SOTHEBY'S TO SELL RARE 10.99 CARAT PINK DIAMOND

SOTHEBY'S GENEVA ANNOUNCED RECENTLY THAT IT WILL PRESENT AN IMPORTANT PINK DIAMOND, WEIGHING 10.99 CARATS IN ITS SALE OF MAGNIFICENT & NOBLE JEWELS ON 17.MAY, SIX MONTHS AFTER THE RECORD BREAKING SALE OF THE GRAFF DIAMOND, THE MOST EXPENSIVE DIAMOND AND JEWEL EVER SOLD AT AUCTION. COMMENTING OF THE FORTHCOMING SALE, DAVID BENNETT, CHAIRMAN OF SOTHEBY'S JEWELRY DEPARTMENT FOR EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST SAID: 'I DO NOT REMEMBER THE MARKET FOR COLOURED DIAMONDS TO HAVE EVER BEEN AS STRONG AS IT IS TODAY. THIS WAS UNDERLINED BY THE UNPRECEDENTED RESULTS OF OUR LAST NOVEMBER SALE AND UNDOUBTEDLY INFLUENCED THE OWNER'S DECISION TO SELL THIS BEAUTIFUL PINK DIAMOND WHICH HAS NOT APPEARED ON THE MARKET FOR OVER 30 YEARS.' THE SUPERB STONE, MOUNTED AS A RING, HAS BEEN GRADED 'FANCY INTENSE PINK', NATURAL COLOUR AND VSI CLARITY BY THE GEMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA. IT HAS BEEN FURTHER ASSESSED TO BE PART OF A VERY RARE SUBGROUP OF DIAMONDS AS TYPE IIa AND COMPRISING LESS THAN 2% OF ALL OF THE WORLD'S GEM DIAMONDS. THE BEAUTY AND RARITY OF THE STUNNING DIAMOND ALSO LIES IN ITS CUT AND SHAPE. IT FEATURES A CLASSIC EMERALD CUT, A STYLE OF CUTTING NORMALLY ASSOCIATED WITH WHITE DIAMONDS AND IMMENSELY SOUGHT-AFTER WHEN FOUND IN THE RARE COLOURS SUCH AS PINK AND BLUE. ESTIMATED AT $9-$12 MILLION, THE STONE IS BEING OFFERED FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTOR.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS PAINTING ONCE OWNED BY BARYSHNIKOV

A 19th CENTURY PAINTING OF ST. PETERSBURG THAT MIKHAIL BARYSHNIKOV PURCHASED DECADES AGO, AND DEPICTING THE RUSSIAN CITY HE LOVED, WAS AUCTIONED RECENTLY FOR $746,500 TO BENEFIT THE FAMOUS DANCER'S NEW YORK CITY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER. THE PROCEEDS FROM THE SOTHEBY'S SALE WILL GO TOWARD NEW PROGRAMMING AT THE BARYSHNIKOV ARTS CENTER. A GERMAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR PLACED THE WINNING BID BY TELEPHONE FOR 'VIEW OF ST PETERSBURG' BY PETER PETROVICH VERESHCHAGIN. THE PRE-SALE ESTIMATE FOR THE STUNNING CITYSCAPE WAS $300,000 TO $500,000. BARYSHNIKOV RECENTLY DONATED THE PAINTING TO THE CENTER'S FOUNDATION SO IT COULD SELL IT TO RAISE MONEY TO DEVELOP NEW PROGRAMMING FROM THEATER DIRECTORS, MUSICIANS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS. BARYSHNIKOV SERVES AS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER THAT HE FOUNDED IN 2005 AS A 'CREATIVE LABORATORY' AND PERFORMANCE SPACE FOR MULTIDISCIPLINARY ARTISTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. IT HOUSES FOUR STUDIOS, A STUDIO THEATER AND A 232-SEAT JEROME ROBBINS THEATER IN MANHATTAN's HELL's KITCHEN, OFFERING PERFORMANCES IN CHAMBER MUSIC, DANCE, THEATER AND VISUAL ARTS AND FILM SCREENINGS. IN A RECENT INTERVIEW WITH THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, BARYSHNIKOV SAID HE PURCHASED THE PAINTING AT A HELSINKI GALLERY AROUND 1978. WHILE IT HELD SENTIMENTAL VALUE BECAUSE HE 'SPENT THE BEST OF MY YOUTH' IN ST PETERSBURG, HE FELT THE MONEY FROM THE SALE COULD BE USED TO PRODUCE NEW ART AT HIS CENTER. 'THAT'S MUCH MORE IMPORTANT THAN A LOOK BACK AND BEING NOSTALGIC ABOUT THE PAST', HE SAID. BARYSHNIKOV SAID HIS NONPROFIT ARTS CENTER DID NOT YET HAVE AN ENDOWMENT AND RELIED ON DONATIONS FROM INDIVIDUALS AND CORPORATIONS. HE HAS ALREADY DONATED HUNDREDS OF WORKS FROM HIS EXTENSIVE 19th-20th CENTURY ART COLLECTION TO THE FOUNDATION BUT SAID THE VERESHCHAGIN WORK WAS THE FIRST TO BE SOLD TO BENEFIT THE ORGANIZATION. EVENTUALLY, BARYSHNIKOV SAID HE PLANNED TO DONATE ALL HIS ARTWORKS TO THE FOUNDATION.

