Lot 10. Isaak Soreau (Hanau 1604-1645/55 Francfort), Nature morte de prunes dans une coupe, cerises, noix et noisettes, huile sur cuivre, réduit, 30,9 x 39,2 cm. (12 1/8 x 15 3/8 in.). Estimate EUR 30,000 - EUR 50,000. Price realised EUR 87,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Lot 14. Jan van Kessel (Anvers, 1626-1679), L'Arbre aux oiseaux, signé'i. V. KESSEL' (en bas vers la gauche), huile sur cuivre, 19,4 x 29,1 cm. (7 5/8 x 11 ½ in.). Estimate EUR 40,000 - EUR 60,000. Price realised EUR 93,750. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Provenant d'une ancienne collection française.

Lot 5. Gérard David (Oudewater vers 1455-1523 Bruges), La Déploration sur le Christ mort, huile sur panneau, 18 x 17,4 cm. (7 1/8 x 6 7/8 in.). Estimate EUR 30,000 - EUR 50,000. Price realised EUR 110,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Lot 1. Maître de la Légende de Saint Jacques (Rhin supérieur ou Alsace, fin XVème-début XVIème siècle), La Dormition de la Vierge, inscrit 'L STRAONE' (vers le centre à gauche), huile et rehauts d'or sur panneau, 76,2 x 49,9 cm. (30 x 19 5/8 in.). Estimate EUR 80,000 - EUR 120,000. Price realised EUR 100,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Littérature: A. Stange, Kritisches Verzeichnis der deutschen Tafelbilder vor Dürer, vol II. Munich, 1970, p. 41. 
B. Konrad, Alfred Stange, Kritisches Verzeichnis der deutschen Tafelbilder vor Dürer. Band II. Mit Abbildungen und Ergänzungen. DVD intéractif avec 4300 illustrations. Édité par l'auteur, Radolfzell 2009.

Lot 11. Monogrammist A C (Français, actif vers 1577), Portrait de Sibylle de Clèves-Juliers-Berg, margravine de Burgau (1557-1628), huile sur panneau, 49,3 x 36,1 cm. (19 3/8 x 14 ¼ in.). Estimate EUR 50,000 - EUR 70,000. Price realised EUR 87,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Lot 22. Cristoforo Munari (Reggio d'Emiglie 1667-1720 Pise), Trompe-l'œil aux instruments du peintre et aux gravures, porte une inscription reportée 'Cristofano Monari (sic) / Dipinse' (au verso), huile sur toile, chantournée, sans cadre, 90 x 77,5 cm. (35 3/8 x 30 ½ in.), au plus haut et large. Estimate EUR 40,000 - EUR 60,000. Price realised EUR 87,500. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Provenance: Collection Riccardi, Florence, jusqu’en 1806.
Collection privée, Londres, en 1938.
Collection Ubaldo Giugni, Florence, jusque dans les années 1960.
Collection Emilio Terry (1890-1969) au château de Rochecotte.
Collection privée, Paris.

Littérature: G. Delogu, 'Cristofano Monari o Monarico? : Monari o Munari?', dans Emporium, 1955, vol. 121, p. 254, ill. fig. 8. 
G. Delogu, Natura morta italiana, Bergame, 1962, p. 178.
A. Ghidiglia Quintavalle, Christoforo Munari e la natura morta emiliana, Parme, 1964, p. 78, no. 51. 
F. Baldassari, Cristoforo Munari, Milan, 1998, p. 173, no. 71, ill. p. 174.

Lot 24. Gerard van Kuijl (Gorinchem 1604-1673), Les Quatre âges de la vie, signé, inscrit et daté indistinctement '[...] / operathunis / consistit / [...] g.v.d.k. / 164[3]' (au centre), huile sur toile, 122 x 149,7 cm. (48 x 58 7/8 in.). Estimate EUR 80,000 - EUR 120,000. Price realised EUR 93,750. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

Lot 101. Property from the Collection of Baroness Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza. A German silver-gilt-mounted turbo-shell cup, Lüneburg, late 16th-early 17th century, maker's mark indistinct, possibly that of Claus Harders; 11 in. (28 cm.) high. Estimate GBP 200,000 - GBP 300,000 USD 265,200 - USD 397,800). © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

The turbo shell rim cast with masks and reclining figures and retained by four straps cast with herms and strapwork, the knop with three winged figures and bunches of fruit, above a circular stepped foot cast and chased with fruits to the upper band and strapwork to the lower, surmounted by a later figure probably emblematic of Fortune astride a globe, marked on foot.

Lot 102. Property from the Collection of Baroness Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza. A silver-gilt-mounted hardstone cup, possibly created by Edward Farrell in the early 19th century, incorporating 16th century elements, after a design by Virgil Solis; 9 ¼ in. (23.5 cm.) high. Estimate GBP 120,000 - GBP 180,000 (USD 159,120 - USD 238,680). © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

The agate carved as a turbo shell surmounted by the figure of Neptune holding a cornucopia and a trident, astride a seahorse, on circular base with stem cast as a satyr holding two dolphins, engraved underneath with an inscription and painted inventory number '718'. The inscription reads 'Formerly in the possession of HRH the Duke of York.'

Sir Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish 1577 - 1640), Portrait of a Gentleman. Oil on oak panel 54 by 39,3cm.

JOHANNESBURG.- This exquisite portrait by the most influential Flemish Baroque artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens (1577 – 1640) depicts a gentleman in a crisp white ruff and black coat, with intricate black on black weaving on the shoulder and chest of the coat. The face of the sitter stands out against the muted greens on the background, the play of light and shade drawing one into the portrait. The technique is elegant and the face of the sitter seems to glows with life and a subtle humour. 

The oldest auction record uncovered for this oil on oak panel work is currently that of the Auction house Jovenau in Doornik in 1740 when the work was sold as a Portrait of a Man by Sir Peter Paul Rubens. During the intervening centuries the work was moved to London briefly, before returning to Germany, and, finally, travelling to South Africa. 

Between 1817 and 1917, as the work changed hands on auction, the identity of the artist was subject to debate as to whether it was a work by Rubens, or possibly by Frans Porbus the Younger. Following the sale at Munich Helbing Auction in 1896, where the portrait had been sold as a possible work by Porbus, it returned to the market in 1917 as a work by Rubens, being sold by the collector Oskar Skaller. 

This portrait was purchased by a German-Jewish doctor in 1925 at Kunsthandel Komter, Amsterdam, and has remained within the family to date. Following the purchase the doctor sought the advice of the eminent Dutch art historian Henk Peter Bremmer on this work and it was he who asserted the attribution of the work to Sir Peter Paul Rubens in Beeldende Kunst, volume 12 of that year. 

