Potomack Features Strong Supporting Cast
Walter C. Newman | September 29th, 2012
|
The high lot of sale was this original woodcut by M.C. Escher (Dutch, 1898-1972), Tetrahedral Planetoid. Various versions of the visually challenging image have graced the walls of dormitory rooms for generations. It measures 17½" x 17½" (sight size) and was presented framed and matted. It is signed in the woodcut with Escher’s distinctive “MCE” within a rectangle on lower right and “IV – ’54” on lower left. There is also a signature “MC Escher” in graphite on the lower left outside of the image. An absentee bidder won the Escher woodcut at $20,562.50 (est. $15,000/25,000).
This pair of 10" diameter intricately painted Chinese Famille Rose saucers or dishes dates from the 18th-century period of the Qing Dynasty. Their outer borders are painted with the same pattern of butterflies, lotus blossoms, peonies, roses, and other flowers. Their inner borders feature five Fu characters representing good fortune and happiness as well as symbols for wealth. The center of each of the saucers is painted with a pastoral scene of individuals near a body of water. The lot was contested among bidders on the phones and on the Internet. One of the Internet buyers won, paying $4700 (est. $600/800) for the pair.  Swatow ware is a type of late Ming Dynasty export porcelain. Its origin is the area around present-day Shantou in southeastern China. These blue and white chargers are decorated with a central phoenix and chrysanthemum motif. The undersides are decorated with dragons. The chargers are each supported by a large short foot. The bases are unglazed. The larger of the two measures 16" in diameter, and the lot brought $1880 (est. $300/500). |
The Potomack Company, Alexandria, Virginia
Potomack Features Strong Supporting Cast
by Walter C. Newman
Photos courtesy The Potomack Company
It is difficult to begin any auction when the featured and most heavily publicized lot has been removed from the sale. It is doubly so when the second-most-anticipated lot suffers the same fate. That was the case at the September 29 and 30, 2012, sale at The Potomack Company in Alexandria, Virginia.
The widely publicized and eagerly anticipated sale of a small landscape by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (French, 1841-1919), estimated at $75,000/100,000, was canceled. The painting had been found not long ago at a flea market; then, shortly before the sale, it was learned that the painting had been stolen from the Baltimore Museum of Art some 60 years ago. Uncertainty surrounding the ownership of the painting dictated its removal from the sale. (See M.A.D., November 2012, p. 10-A.)
In addition, an intricately carved Chinese rhinoceros horn libation cup was also withdrawn. The cup, estimated at $40,000/60,000, suffered from jurisdictional rather than ownership issues. Consignors of wildlife products, such as the horn cup, must be a resident of the state in which the sale is held. The rhinoceros horn cup’s consignor did not reside in Virginia. Consequently, the item had to be withdrawn.
Even with the two primary attractions out of the mix, there was still an ample supply of excellent items offered during the two-day sale. Leading the way was an interesting group of archaic to 19th-century Chinese and Southeast Asian ceramics from the estate of Elizabeth Ann Swift Cronin (1940-2004). Cronin had been a well-traveled career U.S. Foreign Service officer. (She was one of the two women held prisoner for the entire time of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.) More than 50 items from her collection crossed the block.
The high lot from among the Cronin items was a small 16th-century kendi(water vessel) that sold for $4406.25 (includes buyer’s premium) against an estimate of $600/800.
Most of the remaining Cronin items sold close to or within their estimates. A 5" long green/gray jade carving of a hound crouching on its haunches brought $264; a group of five 6" diameter bowls, all with similar equestrian theme decoration, along with a sixth associated bowl, brought $705 as a single lot; and a small (4¼" diameter) blue and white decorated “palace” bowl on stand from the Ming Dynasty made $1175.
The high lot for the day was created at least 300 years after the final days of the Ming Dynasty. A signed woodblock by M.C. (Maurits Cornelis) Escher, Tetrahedral Planetoid, dated 1954, sold with a single bid for $20,562.50 (est. $15,000/25,000).
