Constantin Brancusi, 'Jeune Fille Sophistiquée', 1928. Polished bronze, 21 5/8 x 5 7/8 x 8 5/8 in. Edition 3 of 5 (from a edition of 5) Edition cast by Susse Fondeur, Paris, in 2013. Photo: Elisabeth Bernstein, Courtesy of Paul Kasmin Gallery.

NEW YORK, NY.- Paul Kasmin Gallery presents Brancusi: Pioneer of American Minimalism, on view at 515 West 27th Street from May 7 – July 10, 2015. The exhibition is an articulation of the artist’s immense influence on the first generation of American Minimalists and will include historically significant works by Carl Andre, Dan Flavin, Donald Judd, Ellsworth Kelly, Robert Ryman and Frank Stella, installed in proximity to Brancusi’s groundbreaking works Le Coq and Jeune Fille Sophistique, generously loaned from the Brancusi Estate collection. 

Constantin Brancusi’s (1876 – 1957) sculptures ignited a crucial shift in the tradition of American and European sculpture by distilling representational forms down to their most essential elements. In Le Coq, the multiple points of a rooster’s comb are pared down to a repetitive, geometric facsimile. The bronze edition included in this exhibition was cast from an early walnut iteration of Le Coq from 1924, now in the permanent collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.

Constantin Brancusi, 'Le Coq', 1924. Polished bronze, 36 5/8 x 4 1/16 x 14 7/8 inches, 93 x 10.2 x 38 cm. Edition 5 of 8, Edition cast by Susse Fondeur, Paris, in 2013. Photograph by Elisabeth Bernstein, Courtesy of Paul Kasmin Gallery.

The geometric repetition seen in Le Coq, and later on a grand scale in Brancusi’s triumphant Endless Column, is a recurring compositional element in the works in this exhibition. In the early 1960s, Carl Andre created a series of sculptures comprised of identical units of plexiglas, wood or metal, such as the pivotal work Steel Piece or Steel Pair, 1961. This systematic, unit-based methodology became the basis for Andre’s practice, exemplified in the later, monumental War and Rumors of War, 2002, comprised of 90 imposing, identical Australian wood timber beams. As the artist recounted in an interview in 1966, “All I’m doing is putting Brancusi’s Endless Column on the ground instead of in the sky.” 

Brancusi’s influence extended well beyond sculpture, as explained by museum director and Brancusi expert Pontus Hulten is his 1983 essay, “Brancusi and the Concept of Sculpture.” “Among the painters of that generation, Frank Stella was drawn most to Brancusi’s simplicity of form. The origins in Stella’s early work are only comprehensive by his study of the symmetry and superposition of elementary forms as seen in Brancusi’s sculpture.” This notion is exemplified in Stella’s D. Scramble: Ascending Green Values/ Ascending Spectrum, 1978. 

Constantin Brancusi, 'Mademoiselle Pogany II', 1925, polished bronze, 17 5/8 x 11 3/8 x 11 7/8 inches, 44.8 x 28.9 x 30.2 cm. Edition 3 of 8, Edition cast by Susse Fondeur, Paris, in 2006. Photograph by Elisabeth Bernstein, Courtesy of Paul Kasmin Gallery.

A focal point of the exhibition is Ellsworth Kelly’s vast thirty-eight foot, four-panel sculpture entitled Eastmore Mural, executed in 1957, the year of Brancusi’s death. The work was most recently was on long-term loan to the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College. The curvilinear nature of the recurring forms, as well as the playful symmetry of the composition, recall Brancusi’s Jeune Fille Sophistique, or Portrait of Nancy Cunard, an early wood variation of which was also exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum in New York just a few years earlier in 1955-56, in the largest retrospective of Brancusi’s work to be staged in his lifetime. 

Brancusi: Pioneer of American Minimalism will run concurrently with Scott Burton at 297 Tenth Avenue. Burton, also profoundly influenced by Brancusi, curated the inaugural “Artist’s Choice” exhibition, Burton on Brancusi at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1989, which considered the significance of Brancusi’s work in relation to contemporary art of the time and specifically to his own innovations in functional sculpture. 

