Lot 18. Peter Binoit (Cologne circa 1590 - 1632 Hanau), Still Life of Flowers in an Earthenware Vase on a Stone Ledge, With Insects and a Caterpillar Beside it, signed in monogram lower right: PB, oil on copper, the reverse stamped with the personal cipher of Georg V (Georg Rex) of Hanover, 11 1/8  by 8 in.; 28.2 by 20.2 cm. Estimate 175,000 — 225,000 USD. Lot sold 275,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's.

Provenance: Johann Ludwig Graf von Wallmoden-Gimborn (1736-1811);
His sale, Hannover, Ramberg, 1 September 1818, lot 371 (as Peter Breughel);
King Georg V of Hanover (1819–1878), his personal cipher on the reverse;
Provinzialmuseum, Hanover, by 1891;
Fideikommiss-Galerie des Gesamthauses Braunschweig-Luneburg;
Their sale, Berlin, Cassirer and P. Helbing, 27 April 1926, lot 102 (as The Monogrammist PVB);
Paul Werners, by whom acquired in Berlin between the wars;
By descent to his grandson until sold ('Property from a German Family Collection'), London, Sotheby's, 1 April 1992, lot 60, where acquired by the present collector for $174,723.

Literature: B. Hausmann, Verzeichniss der Hausmann'schen Gemählde-Sammlung in Hannover, Braunschweig 1831, p. 23, cat. no. 40 (as Peter von Breughel);
O. Eisenmann, Katalog der zum Ressort der königlichen Verwaltungs-Kommission gehörigen Sammlung von Gemälden, Skulpturen und Alterthümern im Provinzal-Museumsgebäude an der Prinzenstrasse Nr. 4 zu Hannover, Hanover 1891, no. 67;
O. Eisenmann, Katalog der zur Fideikommiss-Galerie des Gesamthauses Braunschweig und Lüneburg gehörigen Sammlung von Gemälden und Skulpturen im Provinzial-Museum Rudolf v. Bennigsenstr. 1 zu Hannover, Hanover 1905, no. 314;
G. Bott, 'Stillebenmalerei des 17. Jahrhunderts. Isaak Soreau, Peter Binoit,' in Kunst in Hessen und am Mittelrhein, 1962, Werkverzeichnis Binoit no. 8;
M.-L. Hairs, The Flemish flower painters in the XVIIth century, Brussels 1985, p. 457;
G. Bott, Die Stillebenmaler Soreau, Binoit, Codino und Marrell in Hanau und Frankfurt 1600–1650, Hanau 2001, p. 198, cat. no. WV.B.7, reproduced. 

Note: The riot of brightly-colored spring and summer flowers protruding from a simple earthenware vase is typical of Binoit’s work from around 1610–20. The handling of the flowers in this work is particularly sensitive and the pigments, especially the blues and yellows, are unusually well-preserved. Binoit trained in Hanau and was a leading member of the school of still life painting that emerged there in the 1610s to rival those of Antwerp and Middelburg.

For a work that today seems so typical of the artist it is a peculiarity that it was not recognized as such until the 1960s. Previously given to the so-called Monogrammist PvB on account of a misreading of its monogram (the perceived ‘v’ is in fact a decorative link between the P and the B), the painting only entered the literature on Binoit in 1962. The monogram is in fact precisely the same as those in several other works by Binoit, such as those in the Szépmüvészeti Museum, Budapest, and the large copper recorded by Hairs (1975) as in the Count Magnus Brahe collection, Skokloster, which was also previously attributed to the erstwhile Monogrammist PvB.1 With the Budapest work, dated 1613, the painting shares a similar mise-en-scène, the flowers presented in seemingly the same earthenware vase with a beetle to the left. Binoit, like Bosschaert and all the flower painters of the era, repeated various blooms from picture to picture: the scarlet poppy can be found in the same position in the Budapest work; the variegated tulip, upper left, occupies the same spot in a work sold at Christie’s in 2000; and the rose branch on the ledge reappears in the copper recorded by Bott in the Galerie Pudelko, Bonn, 1980.2

Though unrecognized at the time of the 1992 sale (see Provenance) the red cipher on the reverse of the copper with the letters GR in ligature and surmounted by a crown is that of Georg V, last King of Hanover before the unification of Germany in 1871 (GR standing for (‘Georg Rex’). Following unification, the painting entered the Provinzialmuseum in Hanover.

1. For the latter see Bott 2001, p. 196, no. WV.B.3, reproduced.

2. Bott 2001, p. 199, no. WV.B.10 and p. 198, no. WV.B.8 respectively.

Lot 44. Otto Marseus van Schrieck (Nijmegen 1619/20 (?) - 1678 Amsterdam), Still life of wild flowers, including cyclamen, crocus, delphinium, with a snake and butterflies, signed and dated lower right: O. / Marseús. D. / Schrieck / 10/ 27/ aN 70, oil on canvas, 27 3/4  by 21 1/2  in.; 70.5 by 54.6 cm. Estimate 80,000 — 120,000 USD. Lot sold 112,500 USD. Photo: Sotheby's.

Provenance: A. Nottebahm (according to a label formerly on the reverse of the stretcher);
Jack and Belle Linsky, New York, by 1974;
By whom sold, New York, Sotheby's, 2 June 1989, lot 25;
With Kunsthandel K & V. Waterman, Amsterdam, by 1989;
By whom sold, Paris, Ader Tajan, 29 March 1994, lot 17;
There acquired by a private collection;
By whose estate sold, New York, Sotheby's, 22 May 1997, lot 84;
There acquired by the present collector. 