In 1927 art critics and historians Ludwig Burchard and Wilhelm von Bode confirmed this attribution in an article by Burchard and a co-signed letter to the owner, with Burchard believing the work to have been created, in his opinion, sometime between 1598 – the date of Rubens’ appointment to the Guild of Painters of Antwerp – and 1609 – the artist’s return to Antwerp from Italy following the death of his mother. 

Often, during patient consultations, the doctor would discuss state of affairs in Germany. During one fateful discussion the true extent of the current political situation and resurgence of National Socialism was made clear to him. Resolving to leave Germany the doctor took up the offer from one of his patients to secure his personal effects, including his extensive art collection, in order to facilitate his flight. All of the entrusted possessions were returned to the doctor upon escape from Germany before his journey to the southern hemisphere.

The doctor finally arrived in South Africa in 1931-32, resuming his practice once he had settled in Johannesburg. He went on to have a long and successful career within South African medicine, both as an innovative practitioner and passionate teacher.

Sir Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish 1577 - 1640), Portrait of a Gentleman. Oil on oak panel 54 by 39,3cm.

 The Mongolian, Tibetan, and western Muslim territories of China are located in the central part of the Eurasian continent and geographically consist mostly of plateaus and basins. With its northern latitude and high terrain, the cold climate of the area yields unpredictable rainfall. Except for settlements along river valleys and oases, a nomadic economy has traditionally governed the way of life there. The inhabitants of this region are ethnically diverse as well, being mostly comprised of Mongolian, Uyghur, and Tibetan peoples. In terms of geography, religion, and history, their lifestyle therefore differs greatly from that of the Han Chinese with their agriculture-based economy, highlighting the unique art and culture of these nomadic groups.

Starting from the seventeenth century, the Manchu people in China's northeast expanded their territorial control west and south to establish the "Great Qing Empire." As dynastic rulers, the Manchu never gave up their ambition of playing a dominating role among tribes on the northern steppes, at the same time actively maintaining control of Tibetan peoples in the Kham-Tibetan plateau of the southwest. In addition to military conquest and political rule, the Qing dynasty also used marital alliances, religious beliefs, and tributary relations to extend and maintain its governance, hold various peoples together, and consolidate its authority.

Formerly the property of Louisa Molyneux-Berry and her husband Henry Blayds Molyneux, grandson of Thomas Molyneux, mayor of Liverpool and gentleman of Newsham House Liverpool. Once reputed to be the largest in the world, a 605.8 gramme coral necklace sold for £36,830 (Estimate £5,000-8000) at Ewbank’s Auctions of Surrey on June 20. Courtesy Ewbank's Auctions

SEND MARSH.- This rare coral necklace – once thought to be the largest of its kind in the world – has sold for £36,830 at auction. 

Expected to take £5,000 and £8,000, the huge price came after a European agent thought to be bidding for a Chinese buyer in the room fought off competition at Ewbank’s Auctions of Send Marsh, Surrey.

The 605.8 gramme necklace of graduating beads was exhibited at The International Fisheries Exhibition in 1883, staged at the Royal Horticultural Society grounds in South Kensington, and won a bronze. At the time of the exhibition, the necklace was reputed to be the largest coral bead necklace in the world. It sold with its original paperwork and envelope from the exhibition. 

This scientific, cultural, and animal exhibition was open in South Kensington, London, between May 12 and October 31, 1883, and was the largest special event held in the world to that date. 

Exhibitors from throughout world bought examples of all sea life, a special section of coral contained the necklace, along with the coral collection of Victorian travel writer Lady Anna Brassey. 

Also sold from the same collection were two other coral pieces: a large Georgian coral cross dating to 1824 and a 19th Century coral and gold brooch, which went to different buyers. 

These three items were formerly the property of Louisa Molyneux-Berry and her husband Henry Blayds Molyneux, grandson of Thomas Molyneux, mayor of Liverpool and gentleman of Newsham House Liverpool. 

Ewbank’s jewellery specialist Andrea Machen commented; “Many organic gems have recently increased in value. Coral is, of course, now protected but in the 18th and 19th century it was considered the perfect jewellery for daytime wear, and the fact that it can be carved meant that some of the most skilled jewellers fashioned it. 

“Before Queen Victoria made black the choice colour for mourning, coral was used in sentimental jewellery to remember the departed. It was also presented to brides and given on the birth of a baby to ward off evil spirits and later used in baby’s rattles.” 

The auction also saw a gold and turquoise insect brooch, which featured in two James Bond films, take £3800. The brooch, shown here, was worn by Miss Moneypenny, played by Lois Maxwell, in the wedding scene in the 1969 film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and again in the first office scene of the 1983 Bond film Octopussy.

A gold and turquoise insect brooch, wings set with diamonds, ruby eyes, and polished turquoise stone body; featured in two James Bond films. Estimate £2,000-4000. Sold for £3800. Courtesy Ewbank's Auctions

The Scent of Peony. Painted by Chao Shao-an. Not dated. Dish, enamels on porcelain, Hong Kong Heritage Museum collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

HONG KONG - Friendship is the close relation between two persons as determined by time and place. The close friendship of Chao Shao-an and Yang Shanshen, two masters of the Lingnan School of painting, brought about not only the meeting of minds but also led to the creation of interesting works of art.

Both Chao and Yang settled in Hong Kong in the 1940s, and they often met together in the Lingnan Art Studio, and they have spent their leisure and created joint paintings. When they made friends with the owner of the Yuet Tung China Works, Tso Wing-shui, they tried their hands at painting on porcelain using their own artistic style. This exhibition features their joint works on paper and on porcelain, selected from private collections which remain lesser known. Visitors will see how the two masters carried out their artistic dialogue in these works, and how they brought their own signature style from works on paper into works on porcelain.

 Prawn. Painted by Yang Shanshen, 1963. Dish, enamels on porcelain, Private Collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Coconut and Vine. Painted by Chao Shao-an and Yang Shanshen, 1954. Ink and colour on paper. Private Collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Pomegranate. Painted by Chao Shao-an, 1970. Dish, enamels on porcelain, Hong Kong Heritage Museum collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Insect in moonlight. Painted Chao Shao-an and Yang Shanshen. Not dated. Dish, enamels on porcelain, Hong Kong Heritage Museum collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Willow and Two Pigeons. Painted by Chao Shao-an and Yang Shanshen, 1954. Ink and colour on paper, Private Collection Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Cat and Butterfly. Painted by Chao Shao-an and Yang Shanshen, 1954. Ink and colour on paper, Private Collection. Photo: Courtesy Hong Kong Heritage Museum

Yohji Yamamoto, Autumn/Winter 1995 (detail), 1995. David Sims (British, born 1966). Chromogenic print, 88.9 x 71.1 cm.