SOTHEBY'S TO SELL GAUGUIN CARVED SCULPTURE 'JEUNE TAHITIENNE'

AN INTRICATE WOODEN BUST CARVED BY PAUL GAUGUIN IS EXPECTED TO SELL FOR AS MUCH AS $15 MILLION WHEN IT IS AUCTIONED ON 3.MAY, ACCORDING TO SOTHEBY'S. 'JEUNE TAHITIENNE', WHICH WAS CARVED BY GAUGUIN DURING HIS FIRST TRIP TO TAHITI BETWEEN 1891 AND 1893, DEPICTS A YOUNG, UNIDENTIFIED TAHITIAN WOMAN AND INCLUDES JEWELRY WHICH GAUGUIN MADE HIMSELF USING SEASHELLS AND PIECES OF RED CORAL. A PIECING LEFT ON THE EAR IS BELIEVED BY EXPERTS TO HAVE ONCE HELD A FLOWER, AND TWO FOXES CARVED IN THE BACK OF THE NECK REPRESENT A SORT OF SIGNATURE GAUGUIN OFTEN USED, WITH THE FOXES BEING REPRESENTATIVE OF SEXUALITY. 'IT'S RARE TO SEE A PIECE OF ART OF SUCH GREAT QUALITY AND WITH SUCH A GREAT STORY', SAID SIMON SHAW, SOTHEBY'S HEAD OF IMPRESSIONIST AND MODERN ART. 'IT'S TRULY UNIQUE.' THE 9.5 INCH HIGH CARVING, WHICH HAS NOT BEEN SEEN IN PUBLIC SINCE 1961, WAS GIVEN AS A GIFT TO THEN 10 YEAR OLD JEANNE FOURNIER, THE DAUGHTER OF FRENCH ART CRITIC AND COLLECTOR JEAN DOLENT. 'HIS SCULPTURES WEREN'T VERY WELL RECEIVED BY THE FRENCH AVANT-GARDE ART WORLD AT THE TIME, EVEN THOUGH HE CONSIDERED THEM HIS GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS', SHAW SAID. 'FOURNIER PROBABLY RESPONDED IN A MUCH MORE POSITIVE AND VISCERAL WAY.' FOURNIER LATER GAVE THE SCULPTURE TO FATHER CELAS RZEWUSKI, A DOMINICAN PRIEST, WHO IN TURN HANDED IT OVER TO SOTHEBY'S, WHO SOLD IT TO ITS CURRENT OWNER. THE SCULPTURE IS THE ONLY FULLY-WORKED BUST GAUGUIN IS KNOWN TO HAVE MADE. HE IS BETTER KNOWN FOR HIS POST-IMPRESSIONIST PAINTINGS, MANY OF WHICH DEPICT SCENES FROM THE YEARS HE SPENT LIVING IN THE ISLANDS OF FRENCH POLYNESIA. AFTER AN INITIAL VOYAGE FROM 1891 TO 1893, GAUGUIN EVENTUALLY MOVED THERE PERMANENTLY AND IT IS WHERE HE LATER DIED. SHAW SAID THAT GAUGUIN'S FASCINATION WITH FRENCH POLYNESIA STEMMED FROM HIS DESIRE TO ESCAPE MODERN LIFE AND HIS FORMER CAREER AS A STOCKBROKER IN FRANCE, SOMETHING THAT RESONATES WITH MANY OF HIS MODERN-DAY ENTHUSIASTS. 'AFTER HE LEFT THE BANKING INDUSTRY, HE BECAME A REAL ESCAPIST', SHAW SAID. 'HE WANTED TO GET AWAY FROM CROWDS AND MODERNITY. HE WENT LOOKING FOR ANOTHER WORLD BEYOND THE MODERN WORLD', HE ADDED. 'SOMETHING ABOUT THIS DESIRE FOR ESCAPE AND FINDING AN ALTERNATIVE REALITY REALLY HAS GREAT RESONANCE FOR TODAY.'

