Ahlers & Ogletree's April Estates & Collections Auction, April 20-22, Grosses More Than $1.3 Million

By Author: Natalie Ahlers
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A monumental Art Deco style bronze jardiniere sold for $26,620, a Cartier style 18kt yellow gold and diamond panther collar necklace finished at $20,520, and a brass plaque depicting a stylized face by Roy Lichtenstein realized $14,520 in Ahlers & Ogletree’s three-session April Estates & Collections auction held April 20th, 21st and 22nd in Atlanta, Ga.

The Art Deco style bronze jardiniere, 54 ½ inches tall, was after a vase by Pierre Lenoir (French 1879-1953) and Marcel Guillard (French 1896-1932), for Etling, Paris. It was sculpted as two semi-nude, draped maidens standing back-to-back, supporting an ovoid urn between them, resting on a rectangular base and having allover verdigris patination.

The heavy 18k yellow gold and diamond panther collar necklace, made in the manner of Cartier, contained about 364 round brilliant cut diamonds, weighing approximately 10.00 carats of SI-2 clarity and H-I-J average color. It had a bead prong set into the center of "walking jaguar" motif links with both high polish and matte finishes and a tension clasp.

The brass plaque by Roy Lichtenstein (American 1923-1997) ...
... was titled Modern Head Relief (1970) and had a copper plate en verso with an etched signature and edition number “70/100”. It measured 24 inches by 17 ¾ inches. Lichtenstein was a leading figure in the new art movement of the 1960s. His work defined the premise of pop art through parody.

The auction, starting at 10 am Eastern time all three days, was held live in Ahlers & Ogletree’s new location on Atlanta’s Upper West Side, at 1788 Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard, near The Works, and online. Over 1,200 lots came up for bid, including items from the private collections of Barry Hunter, owner of Parc Monceau; and Bruce Cusmano, owner of Metropolitan Artifacts.

Session 1, on Thursday, April 20th, consisted of 489 lots of Asian arts, English and American antiques, fine art and decorative arts. Session 2, on Friday, April 21st, contained 313 lots of Mid-Century and Modern art and design, fine estate jewelry and luxury handbags. The final session, held on April 22nd, showcased 430 lots of European art, antiques and wonderful decorative arts.

Following are additional highlights from the auction, which totaled $1,333,851, as 11,500 people registered to bid online to place a combined 19,083 bids. There were also 65 phone bids. Online bidding was offered on Ahlers & Ogletree’s popular bidding platform, bid.AandOAuctions.com, as well as LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com. Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium.

A pair of Italian bronze figural fountain sculptures depicting the god Triton in merman form, kneeling with a conch held up to his lips, gaveled for $18,150. Each sculpture had a foundry mark to tail reading, "Fuse F. Martinelli, Firenze". One was signed indistinctly.

The original artwork category was highlighted by an oil on canvas Study of a Brown Bay Horse by Rosa Marie Bonheur (French, 1822-1899), a landscape painting depicting a standing chestnut brown bay horse with trees in the distance, signed ($15,730); and a two-sided oil on canvas painting by Emile Thysebaert (Belgium 1873-1963), titled Hommes au travail (Men at Work) and Hommes au travail sur un port, a genre scene of two males in conversation, one seated on a white horse, artist signed and dated ($11,495).

A pair of Italian low octagonal form purple veined marble pedestals, possibly Breccia Capraia, each having a shaped capital and plinth base, apparently unmarked, each one 16 ¾ inches tall, left the room for $7,865; while a large, 54-inch-tall bronze and parcel gilt standing winged figure of Cupid holding a bow with verdigris patination to his hair, after Auguste Moreau (French 1834-1917), titled Cupid with Bow and Quiver, made $7,260.

In the furniture category, a set of eight English mahogany dining chairs in the George III Chippendale taste, 19th/20th century, comprising one arm chair and seven side chairs, all rising on front cabriole legs with ball and claw feet, fetched $7,260. Also, an Eames for Herman Miller 670 and 671 lounge chair and ottoman set, both having rosewood veneer shells and red leather upholstery, appropriately marked to the underside, reached $6,665.

Asian objects proved popular with bidders, as a pair of Chinese cloisonné on brass vases of tapering square section with trumpet necks, each one 19 inches tall and each side depicting a different flower symbolizing the four seasons of the year, went for $6,665; and a Japanese style red and black lacquer desk with chair, the desk having a pierced and carved crest depicting confronting dragons and a phoenix above shelves and compartments with doors, the whole rising on figural cabriole legs with dragon head knees, together with a similarly decorated red and black lacquer chair, achieved $5,445.

Next up for Ahlers & Ogletree is a three-day Fine Estates & Collections auction planned for June 15th-17th, online and live in the new gallery on Atlanta’s Upper West Side, at 1788 Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard, near The Works. For more info, visit www.AandOAuctions.com.

To learn more about Ahlers & Ogletree and the three-day Fine Estates & Collections auction planned for June 15th-17th, please visit www.AandOAuctions.com. Updates are posted often. You can follow Ahlers & Ogletree via social media on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest & Facebook.