Installation view at The Art Institute of Chicago, 1970. Photography © The Art Institute of Chicago
Brancusi artwork © 2015 Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

A Famille Rose yellow-ground floral dish, Jiaqing six-character seal mark in iron red and of the period (1796-1820). Estimate £6,000 – £8,000 ($9,120 - $12,160). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The dish is elaborately decorated to the exterior with colourful lotus flowers bearing the character fu for 'happiness', separated by further floral sprays, leafy scrolls, small peaches, and gilt wan characters. The interior is painted with a central roundel depicting branches of lingzhi, nandina, narcissus and roses. 7 5/8 in. (19.5 cm.) diam.

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 21 September 2006, lot 356. 

Christie's. APPRECIATING ELEGANCE: ART FROM THE SUI YUAN ZHAI COLLECTION, 11 May 2015, London, King Street 

A large Famille Rose dish, 18th century, the porcelain 15th century. Estimate £7,000 – £10,000 ($10,640 - $15,200). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The interior of the dish is decorated with three female immortals in a garden setting beside a deer pulling a small cart with auspicious fruit, all below a further immortal seated on the back of a phoenix in flight. The cavetto has eight shaped cartouches containing flowers, antiques and figures in exterior scenes. 15 in. (38.2 cm.) diam.

Provenance: The C. Philip Cardeiro collection of Chinese art

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, King Street 

A large Famille Rose figural charger, the enamels 18th century, the porcelain possibly earlier. Estimate £7,000 – £10,000 ($10,640 - $15,200). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The dish is decorated in enamels and gilt with two ladies conversing by a pavilion in a garden with a lotus pond. The well has a scrolling leafy border with scattered flower heads and fruits, and the underside is decorated with three iron red floral sprigs. 15 ¾ in . (40 cm.) diam.

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, King Street 

A Famille Rose turquoise-ground rectangular parfumier and cover, 19th century. Estimate £5,000 – £8,000 ($7,600 - $12,160). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The parfumier is decorated to each side with lotus scrolls, peaches and bats, and is applied with animal-head handles. Two of the sides are painted in gilt with 'double happiness' characters, shuangxi. The cover is decorated with three pierced medallions. There is a Daoguang seal mark to one side. 14 ¼ in. (36.2 cm.) wide

Provenance: With Tung Tak, Hong Kong.
Property from the Geronimo Berenguer de los Reyes, Jr. collection.

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, King Street 

A pair of Famille Rose lime green-ground dishes, Daoguang six-character seal marks in iron red and of the period (1821-1850). Estimate £5,000 – £8,000 ($7,600 - $12,160). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

ach dish is decorated with an interior roundel enclosing a scene of a lady within a pavilion, beside an elderly gentlemen holding symbols, announcing a visitor. The interiors are decorated with butterflies, floral blooms and fruits including the Three Abundances, sanduo. The exterior is decorated with various birds perched on branches. 10 in. (25.4 cm.) diam., wood stands

Provenance: Property from the Geronimo Berenguer de los Reyes, Jr. collection.

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, King Street 

An Important Jeweled and Enameled Gold Imperial Presentation Snuff Box, St. Petersburg, 1899. 3¼ in. (8.2 cm.) wide. Estimate: $120,000 – 180,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s announces the sale of Russian Works of Art on May 20 in New York. Offering an exceptional selection of fresh to the market Fabergé and Russian works of art from American private collections, the auction includes rare books and photographs from the Russian imperial family as well as fine icons, porcelain and early silver and niello. 

Leading the sale is the Collection of the Descendants of the Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, grandson of Emperor Nicholas I, which is appearing at auction for the first time. This important collection of nearly 50 lots includes personal gifts from members of the Russian Imperial family, such as Emperor Nicholas II and the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, as well as rare family heirlooms. 

Grand Duke George Mikhailovich (1863-1919) was the third son of Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich (1832-1909) and the grandson of Emperor Nicholas I (1796-1855). In 1900, he married Princess Marie Georgievna (1876-1940), the second daughter of George I, King of the Hellenes (1845-1913), and Queen Olga (1851-1926), née Grand Duchess Olga Konstantinovna of Russia. The couple had two daughters, Nina (1901-1974) and Xenia (1903-1965). The family lived at Mikhailovskoe, the St. Petersburg palace of Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich, before settling at their Crimean estate, Kharaks, in 1907. 