Other pieces of artwork by 20th-century luminaries also sold well. Three colorful signed and numbered lithographs by Alexander Calder (1898-1976) found new homes. Balloons, Abstract Composition, and Composition sold for $999, $646.25, and $1762.50, respectively. Two correctly signed drypoint and aquatint etchings by Louis Icart (French, 1888-1950), Coursing II and Speed, sold within estimates at $1175 each. A color etching by Salvador Dali (Spanish, 1904-1989), Don Quichotte et les moulins à vent, brought $588.
The second day of the sale was dominated by a consigned group of 250 Oriental rugs from a Palm Beach, Florida, collection. The number offered at this sale reflects half of the number consigned. (Another 250 rugs were for sale on December 9, 2012.) The floor coverings were sold without reserve and were well received. Bargain hunters took the opportunity to shop, and the category enjoyed active bidding throughout the day. The high lot among the carpets was an antique (Indian) Agra that sold within estimate for $9400.
For additional information, contact The Potomack Company at (703) 684-4550 or visit the Web site (www.potomackcompany.com).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The blue and white Chinese brush pot dates from the late Qing Dynasty, circa 1900. The pot is rather large at 7½" diameter x 5½" high and formed as a slightly flared cylinder. It is decorated with a poem by Wang Xizhi, a 4th-century calligrapher. There is a four-character underglaze mark that translates as “Scholarship as high as the mountain and the Great Bear.” The brush pot sold to an Internet buyer for $2643.75 (est. $400/600).
This medal is one of a group of seven similar presentation pieces that were offered as a single lot. Four of the medals display some form of the double-headed eagle associated with Imperial Russia. Two are dated 1882 and 1883 as part of their design. All of the medals are enameled and feature some sort of heraldry or regal design element. Bidding for the group settled between a phone bidder and a determined individual in the room. The individual bidding in person was the winner at $1292.50 (est. $60/80).
This large (23½" high overall) tramp art style wooden construction from the early 20th century is one of a group of three similar items offered as a single lot. The large cross is on an intricately configured stand, and the whole appears to be assembled without fasteners of any kind. It is held in place by tension among its interlocking wooden pegs and braces. The cross is coated with a clear varnish. The lot went to a left bid at $352.50 (est. $100/150).
This colorful lithograph by Alexander Calder (1898-1976), Composition, 18½" x 25", signed and numbered lower right “Calder 92/100,” sold for $1762.50 (est. $600/900).
This lot of 19 gentleman’s jewelry items is a varied group. The common thread is that all of the pieces contain a measurable amount of gold. Included are several rings, safety pins, collar bars, key covers, a tie tack, and three unrelated individual cufflinks. A left bid won the lot at $1762.50 (est. $1200/1500).
Royal Copenhagen’s Blue Fluted Plain pattern originated in 1775. This 145-piece set is probably from the turn into the 20th century. The popularity of the pattern, as well as the size of the offering, pushed the bidding on this lot well beyond the $800/1200 estimate, and it went to a left bid at $4406.25.
This Neoclassical-style fireplace surround, 82½" x 76" x 7½", is constructed of pine and probably dates from the late 19th century. It features a large overmantel section with an opening in which to mount a mirror. The side panels are decorated. Both the uppermost crown molding and the narrow mantel below the mirror opening are highlighted by dentil trim. The entire mantel is framed by carved double columns resting on tall plinth bases. It is painted white and decorated with applied elements featuring swags, roundels, and medallions. The fireplace surround sold to an Internet bidder for $352.50 (est. $300/600).
This is one example from a lot of two carved ivory folding fans. The guard sticks of this fan are deeply carved with a pastoral scene. There are 19 intricately carved filigree leaves decorated with what appears to be a continuous landscape scene that features a variety of vegetation, buildings, insects, and scholars. The fan elements are secured with two strands of white silk ribbon. The two carved fans sold to an Internet buyer for $1527.50 (est. $400/600).Originally published in the January 2013 issue of Maine Antique Digest. © 2013 Maine Antique Digest
