44 2nd April 2011 international events Mighty dollar for Chinese in
■ Chinese coin the main attraction as international bidders focus on Germany
Jonathan Franks reports
£1 = €1.17
THE specialist coin auctioneer Fritz Rudolf Künker (15 per cent buyer’s premium), based in Osnabrück, held his first sale of 2011 in Berlin on February 27 during the World Money Fair. For this auction, his sixth in the German capital, Künker had something very special to offer.
It was a proof pattern coin of a
Chinese silver dollar from 1911, weighing 0.983oz (27.89g), bearing the mark of the engraver Giorgi on the reverse. Giorgi’s name can be found on several Chinese proof coins of this period. It was struck during the short reign (1908-1912) of Emperor Xuantong, better known as Puyi or even better as “The Last Emperor”. In 1910 the central mint in Tianjin (Tientsin) designed several new coins, including this silver dollar with its dragon and cloud motifs. The coins are rarities in their own right, the proofs even more so. This one was discovered in a German
collection and appears to be previously unrecorded. As the auctioneer put it after the sale:“We knew that it was a very rare piece; the equivalent of the Blue Mauritius of coin collecting”. Nevertheless, he was still astonished by the level of interest from all over the world. On the day, about a dozen Chinese
dealers and collectors on the phones joined in the vigorous bidding, but had not reckoned with a compatriot in the room, possibly bidding for a private collector, who outbid them all with his final offer of €460,000 (£393,160).
Hamburg
Paintings took the top honours in Hamburg at the auction held by Stahl (20 per cent buyer’s premium) on February 19. First up was a 3ft 4in x 6ft 3in (1.02 x 1.92m) canvas of King David with Abigail by Josse (Joos) de
Above: popular Russian interest subjects in recent German auctions – Franz Roubaud’s Circassian Horsemen at a River made €65,000 (£55,550) at Nagel’s February 23-24 sale, while at Stahl in Hamburg on February 19, Richard Karl (Karlovich) Zommer’s Caravan with Travelling Family, realised €43,000 (£36,750).
Right: Frederick Simpson Coburn’s Chatting on the Logging Trail, sold to a London dealer for €33,000 (£28,200) at Nagel.
Below: a rare proof pattern Chinese silver dollar of 1911 sold for €460,000 (£393,160) at Kunker in Berlin on February 27.
and was possibly exiled to Siberia. Little else is known about his later fate, other than that he died in 1939. After a prolonged battle between up to 15 bidders – on the phone (many of them Russian) and in the room – the hammer fell at €43,000 (£36,750).
Stuttgart
Momper II (1564-1635), consigned by a north German collector, which sold to a foreign buyer for the estimated €45,000 (£38,460). The subject illustrates a scene from the
first Book of Samuel. Abigail encounters David and persuades him not to go to war against her husband Nabal. Soon afterwards the foolish and arrogant Nabal is struck down by the wrath of God, whereupon David takes Abigail as his wife. Momper worked with several other
artists, who painted the figures for him. In this case they were originally attributed to Frans Francken the younger, although now expert opinion considers them the work of Hans Jordaens III. There was more activity in the room
when Garten bei Perchtoldsdorf (Garden near Perchtoldsdorf), a 7 x 10in (18 x 27cm) panel painted in 1895 by the Austrian impressionist Tina Blau (1845- 1916) came up for sale. She was one of the most renowned and accomplished women painters of her day. The highly colourful view from a village on the
southern outskirts of Vienna, a scene she painted on several occasions, attracted dealers and collectors alike. In the end two telephone bidders fought it out until the price reached a treble-estimate €38,000 (£32,480). Numerous bidders had also set their sights on another 19th century painting: Richard Karl (Karlovich) Zommer’s (1866-1939) 20in x 3ft 1in (52 x 94cm) Caravan with Travelling Family, which was in the catalogue at €6000. Zommer was born in Munich, but
moved to St Petersburg in 1884, where he trained as an artist. He spent much of the 1890s in Central Asia, particularly in Uzbekistan, working with an archaeological expedition and painting numerous portraits and landscapes. After the turn of the century he lived in Georgia and was an active supporter of the Academy of Arts in Tbilisi. It seems that he was forced to leave Georgia during the Stalinist purges of the 1930s
Right: this elaborate 18th century casket, possibly of South Italian origin, realised €41,000 (£35,050) at Nagel.
There were quite a few surprises at the February 23-24 sale held in Stuttgart by auctioneers Nagel (33 per cent buyer’s premium). One of them came when an ornate,
15in x 11in x 4in (38cm x 28cm x 11cm) 18th century casket, intricately inlaid with tortoiseshell, brass and mother-of-pearl, caught the eye of several determined bidders. Of Italian, possibly Neapolitan origin,
the estimate of €1500 was way off the mark and the Italian buyer had to go to €41,000 (£35,050) to claim his prize. Another Italian piece, a finely inlaid
mid 18th century rosewood commode, which had been in the same collection
cut out
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