Grand Duchess Marie and the children left Russia for England in the summer of 1914, and when the First World War broke out, they were forced to stay in England, never to return to Russia. Grand Duke George, who fled to Finland during the Revolution, was later arrested and imprisoned in Petrograd, along with his brother Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich (1859-1919) and their cousin Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich (1860-1919). In January 1919, the three grand dukes were executed by a Bolshevik firing squad at the Peter and Paul Fortress. 

In 1922, Princess Nina married Prince Paul Alexandrovich Chavchavadze (1899-1971) in London. Prince Paul was descended from the Chavchavadze family of Georgia and in a direct line from the last King of Georgia, George XII (1746-1800). The couple had one son, David (1924-2014), and the young family moved to the United States. Princess Xenia Georgievna married twice, first to William Bateman Leeds (1902-1971), and then to Herman Jud (1911-1987). She lived with William Leeds on the North Shore of New York's Long Island and had one daughter, Nancy Helen Marie Leeds, who married Edward Judson Wynkoop, Jr. 

Collection Highlights of the Descendants of the Grand Duke George Mikhailovich 

Lot 63. A Rare and Important Jeweled Gold and Guilloché Enamel Photograph Frame Marked Fabergé, with the workmaster's mark of Michael Perchin, St. Petersburg, circa 1901, scratched inventory number 3748. Estimate: $60,000-80,000.  Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

The frame, containing photographs of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, Grand Duchess Marie and their eldest daughter Princess Nina Georgievna as an infant, appears to date to circa 1901, the year Nina was born. Made in the workshop of Fabergé’s head workmaster, Michael Perchin, this rare frame clearly drew its inspiration from the surprise in the Imperial Pansy Egg (1899), an enameled heart-shaped photograph frame on an easel, also made in Perchin’s workshop. Both frames are made with functioning windows which are operated by a push-piece and powered by an intricate mechanism located inside the back cover.   

Lot 75. A Jeweled Two-Color Gold, Silver and Guilloché Enamel Photograph Frame By Fabergé, with the workmaster's mark of Viktor Aarne, St. Petersburg, circa 1901, scratched inventory number 5138. Estimate: $60,000–80,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

This unusual trefoil frame encloses photographs of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, Grand Duchess Marie, and Princess Nina Georgievna. The inscription on the reverse, X-Mas-1901 / G. M. N., indicates this frame was a Christmas gift. 

Lot 31. A Jeweled Gold and Amethyst Brooch By Fabergé, with the workmaster's mark of August Holmström, St. Petersburg, circa 1898, scratched inventory number 60251. Estimate: $30,000–50,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

This brooch was discharged by the Imperial Cabinet in August of 1898 for the journey of the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna (1847-1928) to Livadia. 

A leading historical highlight in the sale is an important enameled gold snuff-box by the Russian Imperial Court jeweler Hahn, created in 1899, which is being offered by a New England Estate (pictured on top, estimate: $120,000-180,000). The box was presented by Emperor Nicholas II (1868-1918) to the Bulgarian minister in St. Petersburg, Dmitri Stancioff (1863-1940), on the occasion of the historically significant first Hague Convention in 1899. 

Additional Sale Highlights 

Lot 17 | A Jeweled Gold Imperial Presentation Brooch By Fabergé, with the workmaster’s mark of August Hollming, St. Petersburg, circa 1913. Estimate: $20,000–30,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

Offered by the descendants of Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna (1875-1960). 

Lot 20 | An Important Jeweled Silver-Gilt Imperial Presentation Brooch By F. Butz, St. Petersburg, circa 1883.Estimate: $12,000-15,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

Offered by the descendants of Grand Duchess Xenia Alexandrovna (1875-1960). 

Lot 124 | A Silver-Gilt Icon of Archangel Michael Marked Grachev with the Imperial Warrant, St. Petersburg, 1894, signed F. Platonov.Estimate: $15,000-25,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

Lot 140 | A Silver-Gilt and Niello Chalice, Russia, late 17th century. Estimate: $12,000-18,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

Lot 178 | A Soviet Propaganda Porcelain Plate. By the Imperial Porcelain Factory, St. Petersburg, period of Alexander II, and the State Porcelain Factory, Leningrad, 1924.Estimate: $10,000-15,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

Lot 170 | A Gem-Set Silver and Onyx Bell-Push and Ashtray, Scythian [Skif], Mark of the First Kiev Artel, Kiev, circa 1913.Estimate: $30,000-50,000. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd 2015.

