The sales of the season leave auction buyers spoiled for choice

This month marks the last sale of the season for some auction houses in a record year.

Great Irish interest in Bonhams Fine Books, Manuscripts and Photography Sale on Lot 62, € 2,300 – € 4,600) and a signed presentation copy from James Joyce’s Ulysses to HG Wells (€ 23,000 – 35,000) as well as Oscar Wilde’s signed presentation copy of the poems to the writer Alphonse Daudet. Interestingly, 13 years after its inclusion in this book, on the night Wilde was found guilty of gross indecency (May 25, 1895), at a dinner with Wilde’s first biographer Robert Sherard, Daudet remarked that he was “satisfied with the verdict ” be. and should “show no sympathy for a fellow writer” (€ 21,000 to € 29,000).

Damian Matthews’ bumper sale, which runs from Saturday June 19 to Tuesday June 22, includes the collection of artist Graham Ford, whom Matthews describes as “an eccentric and voracious collector, if ever there was one”. Ford, who died in November 2020, was chief designer at Navan Carpets for 30 years and attended art school with David Hockney, the British painter who holds the record for the most expensive work sold by a living artist.

Ford never exhibited while painting, and the auction includes 280 of his works with low estimates of € 30-50. It appears he lived as a hermit, as Matthews says the former designer never let anyone into his Churchtown House residence, which was recently sold for 2.5 million euros; According to Matthews, it took “three months and four skips to get it down to 2,500 lots”.

Slave traps

Ford’s Lego collection is interesting with around 70 parts, 300 books, 70 train sets and curiosities such as slave traps. Two important portraits that have been privately put for sale are Robert Rochfort with the Great Mace of the Irish Parliament (€ 30,000-50,000) and a portrait of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury. If ever an Irish eccentric lived, it was surely the Offaly man who spoke 27 languages, shot a tiger that devoured 21 Indian holy men, and a bear named Agu on his Midlands estate, Belvedere House For 20 years a former Shakespeare actor known as Sexy Rexy held while he was living with him. That year, a century ago, Howard-Bury was appointed head of the first Mount Everest exploration expedition, and it was during that trip that he found footprints at great heights. While he stated that the tracks were likely caused by “a great gray wolf”, his Sherpas had other ideas and the term “hideous snowman” first came up. The portrait of Luma von Flesch-Brunningen is listed at 20,000 to 30,000 euros.

Victor Mee’s two-day June sale of decorative interiors on Tuesday June 29 and Wednesday June 30 includes the contents of St. Highlights include a pair of 19th century mahogany bookcases (Lot 95, 1,000-2,000 €) and Lot 288, a rare kitchen table made of elm from the 19th century.

Owl run

Morgan O’Driscoll’s final sale through August, currently open and ending Monday June 28, includes works by Donald Teskey, Daniel O’Neill, Tony O’Malley, Paul Henry, and a large painting by Hughie O. ‘Donoghue run from his owl series. The canvas, measuring almost 1.80 by 2.70 meters, shows a place in Mayo where the artist spent much of his youth. And in those innocent years, he misunderstood what the locals called “Aul”. [old] run ”, hence the series dedicated to a lonely nocturnal animal. The painting, listed with an estimate of € 25,000 to € 35,000, is similar in composition – albeit slightly smaller – to the work from the same series and era, which set a record for the artist at a Sotheby’s auction in 2019 when it fetched € 109,557 ( including bonus) against a reserve of € 17,000 to € 28,200.

Hegarty’s specialized art auction of 150 lots of Irish and international works on Sunday June 20th includes John Butler Yeats, Ivan Sutton, Frank Egginton, Con Campbell and Douglas Alexander. And if you missed the Whyte summer sale last week, there are still some unsold lots at great prices.

Next Tuesday, June 22nd, John Weldon will hold his largest auction of the year with over 500 lots. Highlights include a 3.11-carat diamond solitaire ring (€ 10,000-15,000) that has a certificate of purchase valued at € 35,750 from Rocks Jewelers; a 12-carat diamond chain (€ 12,000 – € 15,000) and a yellow diamond on a pendant (€ 13,500 – 15,500). Interesting is a Ballon Bleu Cartier watch made of 18 carat gold – wrapped in papers – from January 2020. These timepieces normally cost € 12,300, which is roughly double the lower estimate of € 6,500.

bonhams.com; matthewsauctionrooms.com; Siegermeeauktionen.ie; morganodriscoll.com; hegartysantiques.com; whytes.ie; jwa.ie