Literature: I. Bergström, "Marseus, Peintre de Fleurs, Papillions, et Serpents," in L'Oeil, December 1974, p. 27, reproduced fig. 6;
P. Mitchell, European Flower Painters, London 1973, pp. 232, 270, reproduced p. 232, fig. 330;
G.J.M. Weber, "Stilles Leben am Erdboden," in Kunst und Antiquitäten, 1993, no. 1-2, p. 24;
S. Steensma, Otto Marseus van Schrieck: Leben und Werk, Hildesheim 1999, pp. 38, 132, 159, cat. no. B1.105, reproduced p. 343, fig. 131 (as dated 1678);
G. Bocchi and U. Bocchi, Pittori di Natura Morta a Roma: Artisti Stranieri 1630-1750, Viadana 2005, p. 27, reproduced p. 29, fig. OM.3. 

Note: Otto Marseus van Schrieck was the leading Dutch innovator of the forest floor, or sottobosco still life. In this work, he has focused meticulous attention on a dramatically spot-lit grouping of naturalia, each element of which glistens vividly against the dark background landscape. This is among the most accomplished works by the artist to appear at auction in some time, with every detail rendered with exacting care. Furthermore, the painting is proudly signed and dated with the exact day on which the picture was completed: 27 October 1670. 

Working at a time of increased interest in the natural sciences, van Schrieck is highly renowned for works such as this, especially his moonlit nocturnal scenes that depict flora, moss and denizens of the forest.  His nickname Snuffelaer, or "ferreter", undoubtedly reflects his excursions into the forest underbrush to examine different specimens—sometimes even bringing them back to his vivarium, where they were further cultivated and studied.  Much admired during his lifetime, his works were imitated by number of artists, including no less distinguished a talent than Rachel Ruysch.

Between 1648 and 1657, van Schrieck left Amsterdam to embark on several extended sojourns to England, France, and—most notably—Italy.  During his time in Florence, he worked for the Grand Duke Ferdinand II de' Medici of Tuscany, for his works complemented the family’s collection of flora and fauna in both painted and physical form.  A number of Marseus van Schrieck’s still-life paintings can be found in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence today.

The present work can be compared to van Schrieck's Still life with snakes and butterflies in the woods in the Stockholm Nationalmuseum (inv. no. 504).1, as well as a similarly refined and vertical composition sold New York, Sotheby's, 22 April 2015, lot 63.

1. oil on canvas, 62 by 50 cm., See Steensma, under Literature, p. 132, cat. no. B1.45, reproduced p. 201, fig. 67.

Lot 24. Sir Anthony van Dyck (Antwerp 1599 - 1641 London), Portrait of an Italian nobleman, signed and dated upper right: AE.T,S SVE 42. Ao 1626 / A.V.D., oil on canvas, 47 1/4  by 35 in.; 120 by 89 cm. Estimate 800,000 — 1,200,000 USD. Lot sold 975,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's.

Provenance: With Adriano Ribolzi, Lugano, Switzerland;
From whom acquired by the present collector, circa 1970. 

Literature: E. Larsen, The paintings of Anthony van Dyck, Freren 1988, vol. II, p. 164, cat. no. 401 (where incorrectly listed as “Italy, Private Collection”). 

Note: This dashing portrait was almost certainly executed by Anthony van Dyck in Genoa, where the artist made several visits during the years 1621 to 1627. Unknown to scholars until now, the picture has been in private ownership for over forty years and thus never exhibited publicly, nor known to the compilers of the authoritative 2004 monograph on van Dyck. It has never appeared at auction, and its reemergence onto the marketplace as one of the extremely rare signed and dated portraits from the artist’s brief Italian period marks a rare occurrence. 

Bellori, van Dyck's early biographer, pronounced in 1672 that 'travelling in other parts of Italy, he always came back to Genoa as if it were his own country, where he was known and loved by everyone.'1 The painter’s characterful and dramatic approach to portraiture saw him gain a vast amount of commissions from wealthy Italian patrons. Their particular desire for lavish and elegant costume portraits was realized by the talented Fleming, whose experience gained here served as a useful platform for his successful later career as portrait painter to the courts of northern Europe. In this regard van Dyck distinguished himself from his mentor Rubens in that in Italy, perhaps surprisingly for a painter of his renown, he did not align himself with a specific court or patron. Rather, he embraced a traveling mentality which kept him busy on a variety of private commissions for the local nobility. This bespoke, independent identity is the primary reason why portraits occupy the vast majority of his Italian output. Above all else, it was Titian whom van Dyck used as his primary point of inspiration for his Italian portraits. By 1626 when van Dyck painted this work, Genoa, and indeed much of the territory outside of Venice was filled with works by the Venetian master for van Dyck's consumption. Van Dyck's Italian sketchbook makes clear his intense observation of Titian's portraits and their dual pursuit of accurate artifice and personality. Such a pursuit positioned van Dyck as a key bridge between Titian and Velazquez, who in 1629 began a brief, but incredibly impactful year and a half trip through Italy. 

An unsigned copy after this work is in the Musée du Louvre (inv. R.F. 1942 – 34). Both this canvas and the Louvre copy have both traditionally identified the sitter as Olivio Odescalchi (1655-1713), the nephew of Pope Innocent XI and legendary collector, but this identification is impossible given the dating of our picture to 1626. Instead, the sitter should be identified as a well-heeled nobleman, who would have undoubtedly paid a large sum for this portrait owing to van Dyck’s growing popularity by this point in his blossoming career. The coat of arms at upper right as thus far not been identified, though it does not belong to one of the more prominent and firmly identified Genoese families. 