A famille rose'pomegranate' bottle vase, Daoguang seal mark and of the period. Estimate £25,000 - 30,000 (€34,000 - 40,000). Photo: Bonhams.

The oviform body finely enamelled with flowering and fruiting pomegranate trees in a garden landscape with camellia and peonies, framed between borders of ruyi-heads, floral motifs, gilt strings and keyfret bands, the neck with a double-lotus and baoxianghua scrolling meander with bats suspending peaches, all on a turquoise ground, the flaring mouth rim encircled with another ruyi-head band. 33cm (13in) high

Notes: Fruiting pomegranates, with their profusion of seeds, are a visual allegory for abundance, fertility and fecundity, and, at the same time, through a linguistic pun, also carry an auspicious wish of male heirs for generations to come.

In fact, the word for 'seed', 子 (zi), is in Mandarin an homonym for 'son', whilst the first character of the name of the fruit, 石榴, shiliu, is homophone to the word 世 shi, meaning generations. With the close proximity of flowering peonies, symbolising royalty, rank, wealth and honour, the auspicious message may here be related to the birth of many royal sons for generations to come.

Vases of this type, which were very popular at court since the Qianlong period, were often decorated with scenes symbolic of an auspicious wish for heirs, often in the form of the ever-popular theme of 'a hundred boys'. An almost identical vase to the present lot, both in shape and decorative borders, which have also the same chromatic scheme, but with a central scene of boys, was sold by Sotheby's Hong Kong, 7 October 2010, lot 2162. A further similar vase, also with a decoration of boys and related border patterns in a different colour combination, was sold at Bonhams, New Bond Street, 12 May 2011, lot 355. A similar design of pomegranate, but with ruby ground and different borders, is instead found on a slightly smaller vase with a Shende Tang mark, included in the exhibition From the Dragon's Treasure, Museum für Kunsthanwerk, Berlin, 1987, cat. no. 53.

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

An iron-red and gilt decorated powder blue rouleau vase, Kangxi period. Estimate £8,000 - 12,000 (€11,000 - 16,000). Photo: Bonhams

The cylindrical body finely enamelled in iron red and black with four large carp swimming amongst seaweed, smaller carp and langoustines, all in gilt, the shoulder with quatrefoil medallions enclosing four of the babao and reserved on a diaper border, the bamboo-trunk neck with formal shou and wan roundels framed by decorative bands above and below. 47cm (18 1/2in) high

Provenance: ex. Mary Burrell (1873-1968) Collection; Mary Burrell was the youngest sister of the famous Glasgow based collector, Sir William Burrell (1861-1958).

Notes: Sir William Burrell was a wealthy Glaswegian shipping magnate with a keen interest in art. Over the span of about eighty years he amassed a vast and eclectic collection, seeking out fine craftsmanship in the objects he acquired. The collection, gifted in 1944 to the city of Glasgow, mostly focuses on late medieval and early Renaissance Europe, but it also contains very representative and important examples of Chinese and Islamic art, Ancient Civilisations and French Paintings, including works by Rodin, Degas and Cézanne.

The combination of powder blue ground with iron red and gilded decoration was one of the most popular amongst the export types produced at Jingdezhen in the 18th century. Wares decorated in this palette were particularly favoured in the Middle East and in Europe, where they would be used as table wares or decorative objects in the residences of the élite. 

Powder-blue glazed porcelain was first produced in the late 17th century in Jingdezhen. Its Chinese name, chuiqing, derives from the particular technique required to apply the pigment: the powdered cobalt was blown onto the surface through a bamboo cane whose extremity was covered in a fine gauze. 

A similarly decorated vase was sold by Christie's Hong Kong, 27 May 2008, lot 1752. Another rouleau vase, with differently gilded ground but very similar treatment of the fish and very specifically dated to 1700-1710, is in the Victoria & Albert Museum collection, museum no. C.1347-1910.