SOTHEBY'S TO SELL EMERALD AND DIAMOND TIARA

DAVID BENNETT, SOTHEBY'S CHAIRMAN OF JEWELRY FOR EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST, TODAY ANNOUNCED THAT SOTHEBY'S WILL SELL THE MOST VALUABLE EMERALD AND DIAMOND TIARA TO HAVE APPEARED AT AUCTION IN OVER 30 YEARS IN ITS SALE OF MAGNIFICENT AND NOBLE JEWELS IN GENEVA ON 17.MAY. ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR A RECORD £3.1-6.2 MILLION, THE HIGHLY IMPORTANT AND EXTREMELY RARE EMERALD AND DIAMOND TIARA IS COMPOSED OF 11 EXCEPTIONALLY RARE COLOMBIAN EMERALD PEAR-SHAPED DROPS WHICH WEIGH OVER 500 CARATS IN TOTAL, WHICH MAY WELL HAVE ORIGINALLY ADORNED THE NECK OF A MAHARAJAH. THE EMERALDS ARE ALSO BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN IN THE PERSONAL COLLECTION OF EMPRESS EUGENIE. THE SUPERB TIARA WAS COMMISSIONED, POSSIBLY FROM THE RENOWNED JEWELERS CHAUMET, BY GUIDO COUNT VON HENCKEL, FIRST PRINCE VON DONNERSMARCK FOR HIS SECOND WIFE PRINCESS KATHARINA. THE JEWELRY COLLECTION OF THE DONNERSCARCKS WAS KNOWN TO BE ON PAR WITH, OR EVEN TO HAVE EXCEEDED, THOSE OF MANY OF THE CROWNED HEADS OF EUROPE.