LOS ANGELES, CA.- At their core, fashion photographs are made for consumption in magazines and advertising. They are intended to arouse desire in viewers, whether it be for beauty, style, or even the trendiest lip shade or haircut. To capture attention, fashion photographs perpetually shift style or approach in the face of social, political, and economic change. Icons of Style: A Century of Fashion Photography, 1911-2011, on view June 26-October 21, 2018 at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center, is the most comprehensive exploration of this phenomenon yet undertaken, featuring more than 160 fashion photographs alongside a selection of costumes, illustrations, magazine covers, videos and advertisements. Drawn from the Getty Museum’s photographs collection as well as significant loans, the exhibition presents the work of more than eighty photographers, illuminating the innovative aesthetic and technological changes in the field. 

“Once overlooked by collectors and museums because of its commercial origins, fashion photography is now recognized as having produced some of the most creative work of the twentieth century, transcending its illustrative function to yield images of great artistic quality and sophistication,” says Timothy Potts, director of the J. Paul Getty Museum. “Museums, however, have been slow to embrace this genre. The time seems ripe to present a sweeping overview of the finest examples of fashion photography produced over the past century.” 

The exhibition features the work of such renowned fashion photographers as Richard Avedon, Lillian Bassman, Guy Bourdin, Erwin Blumenfeld, Louise Dahl-Wolfe, Hiro, Inez & Vinoodh, Peter Lindbergh, Man Ray, Helmut Newton, Nick Knight, Gordon Parks, Irving Penn, Herb Ritts, Edward Steichen, and Tim Walker as well as lesser-known but influential artists such as Corinne Day, Gleb Derujinsky, Toni Frissell, and Kourken Pakchanian. 

“In 2010, we began working to strengthen the Museum’s collection of fashion photographs in the hopes of creating a foundation on which we could build a groundbreaking exhibition,” says Paul Martineau, associate curator of photographs at the Getty Museum and curator of the exhibition. “I continue to be intrigued by the ability of some fashion photographs to transcend their original commercial function in order to be considered true works of fine art.” 

The exhibition opens with a key moment in the emergence of modern fashion photography when, in 1911, French publisher Lucien Vogel challenged photographer Edward Steichen to create the first artistic fashion photographs. Before then, photographs were often too realistic to attract a public familiar with the highly idealized images popularized by illustrators such as Erté and Paul Iribe. During the first two decades of the twentieth century there was a considerable shift in women’s fashion, moving away from tightly corseted dresses to the more comfortable, natural, looser fitting clothing of innovators such as Paul Poiret and Coco Chanel. On view will be early photographs by Steichen and Baron Adolf de Meyer, two artists who were responsible for creating the foundations of modern fashion photography at the behest of Vogue magazine mogul Condé Nast. 

Photographs produced during the Great Depression and World War II reveal how political and economic changes influenced the fashion industry. During the Depression, top style magazines continued to emphasize luxury and glamour, offering an escape from the harsh realities of the period. During World War II, fashion magazines tried to remain relevant by adopting a positive, can-do approach to life. In step with war-time rationing, fashion became simpler and used less fabric, and photographers adopted a more restrained approach. The exhibition includes several examples of “patriotic chic,” a style of dress or representation that underscored national values. Keep the Home Fires Burning (1941) by Louise Dahl-Wolfe features a model in a simple slip turned away from the camera and staring into the fireplace, apparently waiting for her husband to return from the war. 

Model Wearing a Gown by Augustabernard, 1936, Man Ray, gelatin silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. © Man Ray Trust ARS-ADAGP

The 1950s marked what many consider to be the Golden Age of fashion photography, with a return to glamour through designers such as Cristóbal Balenciaga, Christian Dior, and Jacques Griffe. Richard Avedon and Irving Penn brought the elegant dresses of these designers to life with different but equally visually arresting approaches to their work. Penn dominated studio-based fashion photography while Avedon excelled at showing models on location and in action. Paired with bold visual treatments in magazines, work by these and other artists delivered fashion photography to an aspirational public emerging from decades of war and hardship. 

Renée, “The New Look of Dior,” Place de la Concorde, Paris, August, 1947, negative 1947, print 1978; Richard Avedon, gelatin silver print. The Richard Avedon Foundation, New York. Copyright © The Richard Avedon Foundation

Woman’s Dress, “Abandon,” Fall/Winter 1948, House of Dior, Christian Dior, wool plain weave (crepe). Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Gift of Mrs. Laura-Lee W. Woods. Photo © Museum Associates/LACMA

The 1960s and 70s were a time when youth culture, the sexual revolution, and later the women’s liberation movement, were catalysts for new possibilities in fashion photography. William Klein photographed his models in urban settings using a 35mm camera, perfecting a gritty street style that was celebrated for its surprising vitality. Leading designers of the mid-1960s ushered in a variety of fanciful new looks such as hippie, mod, gypsy, and space age. Neal Barr’s 1966 photograph of Dianne Newman captures the zeitgeist in a mini-dress with patterned tights, bug-eye glasses, and a cropped haircut – all shot from a low angle to give the image a slightly unbalanced, psychedelic aura.  

In the 1970s, ready-to-wear clothing lines by Halston, Anne Klein, and Yves Saint Laurent were coveted by women who had newly entered the workforce and were attempting to balance their jobs and families. Photographers such as Arthur Elgort endeavored to show women going about their everyday routines, and hired models who were relatable, natural, and health-conscious. Others such as Helmut Newton and Chris von Wagenheim challenged propriety with aggressive, sexualized images that often turned the tables on traditional gender stereotypes. The 1960s and 70s also saw increased diversity, with African American models such as Donyale Luna and Beverly Johnson being chosen to grace the covers of top style magazines for the first time. Johnson’s historic 1974 Vogue cover will be on view.  

Fashion photography of the 1980s and 90s embraced the athletic female body, the display of male sexuality, the birth of the supermodel, and the introduction of darker motifs in the genre. The 1980s saw the rise of corporate power dressing, the fitness trend, and the ascension of Italian designers such as Gianni Versace and Giorgio Armani. Herb Ritts and Bruce Weber portrayed well-built male models in ways that emphasized their sexuality, forever changing how men were represented in fashion and advertising. Beauty and power were also exemplified by a new group of “supermodels,” who were offered enormous salaries for walking runways all over the world. Ritts is known for creating one of the most famous photographs of this time – the seemingly nude embrace of supermodels Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Tatjana Patitz, Stephanie Seymour, and Christy Turlington.  