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

An iron-red and gilt decorated powder blue 'Fish' rouleau vase, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Estimate £8,000 - 12,000 (€11,000 - 16,000). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The vase is decorated to the exterior with four large fish in iron red, surrounded by gilt-enamelled aquatic plants and smaller fish, all on a powder blue ground. The neck is decorated with four gilt shou medallions amongst wan symbols. 18 in. (45.7 cm.) high

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, South Kensington

A fahuameiping, 15th-16th century. Estimate £8,000 - 10,000 (€11,000 - 13,000). Photo: Bonhams

Boldly decorated with elaborate lotus sprays and two cranes in raised slip lines and blocked in with white, yellow and turquoise glazes, all on an inky blue ground, the foot with a tall lappet border, the shoulder with a 'cloud collar' embellished with hanging jewels and foliate motifs, the small everted mouthrim encircled with bands of clouds - 41.4cm (16 3/8in) high

Notes: The term 'fahua' may derive from the Chinese term 粉花, fenhua, meaning 'powdered decoration' and refers to a group of medium-fired glazes developed in the late 15th century on the basis of the Yuan Dynasty liu li glazes (Q. Wang, A Dictionary of Chinese Ceramics, Shanghai, 1989, p. 220). Due to the very liquid nature of the glazes, the variously coloured areas are isolated from one another by clay walls which tend to vary in thickness.

According to D. Lion-Goldschmidt, variations in the vivacity of the colours applied, as well as different shapes and subjects of decoration, may be attributed to different eras of production (D. Lion-Goldschmidt, Ming Porcelain, London, 1978, p. 127). On this matter, Lion-Goldschmidt also notes that the early fahua wares tend to feature motifs of lotus rising from water, cranes, birds and figures. The author further points out that complimentary decoration on Fahua, ie. that found on necks, rims and feet, also relates to the designs found on contemporary blue and white wares. Lotus panels, waves, clouds and beaded jewellery are obvious examples here.

For a similar meiping, dated c. 1450-1505, see J. Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, British Museum Press 2001, p. 411, no. 13:5.

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

A turquoise and aubergine-glazed figure of Guanyin, Ming Dynasty. Estimate £8,000 - 10,000 (€11,000 - 13,000). Photo: Bonhams

The Bodhisattva with biscuit face and arms, modelled seated in royal ease atop a square plinth, clad in long robes and adorned with jewellery, with a five pointed crown. 31.5cm (12 1/2in) high

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

A carved wood figure of Guanyin, Mid-late Ming Dynasty. Estimate £5,000 - 8,000 (€6,700 - 11,000). Photo: Bonhams

Carved seated in lalitasana with one leg folded and placed on the thigh, the Goddess of Mercy elaborately dressed with a long flowing robe with expertly modelled folds opening at the chest, exposing the pendant on her neck hung with beaded jewels, with her left arm gently lifted in chatura mudra and the other on her lap, her serene face crowed by an ornate headdress centred at an image of the meditating Buddha in a niche flanked by scrolling tendrils, wood stand.110.4cm (43 3/4in) high (2).

The result of radiocarbon dating measurement report RCD-8265 dated 19 August 2014 is consistent with the dating of this lot

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

A gilt-bronze seated figure of Guanyin, Late Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Estimate £4,000 – £6,000 (€6,080 - $9,120). Photo Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The bodhisattva is cast seated in dhyanasana with the right hand holding a willow stem and the left hand holding a cup. She has a serene expression on her face and wears an elaborate headdress containing a small figure of Amitabha Buddha. 8 3/8 in. (21.3 cm.) high

Christie's. CHINESE CERAMICS, WORKS OF ART AND TEXTILES, 12 May 2015, London, South Kensington

A gilt-bronze figure of Guanyin, Ming Dynasty. Estimate £4,000 - 6,000 (€5,500 - 8,200). Photo: Bonhams. 

Cast seated in padmasana, her right hand in vitarka mudra, the left in her lap holding a vase, clad in thin robes with brocaded hems, wearing ornate beaded jewellery and a reticulated five-peaked tiara, on a detached triple-lotus stand. 26.8cm (10 1/2in) high (2).

Bonhams. ASIAN ART, 11 May 2015 10:30 BST - LONDON, KNIGHTSBRIDGE

A gilt-bronze figure of Guanyin, Ming dynasty, 16th century. Estimate £25,000 — 35,000 (33,913 - 47,478 €). Photo Sotheby's

seated in dhyanasana, wearing a floral etched long flowing robe open at the chest to reveal a wan symbol, the face with gentle smile and framed by a high five-pointed crown, long flowing ribbons and large earrings, all seated on a separately-cast lotus pedestal base. Quantité: 3 - 35cm., 13 3/4 in.