SOTHEBY'S/PIASA TO SELL ICONIC FABIUS FRERES GALLERY COLLECTION

SOTHEBY'S ANNOUNCED TODAY THAT, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE AUCTION HOUSE PIASA, IT WILL SELL THE FABIUS FRERES GALLERY COLLECTION ON 18-19.OCTOBER IN PARIS. THE 400 SCULPTURES, PIECES OF FURNITURE, WORKS OF ART, DRAWINGS AND 19th CENTURY PAINTINGS, ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR €9 - 14 MILLION, WILL BE ON DISPLAY AT THE GALERIE CHARPENTIER FOR FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO THE SALE. THE FABIUS FRERES GALLERY IN KNOWN WORLDWIDE FOR THE EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY, CONDITION AND PROVENANCE OF WORKS OF ART IN THEIR COLLECTION. THE SELECTION OF SCULPTURE TO BE OFFERED REPRESENTS PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT GROUP OF 19th CENTURY SCULPTURES EVER TO BE SOLD AT AUCTION AND INCLUDES WORKS BY TWO OF THE LEADING EUROPEAN SCULPTORS OF THEIR TIME, ANTOINE-LOUIS BARYE AND JEAN-BAPTISTE CARPEAUX. THE FURNITURE SECTION COMPRISES CLASSICAL 18th CENTURY AND MORE EXUBERANT CREATIONS FROM THE 19th CENTURY. THE CLASSICAL FURNITURE RANGES FROM THE PERIOD OF LOUIS XIV TO EMPIRE STYLE. FOR DECADES THE FABIUS FRERES GALLERY PROMOTED THE FURNITURE OF THE 19th CENTURY, INCLUDING WORKS BY MAJOR CABINETMAKERS SUCH AS GROHE OR DIEHL, AS WELL AS ASTONISHING NEO-RENAISSANCE CREATIONS. IN THE DECORATIVE ART SECTIONS, CERAMICS AND GLASS FROM THE FABIUS FRERES GALLERY COLLECTION ARE REPRESENTED WITH A RICH DIVERSITY OF PIECES, AND UNIQUE AND REFINED WORKS BY THEODORE DECK, EUGENE COLLINOT AND MAURICE MARINOT. THE COLLECTION BRINGS TO SALE AN INTERESTING GROUP OF PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS BY THE SCULPTORS CARPEAUX AND BARYE, AS WELL AS SOME GREAT 19th CENTURY PORTRAITS, AND GENRE PAINTINGS BY CAROLUS-DURAN, JEAN BERAUD AND ADOLPHE YVON. FOUNDER OF ONE OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS PARISIAN ART GALLERIES, ELLE FABIUS BECAME ONE OF THE PRINCIPAL ACTORS OF THE ART MARKET FROM THE 1890s TO THE 1940s. PASSIONATE ABOUT NAPOLEON AND LAFAYETTE MEMORABILIA, AND OBJECTS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE, AS WELL AS SCULPTURE BY BARYE AND CARPEAUX, FABIUS BROUGHT THE 19th CENTURY STYLE BACK INTO FASHION. PIECES WHICH PASSED THROUGH HIS HANDS ARE NOW IN THE COLLECTIONS OF THE MOST IMPORTANT MUSEUMS IN FRANCE AND IN THE UNITED STATES. ELIE FABIUS' WORK WAS CARRIED ON FIRST BY HIS SONS AND THEN WITH THE SAME ELEGANCE AND PASSION BY HIS GRANDSON FRANCOIS, DECEASED IN 2006. SOTHEBY'S AND PIASA ARE VERY PROUD TO HAVE BEEN ENTRUSTED BY MRS ARMELLE FABIUS WITH THE SALE OF SUCH A PRESTIGIOUS COLLECTION.

