (est. HK$15-25 million/ US$1,940,000-3,230,000). Sotheby’s achieved the second highest auction price for Sanyu as [Read More]

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers , the world’s largest industrial auctioneer, will be conducting a large, multi-million dollar unreserved public equipment auction at its permanent auction site in Denver, Colorado on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 starting at 8:00 a.m. The auction will feature more than 450 construction and transportation equipment items and a large [Read More]

Manhattan Graphics Center is holding a no-reserve, no-buyer’s-commission, benefit auction of fine prints at Bloomsbury Auctions, New York. Available for bidding are over 400 fine prints by MGC members, a selection from the MGC archives, and donated works from fine print dealers, master printers, and well-known artist friends. The works, which represent [Read More]

Bloomsbury’s Continental and English Literature & History, Manuscripts & Autograph Letters, Modern First Editions and War Poetry on 15th October has a wide variety of very attractive pieces. Items of Scottish interest abound amongst the books from the library of the late Patrick Francis Maitland, 17th Earl of Lauderdale. A very good [Read More]

Bonhams will be selling an array of important historical pieces, ranging from a spectacular 17th century wood ceiling panel, to rare Islamic manuscripts, Iznik pottery and elaborate jewellery and silverware in its Islamic and Indian Art Sale on 8th October at New Bond Street. One of the highlights of the sale is [Read More]

The luxury brand Louis Vuitton, synonymous with the art of travel and highly qualified craftsmanship, collaborates this year with six masters of savoir-faire and creates six limited-edition Special Orders to benefit the ‘Red Cross’. Sotheby’s London will co-host the gala charity sale of these unique special pieces at its New Bond Street [Read More]

A rare early collection of silver religious ornaments from the Plymouth Hebrew Congregation’s synagogue built in 1762, the oldest built by Ashkenazi Jews in the English-speaking world will be sold by Bonhams on 25th November. This earliest and rarest set of silver prayer instruments is estimated to sell for £50,000 to £60,000. [Read More]

Fascination with dinosaurs and natural works of art fueled bidding on Saturday, October 3, 2009 as Bonhams & Butterfields offered and sold property during the company’s first Natural History auction held at The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. The sale brought more than $1.7-million for approximately 50 lots of high [Read More]

Sotheby’s Orientalist sale in Paris on October 28 will consist of 205 lots of paintings, sculptures and works of art. It will also include a section dedicated to Islamic Art for the first time, with 120 lots illustrating les arts d’Orient from North Africa to China. Orientalist Paintings One of the sale’s [Read More]

John Moran Auctioneers’ September 29, 2009 Estates Auction, featuring European & American decorative & fine art, proved once again that however battered the economy, exceptional pieces still bring exceptional prices. With their national and international audience growing ever larger, thanks to extensive internet visibility and online bidding, Moran’s is achieving strong results [Read More]

Million dollar jade collection to be offered at auction BOSTON, Mass. – www.skinnerinc.com – Skinner, one of the world’s leading auction houses for antiques and fine art, today announced its upcoming auction of Asian Works of Art – to take place on Oct 17th at 3 p.m. and Oct. 18th at 10 [Read More]

Once more the Dorotheum gets up to speed for the vintage car fair „Classic Expo“ in Salzburg: „Vintage Cars, Automobilia, and Motorcycles“ with a total of 500 lots coming up for auction. On 17th, car- and motorcycle lovers will have ample opportunity to bid for rare and valuable vehicles. In the vintage [Read More]

Powdered belladonae (nightshade) and powdered baldrian (valerian) – both part of a collection of historical pharmaceutical items presented at the auction of “Historical scientific instruments, models, and globes” to be held on 20th October 2009 at the Dorotheum Vienna. The event features a true rarity, the complete furnishings of a 17th century [Read More]