Of the Italian period portraits by van Dyck, almost none are signed and dated. A dated (1624) example, traditionally identified as Desiderio Segno (fig. 1) in the Collections of the Prince of Liechtenstein, employs a near identical format and hand-writing. As in the Liechtenstein portrait, the sitter here also wears a simple yet refined black silk jacket with contrasting white lace collar and cuffs. Van Dyck's mastery of material is on full display here, particularly in the luxuriously draped left arm that shines through his deft ability to apply subtle variations of white and grey against the rich black paint. 

fig. 1. Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641), Portrait of a Genoese Nobleman, 1624, oil on canvas, 131 x 101 cm. Inv.: GE 61. Liechtenstein, The Princely Collections, Vaduz-Vienna. © Liechtenstein, The Princely Collections, Vaduz-Vienna/ SCALA, Florence/ Art Resource, NY 2018.

We are grateful to Rev. Dr. Susan Barnes for confirming the attribution to van Dyck, based on first hand inspection.

1.  G. P. Bellori, Le vite de’ pittori, scultori ed architetti moderni, Rome 1672, p. 225.

Lot 23. Simon Vouet (Paris 1590 - 1649), Portrait of a gentleman, bust-length, in a painted oval, oil on canvas, 30 1/4  by 23 3/4  in.; 76.6 by 60.2 cm. Estimate 400,000 — 600,000 USD. Lot sold 435,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's.

Provenance: Count Czernin, Vienna;
With Galerie Sanct Lucas, Vienna;
With Alfred Brod Gallery, London;
There acquired by Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Weldon. 

Exhibited: Providence, Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Northern Baroque Paintings and Drawings from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Weldon, 15 April - 7 June 1964, no. 28;
New York, Finch College Museum of Art, The Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Weldon, 11 May - 30 June 1966, no. 45;
University of Maryland Art Gallery, Simon Vouet 1590-1649, February-March 1971, no. 14;
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Caravaggio and His Followers, 30 October 1971 - 2 January 1972, no. 74;
New Orleans Museum of Art, In the Eye of the Beholder: Northern Baroque Paintings from the Collection of Henry H. Weldon, 13 September - 2 November 1997, no. 67;
New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, on loan, 2011 - 2017. 

Literature: J. deH. Weldon, The Male Portraits of Simon Vouet, unpublished dissertation, New York, pp. 23-24, cat. no. 12;
R.E. Spear, Caravaggio and His Followers, exhibition catalogue, Cleveland 1971, p. 189, cat. no. 74, reproduced p. 188;
N.T. Minty, In the Eye of the Beholder: Northern Baroque Paintings from the Collection of Henry H. Weldon, exhibition catalogue, New Orleans 1997, cat. no. 67.

Note: Included in the landmark 1971 exhibition in Cleveland, Caravaggio and His Followers, this painting dates from Vouet's Italian period and was likely completed after his inital stay in Rome but before his self-portrait of circa 1627, now in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lyon.  Spear (see Literature) gives it a possible dating of 1622-25, as Vouet's handling of the impasto in the ruff is freer than in his works of the later 1620s, though less vigorous than in his earlier paintings from his stays in Arles, Braunschweig and Rome. It has also been suggested that the portrait was completed a bit later, circa 1625-1627, during his final months in Italy.

One of the most important and influential French artists of the 17th century, Simon Vouet was born in Paris but traveled from an early age.  He was in England by the age of fourteen and spent time painting in Constantinople in 1611-12.  The following year he moved to Italy, and though he spent time in Venice, Naples, Bologna, Milan and Florence, it was in Rome where his career flourished.  He received a pension from King Louis XIII and remained in Italy for fourteen years, absorbing the influences of the Caravaggisti as well as the more classicizing styles of the Carracci and Guido Reni.  Upon returning to Paris in 1627, Vouet became the Premier peintre du Roi, a title he held until his death in 1649. His influence on French painting in the 17th century cannot be overstated: he is credited with brining the Italian Baroque to France, where it captured the attention of a whole new generation of artists. 

While the identity of the sitter is unknown, Vouet captures the man with a profound empathy and spirit.  His heavy eyelids and and strong cheekbones are emphasized by the dramatic lighting, evidence of the continued popularity of Caravaggism in Rome.

Lot 34. Frans Hals (Antwerp 1582/83 - 1666 Haarlem), Portrait of a man, half-length, wearing a black cape with a white collar, oil on panel, 12 3/8  by 9 5/8  in; 31.3 by 24.3 cm. Estimate 300,000 — 500,000 USD. Lot sold 375,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's. 

Provenance: Leo Nardus, né Leonardus Salomonson (1868-1955), Suresnes;
P.A.B. Widener (1843-1915), Philadelphia;
By whom (anonymously) sold, Amsterdam, Frederik Muller, 30 June 1909, lot 7, for 3,500 DFL;
With Jacques Goudstikker, Amsterdam;
Carl Mandl, Hamburg, by 1923;
Sale, Amsterdam, Frederick Muller, 10 July 1923, lot 117, for 15,400 DFL, to W. Henschel or Kröller);
Wilhelm Ofenheim von Ponteuxin, Vienna, by 1930;
Anonymous sale ("The Property of a Lady"), London, Sotheby's, 25 November 1970, lot 107;
Anonymous sale, Amsterdam, Paul Brandt, 11-17 May 1971, lot 6;
Private collection, Europe;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 3 December 2014, lot 126 (as Attributed to Frans Hals)..  

Literature: Probably C. Hofstede de Groot, A Catalogue Raisonné..., London 1910, vol. III, p. 91, cat. no. 318;
W.R. Valentiner, Frans Hals, des Meisters Gemälde, Klassiker der Kunst, Berlin 1921, p. 293, (as circa 1655);
W.R. Valentiner, Frans Hals, des Meisters Gemälde, Klassiker der Kunst, Berlin 1923, p. 273;
S. Poglayen-Neuwall, "The Wilhelm Ofenheim Collection," in Apollo, vol. XII, July 1930, p. 129;
W.R. Valentiner, "Jan Van Cappelle," in The Art Quarterly, IV, 1941 p. 296, note 6 (erroneously as "possibly a portrait of the painter Gerard de Lairesse");
S. Slive, Frans Hals, London 1970, vol. 3, pp. 149-150, cat. no. D61, reproduced fig. 182 (under Doubtful and Wrongly Attributed Works, but that "final judgment must be postponed until the original is examined").