Fred with Tires, Hollywood, 1984, Herb Ritts, gelatin silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. Gift of Herb Ritts Foundation. © Herb Ritts Foundation

In the 1990s, an economic downturn, an increase in drug use, and the incorporation of the Seattle-based grunge movement by the fashion industry gave birth to “heroin chic,” which presented stick-thin models such as Kate Moss in sickly looking makeup. The raw, overexposed style of Corinne Day, who shot unkempt models in shabby environments was not only a source of inspiration for this new style, but also the antithesis of the over-the-top glamour and excess of the previous decade.  

Kate Moss, Times Square, New York, negative 1994, print 2017; Glen Luchford, gelatin silver print. The J. Paul Getty Museum. Gift of Glen and Tanya Luchford. © Glen Luchford

Sveta for Hussein Chalayan, 2000, Sarah Moon, carbon print. The J. Paul Getty Museum.© Sarah Moon

The exhibition concludes by presenting a diverse selection of contemporary photographs that reveals some of the ongoing possibilities of fashion photography, and the digital tools that have reshaped the notion of what—technically and conceptually—a fashion photograph is. The growth of street-style fashion blogs such as Scott Schuman’s The Sartorialist (2005) and global internet picture-sharing applications such as Instagram (2010) and Snapchat (2011) are reshaping a rapidly evolving industry, providing aspiring and established fashion photographers with new outlets for their work. 

“My hope is that this sweeping introduction to fashion photography will not only educate and delight our visitors, but also inspire new scholarly inquiry,” adds Martineau. “Long overlooked, the gradual integration of fashion photographs into museum collections will make it easier for these pictures to be evaluated in terms of the larger history of the medium of photography.” 

Icons of Style: A Century of Fashion Photography, 1911-2011 is on view June 26-October 21, 2018 at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center. The exhibition is curated by Paul Martineau, associate curator of photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum. A related publication by Paul Martineau will be released by Getty Publications in spring 2018. Related events TBD.

The Dress-Lamp Tree, England, 2002, Tim Walker, chromogenic print. Steven and Catherine Fink. © Tim Walker

LONDON.- One of Lucian Freud’s last great nudes, Portrait on a White Cover sold hours ago in Sotheby’s London’s saleroom for £22.5million / $29.8 million, making it the most valuable painting by the artist ever sold in London. The previous highest price for a London auction of the artist’s work was £16.1 million set by Pregnant Girl at Sotheby’s in February 2016. 

A late masterpiece, Portrait on a White Cover, painted when the artist was 80 years old, represents the culmination of Freud’s lifelong engagement with the reclining nude. Alongside the self-portrait, the reclining nude was the defining leitmotif of Freud’s career. Across sixty years of painting, innumerable mutations of painterly style, and a multitude of sitters, he returned to this challenging subject time and again. Portrait on a White Cover sits at the pinnacle of this endeavour. 

Portrait on a White Cover depicts Sophie Lawrence, who worked for Tate publishing and was spotted by Freud whilst preparing for his Tate retrospective in 2002. This is her only known portrait and there is little written about her in the literature surrounding the artist’s work. Ahead of this sale, she shared her story of sitting for the artist: “I wouldn’t have done it for anyone else, but he is one of the best artists who has ever lived. It was incredibly intimidating, but he made me feel at ease. He was very good at building a rapport with people. I was very fond of him.” 

The artist painted only three further reclining nudes before his death in 2011. The painting which immediately preceded Portrait on a White Cover, Naked Portrait 2002 - depicting Kate Moss pregnant - set a new auction record for the artist at £7.3 million when it appeared at auction in 2005. Four of the top five prices for the artist at auction are for reclining nudes.

Oliver Barker fielding bids during Sotheby's Contemporary Art Evening Sale, June 2018. Courtesy Sotheby's.

SANDRA CRONAN LTD. 17th century cruciform pendant. Courtesy Sandra Conan Ltd.

A 17th century pendant in the form of a cross. Carved gold on the reverse, silver on the front, set with petal shaped rose cut diamonds. Each point of the cross is set with a garnet engraved with a different devotional scene, and enamelled. From below upwards and across the settings represent: 1. The winged bull of St. Luke with scroll ( signifying writing) 2. The dove of the Holy Spirit or as there is a flowering wand it could be the symbol of St. Joseph 3. At the intersection IHS ( monogram of the Holy Name ) with three nails, badge of the Jesuits 4. The angel with scroll for St. Matthew 5. The winged lion with scroll of St. Mark 6. The eagle with scroll for St. John 7. The twin palms crowned for the victory of Christ the King.

SANDRA CRONAN LTD. Belle Epoque diamond pendant, American, circa 1905. Courtesy Sandra Conan Ltd. 

A Belle Epoque pendant of elongated design; pavé diamond set throughout. A bow suspends the decoratively pierced platinum drop which is fully articulated and centres on a substantial old cut diamond, and a further large old cut at the bottom. Millegraine edged platinum setting, American, circa 1905.

East Indian Ink Well, by Paulding Farnham for Tiffany & Co. Courtesy Sandra Conan Ltd.

An exquisite Inkwell, fashioned from an intricately carved ivory tusk on a decorative solid gold base featuring marching elephants, designed by Paulding Farnham. Labelled by Tiffany as The East Indian Ink Well, composed of repoussé gold and carved ivory. This piece has an extraordinary provenance; it was manufactured to exhibit at the 1904 St. Louis Purchase Exhibition, or ‘World’s Fair’ as a demonstration of the skill and artistry of Paulding Farnham and Tiffany & Co. Furthermore, the inkwell was photographed and featured in the October 1904 edition of Town & Country magazine, as a highlight of the Exhibition.

An asymmetrical jabot pin with a carved angel skin coral Greek mask drop, and platinum set diamonds. Cartier New York, signed and numbered, circa 1910. Courtesy Sandra Conan Ltd.

 A pair of diamond drop earrings with long articulated graduating baguette cut diamond tops leading to detachable pavé set diamond ball drops, mounted in platinum. American, circa 1960.

LONDON.- An arresting Roman marble portrait head of a man, possibly a priest, leads Bonhams Antiquities sale in London on Thursday 5 July. It is estimated at £60,000-80,000. 