RARE KING EDWARD VII RIFLE TO BE AUCTIONED IN APRIL

A RIFLE BELONGING TO EDWARD, PRINCE OF WALES, BEFORE HE BECAME KING EDWARD VII WILL BE OFFERED BY GAVIN GARDINER (IN ASSOCIATION WITH SOTHEBY'S) IS A SALE OF FINE MODERN AND VINTAGE SPORTING GUNS AND RIFLES ON 20.APRIL, AT SOTHEBY'S NEW BOND STREET LOCATION. MADE BY FAMOUS LONDON GUNMAKER JAMES PURDEY & SONS, THIS HAMMER RIFLE WAS BUILT IN 1873 FOR THE PRINCE OF WALES (KING EDWARD VII 1901-1911) AND WAS USED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS. IT WAS SUBSEQUENTLY TAKEN TO INDIA AND USED DURING THE PRINCE'S VISIT IN 1876. RECORDS STATE THAT HER MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT PLACED AN ORDER WITH PURDEY'S FOR A NUMBER OF RIFLES TO BE PRESENTED AS GIFTS DURING THE VISIT, HOWEVER THIS WAS THE PRINCE'S OWN EXAMPLE AND IS ESTIMATED AT £7,000-9,000. COMMENTING ON THE AUCTION, GAVIN GARDINER SAID: 'I AM DELIGHTED TO BE OFFERING SUCH A HISTORIC RIFLE AT MY FORTHCOMING AUCTION. BUILT IN 1873 FOR EDWARD, PRINCE OF WALES, THE RIFLE WAS GIVEN TO ONE OF HIS FAITHFUL HUSSARS FOLLOWING HIS RECORD TIGER SHOOT ON HIS STATE VISIT TO INDIA IN 1876. UNLIKE MANY OTHER RIFLES PRESENTED ON THIS VISIT AS GIFTS, THIS PARTICULAR RIFLE WAS THE PRINCE'S OWN, THAT HE USED TO GOOD EFFECT, AND WAS GIVEN IN REWARD TO FAITHFUL SERVICE TO A MEMBER OF HIS OWN REGIMENT AT THE END OF THE MONTHS SPORT. IT IS RARE THAT SUCH IMPORTANT AND HISTORIC ITEMS APPEAR AT AUCTION, AND I AM VERY PLEASED TO HAVE DISCOVERED THIS PIECE.' GAVIN GARDINER IS THE ONLY SPECIALIST FIREARMS AUCTIONEER HOLDING HIS AUCTIONS IN THE HEART OF LONDON'S WEST END, WHERE HE HOLDS TWO SALES EACH YEAR AS WELL AS HIS PRESTIGIOUS SALE AT THE GLENEAGLES HOTEL, SCOTLAND IN AUGUST.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS THE LATE DUTCH QUEEN JULIANA'A POSSESSIONS