Note: This small-scale portrait of a man has recently been confirmed by Pieter Biesboer to be an autograph work by Hals, painted late in his career, relating to a series of small portraits executed by the artist in circa 1658-1660.1  In his 1970 monograph on Hals, Seymour Slive (see Literature) expressed reservations concerning the attribution, however he knew the portrait only through old black and white photographs of the painting which, at that time, was badly retouched.  Since the 2014 sale (see Provenance), the portrait has been cleaned and the removal of the extensive old retouchings has allowed for a positive reassessment of the attribution.2

In addition, dendro-chronological dating of the panel was also undertaken and has established that the youngest tree ring was formed in 1610 and that the panel was made from the same tree as Hals’ signed Portrait of Hendrik Swalmius in The Detroit Institute of Arts (dated 1639, 27 by 20 cm.).3

In a written expertise dated 11 January 2017, Biesboer notes that the working method in this painting is entirely consistent with that of Hals. The artist began with a rough sketch to outline the figure, applying a lighter layer of paint in the background.  One can see some of these sketch lines showing through the paint of the background at the right and left of the cloak in the present portrait.  While the paint of the sketch was still wet, further definition of the head and hand was applied, after which the first stage of the clothes was painted.  In the last phase, Hals finished the painting with highlights and deep shadows thereby accentuating the expression of the face and the shape of the figure.  Also characteristic of Hals are the deep ivory black shadow accents in the cloak, contours of the figure, chin, mouth, eyes, and hair.  Furthermore, Hals’ characteristic brushwork with double ridges can be seen throughout, especially in the impasto passages in the white of the collar and ivory black of the cloak.  The red pigments used to outline the sitter’s cheek and nose are similar to those found in another late Portrait of a Man in the Van Otterloo collection.4  The present work can also be compared to the Portrait of a Man in the Mauristhuis, The Hague (also circa 1660), of almost identical dimensions.5

Biesboer concludes that the attribution of this small-scale portrait to Hals is thoroughly convincing, not only from a technical analysis, but also for the remarkable expressivity of the sitter’s face, so typical of works by this master.  In addition, Norbert Middelkoop and Martin Bijl both fully endorse the attribution of this portrait to Frans Hals.

This portrait was formerly in the collection of P.A.B. Widener, whose heir Joseph was a founding benefactor of the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

1.  See S. Slive, Fran Hals, 2nd edition, London 2014, plates 208-210, 212 and 214.
2.  Restoration was undertaken by Martin Bijl in 2016.
3.  Dendro-chronology report by Prof. Dr. Peter Klein, dated 2/4/2015.
4.  See S. Slive, Frans Hals, 2nd edition, London 2014, p. 355, cat. no. 209, reproduced.
5.  Inv. no. 928, oil on panel, 31.1 by 25.5 cm.

Lot 139. François Habert (Active in Paris, mid-17th century), Still life of flowers in a blue and white Chinese porcelain bowl with a red admiral butterfly on a wooden ledge, signed lower right: F. HABERT. F, oil on panel, 10 5/8  by 14 1/4  in,; 27.3 by 36.2 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 USD Lot Sold 81,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's

Provenance: With Galerie de Jonckheere;
Anonymous sale, Christie's London, 7 July 2000, lot 48;
There acquired by the present collector. 

Exhibited: Paris, Musée du Petit Palais, Peintres de Fleurs en France 17e-19e Siècles, 19 May – 2 September, 1979, no. 13. 

Literature: M. Faré, Le grand siècle de la nature morte en France, le XVIIe siècle, Fribourg, 1974, p. 271;
E. Coatalem, La nature morte française au XVIIe siècle, Dijon 2014, p. 186, reproduced p. 187.  

Note: François Habert was active in Paris from about 1643-1652, though little is known about his life, including whether he was French or Flemish.  As Eric Coatalem notes, the prices listed for his paintings in 18th century inventories indicate that he was an important and successful artist.1  His paintings, of which only a handful are known today, range from large-scale, grand tablescapes with ornate fabrics, food, and objects to more restrained compositions such as the present painting.

1. See Coatalem, under Literature, p. 184.

Sotheby's. Master Paintings and Sculpture Day Sale, New York, 02 Feb 2018

Lot 102. Jean-Baptiste Monnoyer (Lille 1636 - 1699 London), Still life of flowers in a basket, oil on canvas, 24 3/4  by 39 1/4  in.; 62.9 by 99.7 cm.  Estimate 30,000 — 40,000 USD. Lot Sold 56,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's

Provenance: With Richard Green;
Anonymous sale, New York, Sotheby's, 11 June 1984, lot 52; 
There acquired and thence by descent. 

Sotheby's. Master Paintings and Sculpture Day Sale, New York, 02 Feb 2018

Lot 157. Elias van den Broeck (Antwerp 1649/50 - 1708 Amsterdam), Forest floor still life with butterflies, oil on panel, 5 by 4 in. 12.7 by 10.2 cm. Estimate 10,000 — 15,000 USD. Lot Sold 21,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's

Lot 447. A copper-red glazed vase, Qing dynasty, 19th century. Height 11 1/2  in., 29.2 cm. Estimate 5,000 — 7,000 USD. Lot sold 8,750 USD. Photo Sotheby's 2014.

rising from a short foot to a bulbous body, surmounted by a neck with a trumpet mouth rim, covered overall with a glaze of rich crushed raspberry color shading to a darker tone with purplish streaks towards the cream-colored mouth rim, the base unglazed.