The marble portrait dates from between the 1st Century B.C. and the early 1st Century A.D. The subject is completely bald – a rarity in sculptures of this period – and the reason for that may lie in his vocation. The scalp gives the appearance of having been shaved, which suggests the man might have been a priest of the cult of Isis, which was popular in Rome at the time. Priests of Isis were known to shave their heads as an act of worship. A hole in the crown for the insertion of a separate head-covering – now lost – adds weight to the theory. 

Lot 82. A Roman marble male portrait head, Circa 1st Century B.C.-early 1st Century A.D.; 42cm high. Estimate £ 60,000 - 80,000 (€ 68,000 - 91,000). Photo: Bonhams. 

Probably a priest, the face powerfully sculpted with large, lidded, unarticulated eyes set deeply beneath prominent brows, a strong, straight nose and pronounced cheekbones, the thin lips closed, the square chin slightly dimpled, with naturalistic wrinkled brow and creased cheeks, the ears sculpted in high relief from the head, a circular hole at the crown of the bald head, probably for insertion of a separately-made head-covering, the back of the head and neck more roughly hewn, the large tenon remaining.

Provenance: Mr Charles Probst, Galerie de la Corraterie, Geneva, 2000. 
Swiss art market. 
with Bernard Blondeel Kunsthandel, Antwerp, 2005. 
Private collection, Belgium.

Note: See F. Johansen, Roman Portraits I, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, 1994, p. 74-5, no. 25 for another bald portrait head with similar treatment of wrinkles, lips, and ears sculpted in high relief, dated to the early Augustan period. The hole at the crown of the head was evidently made in antiquity, probably for the insertion of a separately-made head-covering, a feature which would also explain the cursory rendering of the back of the head. Having the head covered in such a manner would characterise the subject as being in the act of sacrificing, and therefore probably a priest; for a comparable priest, see ibid., Roman Portraits II, p. 58-9, no. 17, and Vatican Museums inv. 1751, though in both these examples the head-covering is rendered in the same piece of marble. 

The subject of this sculpture is not just bald, but seems to have a fully shaved head. Though completely bald portraits of private individuals from this period are known (see C. C. Vermeule, Greek and Roman Sculpture in America, Berkeley, 1981, no. 232), this fairly unusual element combined with the aforementioned head-covering raises another hypothesis. The practice of shaving one's head is believed to have been an act of worship undertaken by priests of the cult of Isis, which enjoyed popularity in Rome from the late Republican period onwards, notwithstanding a brief period of suspicion about their activities during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius; cf. a portrait head of a priest of Isis in the Museo Archeologico al Teatro Romano in Verona, which also has a circular hole at the crown. However, the key identifying feature of a priest of Isis is a scar usually visible on the upper forehead or crown of the head (see S. Wood, 'Isis, Eggheads, and Roman Portraiture', JARCE, vol. 24, 1987, p. 123-141 for discussion of the portrait iconography of Isis priests). No such scar is discernible here, and so this attribution must remain uncertain. See also Museo Nazionale Romano, inv. no. 126368 for another shaven-headed male portrait, similar in countenance to the present lot and dating to the late Republican period, and also at times suggested to be a priest of Isis, despite lacking a prominent scar.

The sale also features a private Swiss collection of terracottas, and a European private collection of rare Near Eastern works. Two beautiful Piravend bronze idols from the latter were once owned by André Derain who, with Henri Matisse, was the co-founder of the hugely influential early 20th century art movement, Les Fauves. The figures are said to have been a gift from one of Derain’s sitters, his sometime lover Domenica Guillaume – the wife of his art dealer, Paul Guillaume. Derain’s striking Portrait of Madame Paul Guillaume with a large hat is one of the highlights of the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris.  

The Piravend figures – one male, one female – were made in Western Iran during the 9th – 8th centuries B.C., but little else is known about them. They may have been deities, and the female figure, who appears to be pregnant, could have been a fertility symbol. They were bought at the sale of Derain’s estate in 1956, and have been in the same family ever since. The male figure is estimated at £20,000-25,000, and the female figure at £15,000-20,000. 

Lot 124. A Piravend bronze female idol, Western Iran, circa 9th-8th Century B.C.; 8.5cm high Estimate £ 15,000 - 20,000 (€ 17,000 - 23,000). Photo: Bonhams.  

With slender legs and short torso with articulated breasts and rounded stomach, the arms outstretched, the oversized head tear-shaped with circular convex eyes with encircling rings set beneath arching brows, large protruding aquiline nose, short, straight mouth and pointed chin, with two horn-like extensions at the crown of the head, a spherical protrusion between.

Provenance: André Derain (1880-1954) collection, Paris, reputedly acquired from Mme Guillaume.
Collection André Derain, vente après décès (premiere vente); Hotel Drouot, Paris, 9-10-11 May 1955, lot 32.
with Françoise Lepage, Paris.
Private collection, Europe, acquired from the above in 1956.

Note: For closely related figures, though depicting males, see The Pomerance Collection of Ancient Art, Brooklyn Museum, 1966, p.35, no. 36 and D. von Bothmer (ed.), Glories of the Past. Ancient Art from the Shelby White and Leon Levy Collection, New York, 1990, p.53, no. 38. In the latter it is noted that these diminutive statuettes probably represent deities, due to their horns, which signify elevation above mortal beings. The present lot's rounded stomach may signify pregnancy, and thus suggest a function as a fertility idol. Beyond these conjectures, however, little is know about the use of, and belief system around, these carefully modelled figures

André Derain was a French artist famous for his uncompromising use of pure color. In 1898, while attending engineering school, he met another up-and-coming artist, Henri Matisse, with whom he began creating art. Their style, based on the use of bright, pure colours, was called Fauvist, or 'wild beasts': Derain is considered a key founder of this new style. In his later career Derain developed his creativity through different styles and mediums, including woodcuts and sculpture.

By repute, this Piravend bronze was donated to the artist by a Mme Guillaume, probably the same woman as the Madame Paul Guillaume, later Madame Jean Walter, painted by André Derain in 1928-1929. The striking portrait is now in the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris.

Lot 125. A Piravend bronze male idol, Western Iran, circa 9th-8th Century B.C.; 10cm high. Estimate £ 20,000 - 25,000 (€ 23,000 - 28,000). Photo: Bonhams.  

Standing on short legs, the rectangular body with male genitalia and pronounced nipples, the arms extended upwards, the triangular face with circular eyes, large protruding beak nose, round cheeks and small ears, wearing a twisted belt around his waist, an attachment loop at rear.