FROM THREADBARE ARMCHAIRS TO MARBLE MANTEL CLOCKS, GARDEN FURNITURE TO A SILVER POCKET KNIFE, THOUSANDS OF THE LATE DUTCH QUEEN JULIANA'A POSSESSIONS ARE GOING UNDER THE HAMMER IN AN ATTIC SALE FIT FOR A KING. THE FOUR-DAY AUCTION BY SOTHEBY'S STARTED MONDAY AND WAS STIRRING INTEREST AMONG SERIOUS COLLECTORS AS WELL AS DIE-HARD ROYALTY FANS OF THE POPULAR HOUSE OF ORANGE. A TOTAL OF 1,725 LOTS GATHERED FROM SEVEN ROYAL PALACES WERE BEING AUCTIONED WITH THE PROCEEDS GOING TO FOUR CHARITIES, ONE CHOSEN BY EACH OF JULIANA'S FOUR DAUGHTERS. 'IT'S REALLY LIKE A ROYAL ATTIC SALE', AUCTIONEER MARK GROL TOLD THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. 'WITH PAINTINGS TO PRINTS, CERAMICS, SILVER, FURNITURE. JUST BASICALLY EVERYTHING YOU WOULD FIND IN A PALACE.' THE SALE IS INTENDED TO CLEAR OUT UNWANTED BELONGINGS THAT WERE LEFT OVER AFTER JULIANA'S ESTATE WAS DIVIDED AMONG HER DAUGHTERS FOLLOWING HER DEATH IN 2004 AT AGE 94. SOME 10,000 PEOPLE COME ON VIEWING DAYS LAST WEEK AT THE SOTHEBY'S OFFICE IN AMSTERDAM, SHUFFLING THROUGH A MAZE OF OAK TABLES, MAHOGANY AND SATINWOOD CHAIRS, AND GIANT CHANDELIERS. WALLS WERE LINED WITH OIL AND WATERCOLOUR PAINTINGS. TO UNDERSCORE THE ROYAL PROVENANCE, PHOTOS SHOWED SOME OF THE LOTS IN USE AT THE PALACES THEY CAME FROM. ONE PHOTO SHOWED QUEEN JULIANA, HER HUSBAND PRINCE BERNHARD AND THEIR FOUR DAUGHTERS, INCLUDING PRESENT QUEEN BEATRIX, EATING BREAKFAST AT SOESTDIJK PALACE USING A SERVICE BEING AUCTIONED WITH A PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF $4,185-$5,580. GROL SAID THAT ONLY AFTER THE FIRST 213 LOTS WERE UP FOR GRABS ON MONDAY WOULD THERE WOULD BE AN INDICATION OF HOW FAR OVER THE PRE-SALE MINIMUM ESTIMATE OF ABOUT $2.07 MILLION THE AUCTION WOULD GO. HE SAID INTEREST WAS HIGH NOT JUST FROM THE NETHERLANDS, BUT ALSO FROM THE US, RUSSIA AND CHINA. EARLY BIDDING WAS BRISK, WITH A COMBINATION OF ONLINE, TELEPHONE AND AUCTION ROOM BIDS PUSHING UP THE PRICE OF THE FIRST LOT, A QUINTESSENTIALLY DUTCH WATERCOLOUR OF SKATERS ON A FROZEN WATERWAY BY JAN ANTHONIE LANGENDIJK TO $7,000. THE PRE-SALE ESTIMATE WAS $1,377-$2,066. THOSE IN THE ROOM WERE GIVEN CARDS, ORANGE, OF COURSE, WITH A BIDDER'S NUMBER ON IT. THERE APPEARED TO BE SOME BARGAINS ON OFFER, WITH THE CHEAPEST LOT AN OAK WRITING DESK WITH A PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF JUST $35-$70. 'SOME ITEMS WILL GO FOR A REASONABLE PRICE, BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF INTEREST BOTH FROM COLLECTORS AND PEOPLE WHO WANT TO BUY A SOUVENIR FROM THE ROYAL FAMILY WHO'S VERY POPULAR IN THE NETHERLANDS', GROL SAID. ROYAL FANS WERE LIKELY BEHIND LIVELY ONLINE BIDDING FOR A PINE BOX WITH 'ZKH PRINS DER NEDERLANDEN STAL SOESTDIJK', MEANING 'HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS PRINCE OF THE NETHERLANDS SOESTDIJK STABLE' PAINTED ON THE LID. ONE BIDDER WHO DESCRIBED HIMSELF AS A COLLECTOR AND A ROYAL FAN SAID HE HOPED TO BUY SOME ANTIQUE PORCELAIN. 'I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM AS THE ROYAL HOUSEHOLD', SAID THE MAN, WHO DECLINED TO GIVE HIS NAME. 'WHERE DO I PUT IT ALL?'