Provenance: Warren E. Cox (d. 1977), New York. 
Ralph Stillman, New York.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK

François-Pascal-Simon Gérard, Portrait of Napoleon, Emperor of the French, in Ceremonial Robes, 1805. Château de Fontainebleau-Musée Napoléon Ier. Photo © RMN-Grand Palais / Art Resource, NY / Gérard Blot.

MONTREAL.- Welcome to the Imperial Palace! The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts presents Napoleon – Art and Court Life in the Imperial Palace, a major exhibition that re-creates the sumptuous ambiance of Napoleon’s court through the eyes of the Grand Officers and artists of the “Emperor’s Household.” 

Over 400 art works and objects from the French palaces, most of them never before been displayed in North America, reveal the essential role played by the Imperial Household during Napoleon’s reign, from his coronation in 1804 to his exile in 1815. 

Some fifty distinguished lenders have allowed the museum to bring together in Montreal works from such institutions as the Louvre, the Château de Fontainebleau, the Mobilier national, the Musée national des châteaux de Malmaison et de Bois-Préau, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Art Institute of Chicago. 

Joseph Franque, The Empress Marie-Louise Watching Over the Sleeping King of Rome, presented at the Salon of 1812, 1811, oil on canvas. Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon. © RMN-Grand Palais / Art Resource, NY / Daniel Arnaudet.

The public is invited to visit the six departments that made up the “Imperial Household”. The institution with its 3,500 employees was responsible for the daily lives and ceremonies of Napoleon and his family. By studying the leading figures of the court, we discover all the luxury and prestige of palace life. In order to ally himself with the old nobility and register his new dynasty as a continuation of the Ancien Régime, Napoleon dreamed up an etiquette hedged about with meticulous regulations. 

An innovative layout re-creates the splendour of the apartments by incorporating mapping projections. Visitors will discover paintings, sculptures, furniture, silverware and porcelain, tapestries, silk hangings and court dress illustrating the opulence characteristic of the Empire style displayed to serve the spectacle of power. 

Jacques-Louis David, Double Portrait of Zénaïde-Laetitia-Julie and Charlotte-Napoléone, Daughters of Joseph Bonaparte, the Former King of Spain, 1821. Los Angeles, The J. Paul Getty Museum. Digital image courtesy of the Getty's Open Content Program.

Nathalie Bondil, the MMFA’s Director General and Chief Curator, explains: “Ten years after we received the bequest of the Ben Weider Napoleon Collection, what a long way we have come! Thanks to Sylvain Cordier, curator at the Museum and an expert on the First Empire, and the loyal support of Ben Weider’s family and friends, we have been able to expand the collection considerably and extend our knowledge of the contents: it now ranks as the largest in North America. 

Above all, this project which we initiated having needed in-depth research on the part of our curator, it has benefited from outstanding loans from our partners. The unique subject required him to travel through the United States and to France. Welcome to the Imperial Household! This“state within a state” provided all the necessary services for Napoleon and his family, to assert his dynastic power and to adopt his policies, even the most secret among them. You are invited to discover the pomp of court life thanks to those who organized the most private spaces of the Emperor’s life even in his exile on Saint Helena. This exhibition, a tribute to Ben Weider, is an opportunity to reflect on the staging of monarchical power and the persistence of certain codes even up to today.” 

Sylvain Cordier, Curator of Early Decorative Arts at the MMFA and the curator of the exhibition, continues: “The Napoleonic court was a fascinating crucible in which a skillfully orchestrated publicity defined the nature of the new dynasty. With its codes of representation and staging – some inherited from the all too recent Revolution, others reviving the memory of the former kings of France and the aristocratic manners of former times – it presented an exciting combination of the spirit of the Enlightenment and the values of the Ancien Régime. 

Beyond the pleasure of discovering the splendour of palace life between 1804 and 1815, the exhibition constitutes a fascinating topic for our own age and its relevance to the image of contemporary governments. The influence of teams of advisors and political commentators and the staging of media events may seem to us part and parcel of the contemporary culture of the power of images. And yet, the functioning of the Imperial Household shows to what extent these were already current two hundred years ago!”

Gobelins Imperial Manufactory, Napoleon Receiving Army Delegates at the Louvre Following His Coronation, December 8, 1804, 1809-1815. Paris, Mobilier national de France. Collection du Mobilier national © Isabelle Bideau

Follow the Grand Officers! Venturing into the Imperial Household 
The exhibition is laid out according to the roles of the leading figures in the service of the Imperial family, which helped to shape the image of power. Grand Officers, chamberlains, equerries, master of ceremonies, ladies-in-waiting, pages, artists and artisans were all involved in composing the Imperial legend. Their origins, functions and everyday responsibilities fashioned the Emperor’s life. The exhibition follows the circuits of the courtiers as they moved through the living areas within the palace, the public staterooms that were open to visitors and also the private apartments strictly separated from the rest of the palace, where Napoleon shut himself off to conduct the business of government. 

As a new ruler, Napoleon Bonaparte seized power at the end of the French Revolution. Transforming the Republic into a monarchy, he was depicted by the court painters as a modern sovereign and hero. With a series of portraits and historical scenes, the introductory gallery shows how artists like François Gérard, Antoine-Jean Gros and Andrea Appiani had to conform to precise requirements imposed by the Imperial administration in order to create visual propaganda glorifying the head of state. 

The exhibition invites you to learn about everyday life in the six departments that made up the “Imperial Household”, as a visitor invited by the six Grand Officers. 

A section devoted to the Grand Chaplain, the Grand Officer who presided over religious services, illustrates the role of these rites at court, exemplified by the sumptuous ceremonies of the consecration in 1804 and the marriage of Napoleon and the Archduchess Marie-Louise in 1810. Notable is the major loan of the majestic altarpiece executed for the occasion by the goldsmith Henri Auguste, displayed here for the first time outside of France. 