Provenance: André Derain (1880-1954) collection, Paris, reputedly acquired from Mme Guillaume.
Collection André Derain, vente après décès (premiere vente); Hotel Drouot, Paris, 9-10-11 May 1955, lot 31. 
with Françoise Lepage, Paris. 
Private collection, Europe, acquired from the above in June 1956. 

Heart pendant, Spain or Italy, c. 1600. Gold, enamel, glass ; weight 17.2 grams; dimensions 45 × 31.4 × 13.8 mm. Courtesy Les Enleminures

With its wonderful openwork structure covered with enamel flowers, strapwork, and “gems,” the magnificent heart captures the gaze and its shape moves effortlessly between secular and religious meanings — human or divine love, romantic or religious devotion.

Double-sided heart-shaped pendant in gold and enamel openwork. A blue enameled frame surrounds an oval capsule with convex glass and translucent red and opaque white cartouche with wings. The bulbous outer border consists of opaque blue strapwork alternating with opaque white enameled daisy-like flowers and red globules. Baluster-shaped base with red and blue enamel for the gold pendant loop.

Magic Belt, Spain, Castile, 17th century, textile late 13th century, coins and medals 10th-19th century. Brocaded velvet, gold thread, silver, enamel, jet, rock crystal and castaña de Indias, 73.5 × 30-50 cm (28.9 x 1.1-1.9 in.). Courtesy Les Enleminures

The oldest of the very few surviving examples, this Spanish “magic belt” includes elements from the tenth to the seventeenth centuries: Islamic textile, Arab coins, rosary beads, a rock crystal skull, a jet amulet, and a type of horse chestnut make up the belt, which would have been worn by a child to protect him or her from evil spirits.

The belt is formed of a brocaded red velvet textile with discs of gold thread. Twenty-eight silver coins are sewn onto the belt (two are eighteenth-century Moroccan, the rest from al-Andalus, a single coin dating from the tenth century and the others to the fourteenth century, and with a single nineteenth-century silver medal). Three pendants are suspended from the belt and attached to parts of a rosary made of silver links, the mounts with black and white enamel and round jet beads. The jet beads are carved with stylized foliage and memento mori, with the head of Christ or the Virgin Mary and a skull. Three attached pendants are a tropical nut (castaña de Indias) with silver figa pendants and a single Virgin Mary pendant, a carved rock crystal skull, and an ornate fist with figa carved in jet. The belt appears to have been further embellished with hooked clasps. The thread used to secure some of these embellishments suggests that the belt was repaired towards the end of the eighteenth or the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Provenance: Originally gifted to the Virgin in the Church of Herrera de Pisuerga (Palencia), 1945; Subastas Segre, Madrid, 2005, no. 4; Private collection, Europe. 

Memento mori skull pendant, Germany, 17th century. Fire-gilded copper, glass ; weight 42 grams; dimensions 38 × 23 × 53 mm (opened flat). Courtesy Les Enleminures

This hinged skull, monumental in spite of its small scale, has movable jaws and opens with a tiny screw to reveal hidden compartments of relics, all of sainted emperors, suggesting that it must have belonged to a member of the court.

A skull made of fire-gilded copper with hinged, screw-mounted lower jaw, which opens and closes. On the skullcap is a pendant loop with a floral ornament that also functions as a screw and lock; with the screw removed, the pendant opens to reveal two halves, one side with three compartments that contain bone relics under glass with inscriptions naming the saints engraved on a golden frame: CARL.M/LADL.K./OSWD.K (Charlemagne, king of the Franks and Holy Roman Emperor; St. Ladislaus I, king of Hungary; and St. Oswald, king of Northumbria). The other side contains a miniature solar monstrance with fine wires.

Vante De Gabriello Di Vante Attavanti (Attavante) (Active in Florence, born 1452, died 1520-1525), Saints Sergius And Bacchus, Initial ‘A’ from A Choir Book (150 X 127/130 Mm.), Italy, Florence, C. 1475-1485. Courtesy Les Enleminures

This brightly colored initial ‘A’ from a Choir Book depicts the martyr saints Sergius and Bacchus, both Roman soldiers, in fantastic Renaissance armor. This miniature is attributed to Attavante, noted by Giorgio Vasari as the most “celebrated and famous of miniaturists.”

This brightly colored initial ‘A’ from a Choir Book depicts the martyr saints Sergius and Bacchus, both Roman soldiers, in fantastic Renaissance armor. They stand in a landscape holding weapons and wearing brightly contrasting colors with Burgonet-style helmets. The historiated initial is surrounded with flowers and decorated with a red gemstone at top. Under a faint yellow wash to the left of both figures is a partially legible inscription: “Cu(m) fi…,” perhaps “Cum figura…” (with figure…), a rare example of instructions to the illuminator. This miniature is attributed to Attavante, noted by Giorgio Vasari as the most “celebrated and famous of miniaturists.” Attavante is known primarily through a series of luxurious Missals and Breviaries illuminated for important patrons, including Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary. Relatively early in his career, around 1473, Attavante collaborated with Ghirlandaio on a Choir Book, the miniatures of which are now in an album in Rome (BAV, Cod. Ross. 1192). Here Roman soldiers in armor and helmets appear in the background of a miniature with the Finding of the True Cross (f. 22r), comparable to the present miniature. Also comparable are the miniatures attributed to Attavante in the Bible of Federico Montefeltro (Rome, BAV, Cod. Urb. Lat. 1-2), dated between 1476 and 1478, and miniatures in the Missal of Thomas James, illuminated around 1483 (Lyon, BM, MS 5123). The initial ‘A’ opens the Feast of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (7 October), probably for the antiphon “A[bsterget deus].” The reverse is written with fragments of two lines of music notation on four-line staves in red, with text in brown ink: “…[n]ostris [concedat v]obis salutem…,” from the antiphon Adaperiat dominus cor vestrum, for Saturdays preceding the first Sunday of October. The pigments and parchment are in good condition, with some rubbing to the gold leaf and some isolated smudges.

Provenance: Paul Durrieu (1855-1925), Paris; acquired privately, 2017.

Hours of Philippote de Nanterre (Use of Amiens), France, Amiens circa 1420s. Illuminated manuscript on parchment, in Latin and French, with 27 miniatures by the Master of Raoul d’Ailly and a collaborator, 18.1 x 13.5 cm (7.1 x 5.3 in.). Courtesy Les Enleminures

Monumental work by a rare Amiens painter directly influenced by Flemish primitives.