Note: This figure of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara portrays the deity in a sinicized form, with feminine features and seated on a luxurious lotus throne. This form began to emerge during the mid to late Ming dynasty and is still the form of Avalokitesvara popular in East Asia today, where the deity is known as Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy. Compare a similarly modelled figure of Guanyin and two attendants, sold in our New York rooms, 23rd September 1995, lot 335A; another of larger size sold at Christie’s New York, 18th September 2009, lot 166; and a third portraying a bejewelled Guanyin, from the collection of Mr and Mrs Peter Tcherepnine, sold at Christie’s New York, 30th November 1984, lot 618.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, Londres, 13 mai 2015, 11:00 AM

Rare Non-Nacreous Purple Pearl, Mercenaria mercenaria,  Northern Quahog clam species,  Coastal waters of the North Atlantic. Estimate: US$ 1,200 - 1,500 (€1,100 - 1,300). Photo: Bonhams.

Described by Linnaeus in 1758, the quahog pearl does not come from an oyster but rather a thick-shelled edible member of the clam family. It is estimated that only 1 in 100,000 Quahog clams actually produce a pearl of any kind. Before its use in jewelry the Quahog was used as the nation's first domestic currency. The Wampanoag tribe used a medium of exchange called wampum which consisted of beads made of the shell of the Quahog bi-valves. 

Ranging in hue from a perfect lavender at its apex to a rich aubergine at its base, this rare non-nacreous pearl if of suitable size and shape for mounting as a unique pendant. 
Weighing approximately 4.29 carats and measuring 9.0 x 7.0 mm

Bonhams. LAPIDARY WORKS OF ART, GEMSTONES AND MINERALS INCLUDING GOLD, 19 May 2015 10:00 PDT - LOS ANGELES

American Natural Pearl, Mississippi River. Estimate: US$ 4,000 - 6,000 (€3,600 - 5,300). Photo: Bonhams.

This is a large natural pearl from the Mississippi River. These pearls are distinguished by a recognizable, soft luster which is not seen in saltwater pearls. The present pearl has a unique drop shape which would easily lend it to being mounted either as a pendant or in a ring. Its iridescence or "orient" which appears to hover above the white body color, is a delicate rose, undrilled. Weighing approximately 16.08 carats and measuring 15.0 x 12.0mm

Bonhams. LAPIDARY WORKS OF ART, GEMSTONES AND MINERALS INCLUDING GOLD, 19 May 2015 10:00 PDT - LOS ANGELES

Non-nacreous Scallop Pearl, Pectinidae sp.,  Sea of Cortez, near Baja California Peninsula, Mexico. Estimate: US$ 2,500 - 3,500 (€2,200 - 3,100). Photo: Bonhams.

A scallop pearl is a non-nacreous calcareous concretion produced by any member of the pectinidae (scallop) family. Unlike other non-nacreous pearls, such as the melo-melo and conch pearl, the scallop pearl comes from a bivalve mollusk. Scallop pearls are native to the coastal waters of Central and North America and most commonly found off the coast of Baja California Peninsula. The scallop pearl is a very rare occurrence and is the bi-product of wild-harvested scallops. A typical scallop fisherman might discover a mere handful throughout his entire career.

Due to the rarity of the gem, scallops are not sought for their pearls. Scallop pearls have a unique shape and coloration absent in other calcareous concretions. They are generally symmetrical in an oval, round, drop, or button shape. 

Displaying a perfect drop-shape, the present offering is a highly symmetrical pearl of virgin white color, with excellent luster. 
Weighing approximately 17.10 carats and measuring 16.5 x 12.0 mm

Bonhams. LAPIDARY WORKS OF ART, GEMSTONES AND MINERALS INCLUDING GOLD, 19 May 2015 10:00 PDT - LOS ANGELES

Non-nacreous Clam Pearl, Tridacana sp.,  Coastal waters near Indonesia. Estimate: US$ 2,000 - 3,000 (€1,800 - 2,700). Photo: Bonhams.

xemplary for its symmetrical egg shape, the present pearl displays a virgin white body color and excellent flame pattern iridescence. 
Weighing approximately 7.77 carats and measuring 11.5 x 9.0mm

Bonhams. LAPIDARY WORKS OF ART, GEMSTONES AND MINERALS INCLUDING GOLD, 19 May 2015 10:00 PDT - LOS ANGELES