Charles Meynier, “Portrait of Joseph Fesch, Prince of France, Grand Chaplain, in the Costume of a Cardinal”, 1806. Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon.

The Grand Marshal of the Palace held the most influential position in the Household, administering some 47 Imperial palaces. He was responsible for all decisions relating to their security, furnishings, procurement and organization of meals and banquets. Tables were adorned with objects and utensils produced by the official purveyors to the Imperial court, including the goldsmiths Henri Auguste, Martin-Guillaume Biennais and Jean-Baptiste-Claude Odiot for occasions such as the “Grand Couverts” or great official banquets. Outstanding loans made by the Mobilier national of France, an exquisite selection of silk wall hangings and cartoons for tapestries from the Gobelins destined to festoon apartments demonstrate the skill of the textile artisans in interior decoration. 

Antoine-Jean Gros, “Portrait of Géraud-Christophe-Michel Duroc, Duke of Friuli, in the Costume of a Grand Marshal of the Palace”, 1801–5. Nancy, Musée des Beaux-Arts.

The Grand Master of Ceremonies was responsible for ceremonial events, organization of audiences and protocol for state ceremonies. In charge of ensuring that etiquette was respected under all circumstances, he had to stage the spectacle of power in the huge reception rooms including the throne room, here superbly reconstructed thanks to numerous loans provided by the Mobilier national of France. It includes the Emperor’s throne from the palace of Monte Cavallo in Rome – the second capital of the Empire from 1809 to 1814 – the formal seats and stools, sumptuous tapestries from the throne rooms in the palaces of the Tuileries and Saint-Cloud, together with four cartoons for tapestries illustrating the parts of the World by François Dubois, after drawings by Jacques-Louis de la Hamayde de Saint-Ange. The one depicting Europe hung until only recently in the Palace of the Élysée, the residence of the President of the French Republic. 

Anonymous, possibly Marie-Guillemine Benoist, “Portrait of Louis-Philippe de Ségur, Comte of the Empire, in the Costume of a Grand Marshal of Ceremonies”, 1806 (?). Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon
.

The exhibition evokes the Emperor’s bed chamber and the Empress’s Household, the organization of which was the duty of the Grand Chamberlain, to respect the Emperor’s private life. Thanks to the outstanding loan of a monumental painting by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, The Dream of Ossian (1813), a celebrated work commissioned to serve as a ceiling, evokes the Imperial bed chamber in the palace of Monte Cavallo. 

Pierre-Paul Prud’hon, “Portrait of Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand- Périgord, Prince of Benevento, in the Costume of a Grand Chamberlain”, 1807. Paris, Musée Carnavalet.

Considered the equal to the Grand Chamberlain, the Empress’s lady of honour had the same responsibilities, but toward the Emperor’s wife. This position was held most famously by the Duchess of Montebello, whose admirable portrait with her children by François Gérard is here thanks to a loan from the Houston Museum of Fine Art. The portrait of the family of General de Marescot by Fortuné Dufau also reveals the presence at court of two people from Montreal – a lady-in-waiting and one of the Emperor’s pages. Many luxurious Imperial gifts are also on display. 

François-Pascal-Simon Gérard, Portrait of Louise-Antoinette-Scholastique de Guéhéneuc-Lannes, duchesse de Montebello, with her children, 1814. Houston, Museum of Fine Arts, Museum purchase funded by the Brown Foundation, Accessions Endowment Fund and the Alice Pratt Brown Museum Fund. Photo © The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

One section is devoted to the Grand Equerry in charge of managing transport, horses, carriages and coaches for moving and journeys. A remarkable portrait of Lieutenant Legrand by Antoine Jean Gros, on loan from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, depicts one of the pages brought to court before entering the ranks of the Grande Armée, where he died young. 

Ferréol Bonnemaison, “Portrait of Armand de Caulaincourt, Duke of Vicenza, in the Costume of a Grand Equerry”, 1806. Private collection.

A poor rider, Napoleon was nevertheless aware of the importance of the spectacle of the hunt. The Grand Master of the Hunt organized this pastime of the monarch. In this section we see personal items connected with the Imperial hunt – guns, furniture, clothing – as well as the monumental canvas Napoleon I Hunting in the Forest of Fontainebleau (early-19th century) by Carle Vernet. 

Jacques-Augustin-Catherine Pajou, “Portrait of Louis-Alexandre Berthier, Prince of Neufchâtel, Valengin and Wagram, in the Costume of a Grand Master of the Hunt”, 1808. Musée national des châteaux de Versailles et de Trianon
. 

The exhibition closes with Napoleon’s two exiles, after his fall in 1814, on the isle of Elba and then on Saint Helena. A group of rare period prints from the collections of McGill University (Montreal) evokes the two episodes that concluded his reign. The hitherto unpublished loan of Napoleon’s aviary on Saint Helena is a metaphoric illustration of the fallen Emperor’s life as a prisoner in his last exile, a romantic legend still to come. 

The Napoleon Collection of the MMFA 
Some twenty of the works and objects presented in this exhibition are from the holdings of the MMFA. Some come from the large collection of objects bequeathed to the Museum by the collector and amateur historian Ben Weider: the recently restored Half-length Portrait of Napoleon in Court Robes (about 18051814), an oil on canvas from the studio of François Gérard; one of Napoleon’s cocked hats worn during the Russian campaign, about 1812; riding gloves and a shirt worn by the Emperor on Saint Helena. Visitors will remark an outstanding pair of spindle vases in Sèvres porcelain, Fire and Water (1806), acquired in 2017. Also from Sèvres, a tea service presented to Cardinal Fesch, Grand Chaplain of the Imperial Household, is one of the outstanding exhibits. Lastly, this collection contains a discovery, a sketch painted on canvas by Horace Vernet, Napoleon, on the Eve of the Battle of Borodino, Presenting to His Staff Officers the Portrait of the King of Rome Recently Painted by Gérard (1813).