Hours of Philippote de Nanterre (Use of Amiens) Illuminated manuscript, on parchment, in Latin and French 27 miniatures by the Master of Raoul d’Ailly and a collaborator France, Amiens, c. 1420s This manuscript comes from the fertile borderland between France and Flanders during a crucial moment of artistic creativity in Amiens. The haunting style of this painter merges Parisian courtly elegance with the northern realism of the Flemish primitives to pioneer a new form of pictorial representation. Our artist is known in very few Books of Hours. Familiar with Flemish panel painters such as the Master of Flémalle and Roger van der Weyden, he uses green shadows and imposing figures set either in homey interiors or realistic landscapes. 208 folios, mostly in gatherings of 8( i12, ii6-1, iii6, iv-v8, vi-vii8-1, viii8, ix8-1, x-xi8, xii10, xiii8-1, xv-xviii8, xix4, xx8, xxi4, xxii-xxvi8, xxvii6, xxviii5-2), lacking one leaf after the calendar and 4 others, missing 5 miniatures, written in a gothic book hand in brown ink on 17 long lines (justification 95 x 65 mm.), no ruling visible, rubrics in red, 1-line initials in burnished gold leaf with red and blue calligraphic penwork, line endings rectangular, half rose and half blue with white filigree designs, burnished gold circles at either end of the design, illuminated 3-to 7-line initials, numerous full borders of acanthus, flowers, and birds on the pages with full-page illumination, and partial borders with small leaves and flowers on the text pages, with 27 full-page illuminations all in arched compartments, in excellent condition. Seventeenth-century French red morocco binding, gold filet tooling, gilt edges. Dimensions 181 x 135 mm. TEXT ff. 1-12v, Calendar for Amiens with St. Firmin, the first bishop of Amiens, 13 January and 25 September, in gold; St. Firmin, third bishop of Amiens, 1 September; St. Honore, bishop of Amiens, 16 May; and three martyrs of Amiens, Saints Fuscian, Gentian, and Victorius, 11 December. ff. 13-16v, Gospel Sequences ff. 17-23v, Apostle’s Creed; ff. 24-39, Hours of the Virgin (incomplete), with f. 24, Matins; f. 46, Lauds; f. 54, Prime; f. 58v, Terce; f. 62, Sext; f. 65, None; f. 68v, Vespers; f. 75, Compline; ff. 79v-94v, Seven Penitential Psalms; ff. 95-100v, Short Hours of the Cross; ff. 101-106v, Hours of the Holy Spirit; ff. 106-117v, Prayers to the Virgin, including “Obsecro te” and “O Intemerata”; ff. 118-123, Hours of the Holy Sacrament; ff. 123-127v, Suffrages; ff. 127v-135v, Prayers in French; ff. 136-145v, Prayer of Theophilus; ff. 146-154, Fifteen Joys of the Virgin; ff. 151-153v, Seven Requests of Our Lord; ff. 154-158, Suffrages to Saints; ff. 159-202, Office of the Dead; ff. 202v-204, Prayers in French; ff. 204v-207, Suffrages for Quentin, John the Baptist, and Catherine. ILLUSTRATION f. 17, Peter; f. 17v, Andrew; f. 18, James the Great; f. 18v, John the Evangelist; f. 19, Thomas; f. 19v, James the Less; f. 20, Philip; f. 20v, Bartholomew; f. 21, Matthew; f. 21v, Simon; f. 22, Jude; f. 22v, Mathias f. 24, Annunciation (Hand B); f. 58v, Annunciation to the Shepherds; f. 65, Presentation in the Temple; f. 68v, Flight into Egypt (Hand B); f. 75, Coronation of the Virgin; f. 79v, David Praying in a Landscape (Hand B); f. 101, Pentecost; f. 118, Priest Celebrating Mass; f. 136, Virgin Weaving (Hand B); f. 146, Woman (Philippote of Nanterre) kneeling before the Virgin; f. 151, Last Judgment; f. 154, Saint John the Baptist; f. 155, Saint James the Great (Hand B); f. 156, Saint Nicolas; f. 159, Funeral Service. The deluxe Hours of Philippote de Nanterre is a key work in the oeuvre of the Master of Raoul d’Ailly in Amiens. The artist is named after the Hours of Raoul d’Ailly (Private Collection, United States; for which see London, Sotheby’s 11 July 1978, lot 48), a manuscript for which he painted all forty-seven of its miniatures. Few works by the artist are known. In addition to the d’Ailly Hours, one of the most important is the Hours of Jacques de Châtillon (now in the BnF, MS n. a. lat. 3231); twenty-seven of its fifty-four paintings are by the Master of Raoul d’Ailly. In every aspect of its text, decoration, and illumination, the Philippote de Nanterre Hours is closely tied to the d’Ailly workshop. A small group of other works have been gathered together on which the artist occasionally collaborated with other Parisian-trained illuminators in Amiens between c. 1420 and c. 1450. Let us set the stage for this artist’s important career. Netherlandish artists poured into Paris at the beginning of the fifteenth century (the Limbourg Brothers, Jean Malouel, perhaps the Boucicaut Master himself). Patronized by some of the leading bibliophiles of the day, including Jean Duke of Berry, these artists created a distinctive style, unifying the humble “realism” of their origins with the elegant courtly manner they found in vogue in the Paris courts. The glory of this “golden age” of book illumination effectively ended with the Battle of Agincourt (1415) and the subsequent occupation of Paris by the English with an English regent John Duke of Bedford on the throne in 1422 after the death of the Valois King Charles VI. The successor to the Boucicaut Master known as the Bedford Master (named for his masterpieces for the English regent) represents the last flowering of this style. Seeking new patronage, Parisian-trained artists thus went elsewhere. Their exit from the French capital accounts for the emergence of many important and creative provincial schools of illumination. Amiens is one such center. In Amiens by the beginning of the 1420s, the Master of Raoul d’Ailly cultivated the patronage of leading figures from noble families: Jacques II de Châtillon was a count of Champagne; Raoul d’Ailly was a vidame or vice-lord (a feudal officer); and the Philippote de Nanterre was the wife of the Seigneur of Roquoncourt, Thierry de la Cloche, both high-ranking members of Amiens society. These three core manuscripts were all made to order and reflect many personal preferences of their patrons. Of the three manuscripts, only the Châtillon Hours is in the public domain and only since 2001, which partly accounts for the fact that the Master of Raoul d’Ailly has not received the attention his art merits. The unique series of the saints, represented in an imposing, monumental style and illustrating Apostles Creed in the Philippote Hours, find their counterparts in the twenty-seven standing figures of the saints illustrating the Suffrages of the Châtillon Hours attributed to the Master of Raoul d’Ailly. The artist’s haunting style is his use of green paint for the modelling, massive figures, and settings of homey interiors or realistic landscapes. Traces of influence of the Bedford Master are found in the artist’s style, and S. Nash suspects the artist was locally trained in Amiens by a member of the Bedford Master’s workshop. More remarkable, however, is the artist’s knowledge and assimilation of Flemish painting. S. Nash has shown that his work includes a lost copy of a painting by the Master of Flemalle (Robert Campin) and moreover, that the illuminator must have personally seen the painting, because he imitates qualities of its painted surface, as well as its composition. She even suggests that the artist owned a work by Campin. Familiarity also with the work of Roger van der Weyden characterizes the artist’s “northern” style. Chronicling the importance of the acquisition of the Châtillon Hours in 2001 by the BnF, François Avril wrote: “Ce manuscrit est un document important pour l'histoire de l’art au XVe siècle. Il témoigne de l’affirmation d’un nouveau centre de production de manuscrits en France. Après la bataille d’Azincourt en 1415, les Anglais s’installent à Paris. Les enlumineurs vont chercher fortune dans d’autres villes. C’est ainsi qu’Amiens devient un centre très actif durant les années 1430-1450. Il témoigne de la confluence du réalisme flamand et du style courtois encore en vogue à Paris. Et, plus largement, du dialogue établi à cette époque entre les artistes du Sud et ceux du Nord, qui a fait évoluer la représentation picturale.” (Chroniques BnF, December 2001). [This manuscript is an important document for the history of art of the fifteenth century. It witnesses the emergence of a new center of manuscript production in France. After the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the English were installed in Paris. Parisian illuminators went to seek their fortune in other towns. Amiens thus became a very active center during the years 1430-1450. It witnesses the confluence of Flemish realism and the courtly style in vogue in Paris. And, more importantly it witnesses the dialogue established during this period between artists of the South and those of the North, who together contributed to the evolution of pictorial representation]. Like the lavish Châtillon Hours, the Philippote Hours shows collaboration between a native Amienois artist and a Parisian-trained immigrant. The artist responsible for the miniatures of the Apostles, and the Suffrage miniature of St. James (Hand A), which are of very high quality, shares the d’Ailly Master’s predilection for vibrant colors, expressive faces, and the decorative use of drapery. Collaborating with this artist is Hand B, a Parisian-style painter, responsible for the Annunciation, the Presentation, the Virgin Weaving, and the Suffrages except St. James, etc. His style is related to that of the Master of Fitzwilliam 65, who was already working in Amiens in the 1420s (see S. Nash, no. 8, p. 285ff.). The dress of Philippote, kneeling before the Virgin and Child on f. 186, dates later, perhaps as late as 1450. Closer examination of this folio, however, shows that her costume has been revamped to reflect a more up-to-date style with narrow sleeves and bodice, a repainting that must date during Philippote’s lifetime since the arms are original and show no evidence of overpainting. This new observation by Susie Nash helps place the Hours of Philippote of Nanterre firmly in the early 1420s. The Philippote Hours thus emerges as one of the earliest works of the Master of Raoul d’Ailly and one of his collaborators. It confirms the presence already at this date of immigrant Parisian artists in Amiens, and it reveals the indigenous roots of the powerful style of the Master of Raoul d’Ailly. The Master of Raoul d’Ailly was to become a major force in Amiens painting of the second quarter of the fifteenth century, contributing to the creation of pioneering forms of pictorial representation.