SOTHEBY'S TO SELL RARE BEJEWELED CANOPY

A STUNNING, RARELY SEEN BEJEWELED, NEARLY 150 YEAR OLD CANOPY FROM INDIA IS EXPECTED TO SELL FOR AS MUCH AS $5 MILLION WHEN IT GOES UNDER THE HAMMER NEXT MONTH, ACCORDING TO SOTHEBY'S. THE PEARL CANOPY OF BARODA WILL BE ACUCTIONED OFF ON 24.MARCH AS PART OF A LARGER AUCTION OF INDIAN AND SOUTHEAST ASIAN WORKS OF ART IN NEW YORK. IT INCLUDES OVER 500,000 PEARLS, AS WELL AS NUMEROUS DIAMONDS, SAPPHIRES, RUBIES AND EMERALDS SEWN ON SILK. FLORAL 'PERSIAN-STYLE' VINES MADE WITH COLOURED BEADS CIRCLE THE CANOPY. 'THE MAHARAJA WAS A GREAT PATRON OF THE ARTS', SAID MARY JO OTSEA, THE WORLDWIDE DIRECTOR OF SOTHEBY'S CARPET DEPARTMENT. 'THIS PIECE IS A CONTINUATION OF THE GOLDEN AGE OF INDIAN ART FROM THE MUGHAL PERIOD, WITH PERSIAN INFLUENCES.' THE CANOPY DATES FROM AROUND 1865, WHEN IT WAS COMMISSIONED BY THE MAHARAJA OF BARODA, IN THE PRESENT-DAY INDIAN STATE OF GUJARAT. IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE PIECE WAS INTENDED TO BE DONATED AS A GIFT TO DECORATE THE TOMB OF THE PROPHET MOHAMED IN MEDINA, IN WHAT IS NOW SAUDI ARABIA. THE MAN WHO COMMISSIONED THE CANOPY, MAHARAJA KHANDE RAO GAEKWAR, WAS KNOWN TO BE PARTICULARLY FOND OF JEWELS. IN 1867, HE BOUGHT THE 'STAR OF THE SOUTH', ONE OF THE LARGEST DIAMONDS IN THE WORLD. THE CANOPY IS PART OF A SET WHICH INCLUDED FOUR LARGE RECTANGULAR JEWEL-ENCRUSTED CARPETS, OF WHICH ONLY ONE REMAINS. ONE OF THE RECTANGULAR CARPETS WAS SOLD AT AN AUCTION IN DOHA, QATAR IN MARCH 2009 FOR A RECORD $5.4 MILLION. ART HISTORIANS ARE STILL UNSURE EXACTLY HOW THE CARPET AND THE CANOPY WERE ARRANGED TOGETHER, OTSEA SAID. THE CANOPY HAD NOT BEEN SEEN FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS UNTIL IT WAS INCLUDED IN AN EXHIBIT AT THE VICTORIA & ALBERT MUSEUM IN LONDON LAST YEAR. AT THE TIME THE CANOPY WAS CREATED THE NOMINALLY SOVEREIGN STATE OF BARODA WAS AMONG THE MOST PROSPEROUS IN BRITISH INDIA, WITH MUCH OF ITS INCOME COMING FROM COTTON, RICE AND SUGAR. BARODA STATE, WHICH WAS FOUNDED IN 1721, EXISTED UNTIL IT WAS INCORPORATED INTO NEWLY INDEPENDENT INDIA IN 1947.

PICASSO'S LA LECTURE SELLS FOR RECORD £25,241,250

TONIGHT, SOTHEBY'S IMPRESSIONIST & MODERN EVENING SALE WAS LED BY PABLO PICASSO'S ICONIC 1932 PAINTING OF MARIE-THERESE WALTER, LA LECTURE, WHICH SOLD TO A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR £25,241,250 /$40,711,612, MORE THAN DOUBLE THE LOW ESTIMATE OF £12 – 18 MILLION/$18.5-27.8 MILLION. FOLLOWING A HEATED BIDDING CONTEST THAT LASTED SIX MINUTES AMONG AT LEAST SEVEN BIDDERS, BOTH ON THE PHONE AND IN THE SALESROOM, THE WORK FINALLY SOLD TO AN ANONYMOUS BUYER BIDDING OVER THE TELEPHONE. ACHIEVING A STRONG TOTAL OF £68,834,400 / $111,023,004, WELL WITHIN THE PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF £55,630,000 - 79,250,000, THE SALE WAS 84.5% SOLD BY VALUE. THE SALE OF LA LECTURE BROUGHT THE PAINTING TO EUROPE FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE IT WAS PAINTED IN 1932. IT IS ONE OF A SERIES OF DEFINING WORKS IN THE ARTIST'S OEUVRE IN WHICH HE INTRODUCES HIS YOUNG LOVER MARIE-THERESE WALTER AS A RECOGNIZABLE FIGURE. THE COUPLE'S RELATIONSHIP WAS KEPT A WELL-GUARDED SECRET FOR MANY YEARS, BOTH ON THE ACCOUNT OF THE FACT THAT PICASSO WAS THEN STILL MARRIED TO OLGA AND BECAUSE OF MARIE-THERES'S AGE, SHE WAS 17 AT THE TIME THEIR RELATIONSHIP BEGAN. UNTIL THE PERIOD IN WHICH THE WORK WAS PAINTED, MARIE-THERESE ONLY EVER APPEARED IN PICASSO'S WORKS IN CODE, HER FEATURES OFTEN EMBEDDED IN THE BACKGROUND OF HIS PAINTINGS. BUT BY THE END OF 1931, PICASSO COULD NO LONGER REPRESS THE CREATIVE IMPULSE THAT HIS LOVER INSPIRED, AND OVER CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR 1931 AND '32, MARIE-THERESE EMERGED, FOR THE FIRST TIME, IN FULLY RECOGNIZABLE, LANGUOROUS FORM.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS TITIAN PAINTING FOR RECORD $16 MILLION