Lot 457. A turquoise-glazed Zhenwu and attendants group, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 10 1/8  in., 25.7 cm. Estimate 3,000 — 5,000 USD. Lot sold 6,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

the deity shown seated on a throne flanked by two attendants, a turtle entwined with a snake representing the North at his feet, the platform glazed aubergine.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK

Lot 458. A turquoise-glazed Zhenwu shrine, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 11 1/2  in., 29.2 cm. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 USD. Lot sold 8,750 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

the deity portrayed seated inside, with two guardians outside below two dragons trailing down from a lintel, a smaller figure in the alcove above and a turtle entwined with a snake representing the North at his feet, set on a waisted pedestal base, the platform glazed aubergine.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK

Wang Wusheng (born 1945), Huangshan A124: Disciples of Buddha and Fairy Maiden Peak, 2004 Inkjet print, 40 x 32 inches, 101.6 × 81.3 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Wang Wusheng

NEW YORK– An exhibition of contemporary photography will be on view at China Institute Gallery from February 8 through December 2, 2018. Art of the Mountain: Through the Chinese Photographer’s Lens will survey work from more than 20 photographers. With over 60 photographs – many on view for the first time in the U.S – Art of the Mountain will present photographs that pay homage to the major mountain ranges of China.

In Chinese legend, mountains are the pillars that hold up the sky. Mountains were seen as places that nurture life. Their veneration took the form of rituals, retreat from social society, and aesthetic appreciation with a defining role in Chinese art and culture.

Art of the Mountain will consist of three sections: The Revered Mountains of China will introduce the geography, history, legends, and culture that are associated with Chinese mountains and will include photographs by Hou Heliang, Kang Songbai and Kang Liang, Li Daguang, Lin Maozhao, Li Xueliang, Lu Hao, Zhang Anlu, Xiao Chao, Yan Shi, Wang Jing, Zhang Jiaxuan, Zhang Huajie, and Zheng Congli. 

Zhang Anlu,  Minyak Gankar in the Last Light of the Sun, 2003. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Zhang Anlu

Zhang Jiaxuan, Huangshan: Flower Blooming on a Magic Brush Tip, 2001, 11 × 21 in, 27.9 × 53.3 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Zhang Jiaxuan

The renowned Chinese landscape painting aesthetic and its influence on contemporary photography is explored in the second section. Landscape Aesthetics in Photography will present work by Wang Wusheng (born 1945) who has spent much of his career photographing Mount Huangshan, also known as the Yellow Mountain. Located in Anhui province in northern China, Mount Huangshan with its 72 peaks has enchanted landscape painters for centuries with its extraordinary beauty. Inspired by the spectacular nature of the Mount Huangshan, Wang Wusheng has documented the mountain in all seasons, expressing its “inner worlds” and referencing the philosophical and aesthetic concepts of Chinese landscape painting and the ancient quest to purify the spirit and find renewal.

Wang Wusheng (born 1945), Huangshan A104, 1984, 24 × 40 3/8 in, 61 × 102.6 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Wang Wusheng

The last section, New Landscape Photography, will showcase artists using photography and new techniques to express their thoughts on the role of mountains in society, including the work of Hong Lei, Lin Ran, Lu Yanpeng, Shao Wenhuan, Taca Sui, Xiao Xuan’an, Yan Changjiang, Yang Yongliang, Yao Lu, Zeng Han, Gao Hui and Feng Yan.

Yang Yongliang, Peach Blossom Colony, from the series: Peach Blossom Colony No. 1, 2011, 33 3/8 × 92 1/8 in, 84.8 × 234 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Yang Yongliang

The exhibition is curated by Willow Weilan Hai, Director, China Institute Gallery; Jerome Silbergeld, emeritus professor of Chinese Art and Archaeology at Princeton University; and photography critic and photographer Jiang Rong. 

“Art of the Mountain articulates a vision of Chinese culture and documents its contributions to civilization,” said Willow Weilan Hai, chief curator of the exhibition. “The search for eternal happiness, a happiness of spirit that reflects harmony, where nature heals all, is an essential part of Chinese culture. Chinese artists are employing photography to depict nature – and man’s complicated relationship with it – often derived from Chinese philosophy about the natural world.”

Among the highlights in the exhibition, which focuses on photographs from 1990 to 2017, will be aerial photographs by Hou Heliang (born 1953), telling stories of man’s impact on the environment in Shandong province during the last 30 years. Taca Sui (born 1984) whose work is collected by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, dedicated himself to the study of China’s ancient poetry collection, The Book of Odes, considered a window into early Chinese civilization. His photography is infused with poetic stillness and the absence of human activity.

Taca Sui (born 1984), Mountains under the Sun, 2011, 39 1/2 × 39 1/2 in, 100.3 × 100.3 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Taca Sui

Yao Lu (born 1967) employs photomontage that reflects classical Chinese painting styles. Upon closer examination, his mountains and landscapes are in fact construction sites scaled in different proportions and comment on China’s rapid industrialization. A celebrated mountaineer, Wang Jing (born 1975) is known for climbing the highest mountain peaks on earth to create her photographs. In fact, she holds the women’s world record for the Explorers Grand Slam, consisting of scaling the “Seven Summits,” the highest mountains on every continent including Everest, and hiking the North and South poles, which she accomplished in 143 days.