Provenance: Philippote de Nanterre and her husband, Thierry de la Cloche (the Seigneur of Roquoncourt), Amiens, France; François César Le Teller, Marquis of Courtanvaux (1712-1781), Paris, France; Paul-Louis Weiller (1883-993), Paris, France; James and Elizabeth Ferrell, USA

LES ENLUMINURES, Stand B1 at Masterpiece London 2018 (28 June - 04 July 2018). 

William Ruser, Diamond, ruby and platinum 'Orchestra' bracelet, attributed to Ruser, circa 1940. Courtesy Hancocks.

Bracelet designed as a row of eight orchestral musicians plus a conductor in the centre, the figures all set with a round cabochon star ruby forming the body with diamond set head, arms and legs and feet accented with black onyx, each musician plays a different instrument including timpani, cello, grand piano and harp and is joined by baguette diamond-set links.

Provenance: Previously in the personal jewellery collection of Shirley Temple Black.

Necklace centred on a hammered gold scarab with enamelled hieroglyphics to the reverse and with outspread wings in green plique-a-jour enamel beneath a glowing orange carnelian sun motif, suspended from a swagged necklace of nephrite jade, lapis lazuli and coral beads interspersed with further gold scarabs all with enamelled hieroglyphics to the reverse and a similar concealed tongue and box clasp.

Diamond pendant by Black, Starr & Frost, c.1910, set with a stunning old-cut pear-shaped diamond weighing 5.20cts and of D colour and VVS2 clarity. Courtesy Hancocks.

This pendant showcases an exceptional old-cut pear-shape diamond weighing 5.20cts and of D colour and VVS2 clarity with graceful proportions and a wonderful limpid quality and bright lively appearance, in a beautifully simple and elegant platinum scalloped mount with diamond set bale, suspended from a lovely antique seed pearl and platinum chain by Tiffany & Co.

Amy Burton (London, 1981). The 'Cassiopeia' diamond ring, from the Unum collection by Amy Burton, London, 2017. Diamond, central diamond 4.07ct E vs2 and platinum. Central diamond 10.7 x 8.8 x 5.72 mm (0.7 x 0.3 x 0.2 in.). London Assay and Makers marks.

The ring is centred upon an exquisite old emerald cut diamond with unusually steep cut-corners weighing 4.07 carats, rub over set within an openwork geometric surround of multi-triangular design and bombé shape set throughout with single-cut diamonds to an angular concave shank, all in fine handcrafted platinum.

HANCOCKS, Stand B4 at at Masterpiece London 2018 (28 June - 04 July 2018)

Lot 3161.  A large blue and white 'Dragon' bowl, Ming dynasty, Jiajing mark and period (1522-1566); 29.8 cm., 11 3/4 in. Estimate 300,000-400,000 HKD (29,357 — 39,143 EUR). Lot sold 596,000 HKD (58,323 EUR). Photo Sotheby's.

well potted with deep rounded sides and everted rim raised on a slightly tapered foot, the interior centred with an en face five-clawed dragon leaping amidst lotus scrolls within double circles, the exterior similarly decorated with a pair of sinuous dragons amongst a lotus scroll, all brilliantly painted in vivid tones of cobalt blue above a band of upright lappets circling the foot, the base inscribed with a six-character reign mark in underglaze blue.