 Yao Lu (born 1967), View of Autumn Mountains in the Distance, 2008, 26 1/2 × 26 5/8 in, 67.3 × 67.6 cm.  On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Yao Lu

Wang Jing (born 1975), View from the Roof of the World, 2011, 15 × 26 1/4 in, 38.1 × 66.7 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Wang Jing

Yan Changijang and Xiao Xuan’an have collaborated on a series entitled Return to the Mountain, 2010-2011, which is reminiscent of traditional Chinese ink paintings and investigates man’s relationship with nature. Notes Yan, “We wanted to express longing. Our society has become so complex, people wish to return to a sense of peace. I think this series expresses this quality of modern life.”

Yan Changijang and Xiao Xuan’an, Return to Mountains 02, 2010, 24 5/8 × 31 1/2 in, 62.5 × 80 cm. On loan at China Institute Gallery. © Yan Changijang and Xiao Xuan’an

Rare Opalescent Gem Ammonite, Cretaceous, ca. 75000000 BCE, Alberta, Canada, 16 1/2 × 14 1/2 in, 41.9 × 36.8 cm© ArtAncient

Ammonites take their name from their spiral shells which reminded  the ancients of Ammon's curled horns. Found throughout the world, those from the Bearpaw Formation are regarded as the most beautiful. Contact Gallery for price.

Greek, ‘Body Armour’, Magna Graecia, ca. 350 BCE. Cast and hammered bronze, 27 in, 68.6 cm. Unique. © ArtAncient

"But tell us, Pistias, why do you sell your armour for more money than any other, when it is neither better tempered, stronger, nor the materials of it more costly?”
“I make it better proportioned, Socrates, and therefore I ought to have a better price.”

Xenophon, Memorabilia.

Lot 222. An exceptional pair of 40.29 and 38.60 carats Ceylon sapphire and diamond earrings, by David Morris. Estimate CHF 1,200,000 - CHF 1,800,000. Price realised CHF 2,045,000. ©Christie's Images Ltd 2016

Each octagonal step-cut sapphire pendant, weighing approximately 40.29 and 38.60 carats, to the circular-cut diamond connecting link and surmount, weighing approximately 1.52 and 1.50 carat, 3.5 cm, mounted in gold. With maker's marks DM for David Morris.

Accompanied by report no. 64470 dated 7 August 2012 from the SSEF Swiss Gemmological Institute stating that the origin of the 38.60 carat sapphire is Ceylon (Sri Lanka), with no indications of heating.
Report no. 12070032 dated 17 July 2012 from the Gübelin GemLab stating that the origin of the 40.29 carat sapphire is Sri Lanka (Ceylon), with no indications of heating, and an accompanying 'Note'.
Report no. 2121164080 dated 27 May 2010 from the GIA Gemological Institute of America stating that the 1.50 carat diamond is E colour, VS1 clarity.
Report no. 2105317971 dated 15 October 2008 from the GIA Gemological Institute of America stating that the 1.52 carat diamond is E colour, VS1 clarity.

Please note that reports nos. 2121164080 and 2105317971 are over 5 years old and might require an update.

Christie's. Geneva Magnificent Jewels, 18 May 2016, Geneva

Lot 477. An unusual enameled and gilt-decorated circular 'Dragon' box and cover, Qing dynasty, Guangxu mark and period (1875-1908). Diameter 11 1/2  in., 29.2 cm. Estimate 25,000 — 35,000 USD. Lot sold 59,375 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

painted in blue, yellow, black, iron-red and gilt enamels, the domed cover with two writhing dragons chasing the 'flaming pearl' amidst swirling clouds within a key-fret border, repeated on the rim of the box, above a band of striding dragons, six-character mark in iron-red (2).

Note: The cloud decoration on this box and cover is painted with blue enamels. This is unusual because it is a much more difficult process compared to the often seen underglaze blue. Blue enamel is extremely difficult to fire correctly. The decoration would have been applied in thick, deep cobalt blue, transparent enamel. In this case, the artist has successfully mastered the technique as the blue enamels are vibrant and controlled

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK 

Lot 481. A famille-rose and gilt ogee-form bowl, Daoguang seal mark and period (1821-1850). Diameter 8 1/2  in., 21.8 cm. Estimate 5,000 - 7,000 USD. Lot sold 5,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

the exterior painted with eight auspicious emblems in pairs, ribbon-tied amongst flowers, beneath a band of gilt and iron-red shou characters, the interior rim with three insects amongst eight floral sprays, the interior and base turquoise-glazed, six-character seal mark in iron red.

Provenance: English Private Collection.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK 

Lot 482. A famille-rose'Phoenix' bowl, Guangxu mark and period (1875-1908). Diameter 8 1/8  in., 20.6 cm. Estimate 5,000 - 7,000 USD. Lot sold 26,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

the deep rounded sides rising from a straight foot, painted to the exterior in pink, yellow, and green enamels with four phoenix in flight amongst stylized lotus blooms, all set between a band of gilt around the mouth and foot, six-character mark in underglaze blue.

Provenance: Acquired in the 1950s, and thence by descent.

Note: A bowl of similar size, form and decoration was sold at Christie's London, 7th November 2006, lot 240.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK 

Lot 484. A famille-rose yellow-ground 'Medallion' bowl, Guangxu mark and period (1875-1908). Diameter 6 in., 15.2 cm. Estimate 6,000 - 8,000 USD. Lot sold 16,250 USD. Photo: Sotheby's 2014.

the exterior with three gilt-edged medallions enclosing a goat beneath a tree, interspersed with precious objects reserved against a yellow ground incised with dense scrollwork, the interior decorated in underglaze blue with a central medallion of three goats, encircled on the well by detached flowering and fruiting sprays, each tied with a Buddhist emblem, six-character mark in underglaze blue.

Sotheby's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS & WORKS OF ART. 18 MARS 2014 - 19 MARS 2014. NEW YORK