TODAY AT SOTHEBY'S SALE OF IMPORTANT OLD MASTER PAINTINGS IN NEW YORK, A NEW AUCTION RECORD WAS ESTABLISHED FOR THE RENAISSANCE MASTER TITIAN WHEN HIS A SACRA CONVERSAZIONE: THE MADONNA AND CHILD WITH SAINTS LUKE AND CATHERINE OF ALEXANDRIA SOLD FOR A RECORD $16,822,500 TO A EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR. THE PRICE EXCEEDED THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF $13.6 MILLION, WHICH HAD HELD FOR 20 YEARS. A SACRA CONVERSAZIONE IS ONE OF ONLY A HANDFUL OF MULTI-FIGURE COMPOSITIONS BY TITIAN THAT REMAIN IN PRIVATE HANDS, AND IS THE MOST IMPORTANT TO APPEAR AT AUCTION IN DECADES. THE MORNING SESSION ENDED WITH AN OUTSTANDING TOTAL OF $78.6 MILLION, WHICH IS ABOVE THE SESSION'S HIGH ESTIMATE OF $74 MILLION. IN ADDITION TO THE TITIAN, A NUMBER OF REMARKABLE AND RECORD PRICES HAVE ALSO BEEN ACHIEVED: CLAUDE-JOSEPH VERNET'S MONUMENTAL CANVAS, GRAND VIEW OF THE SEA SHORE ENRICHED WITH BUILDINGS, SHIPPING AND FIGURES, WAS SOUGHT AFTER BY MORE THAN SIX BIDDERS BEFORE SELLING FOR $7,026,500, A NEW RECORD FOR THE ARTIST AT AUCTION. ADAM AND EVE, PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN MANNERIST WORK BY JOACHIM ANTHONISZ WTEWAEL, INSPIRED HEATED COMPETITION DRIVING THE FINAL SALE TO $6,242,500, MORE THAN FIVE TIME THE HIGH ESTIMATE OF $1.8 MILLION. AND PERINO DEL VAGA'S THE HOLY FAMILY WITH THE INFANT SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST WAS SOUGHT AFTER BY AT LEAST FIVE DIFFERENT BIDDERS, FINALLY SELLING TO THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK, FOR $2,098,500.

SOTHEBY'S TO SELL AI WEIWEI'S SUNFLOWER SEEDS

CHINESE ARTIST AI WEIWEI GENERATED HEADLINES AROUND THE WORLD WHEN HE INSTALLED 100 MILLION CERAMIC SUNFLOWERS IN THE TATE MUSEUM IN LONDON. THE EXHIBIT, WHICH STARTED LAST OCTOBER, INITIALLY WAS OPEN TO FOR GUESTS TO FROLIC THROUGH THE SEEDS. SHORTLY AFTER IT OPENED HEALTH CONCERNS ABOUT DUST LED THE MUSEUM TO RESTRICT ACCESS TO THE EXHIBIT. BUT IF YOU WANT TO RUN YOUR HANDS THROUGH THE SEEDS, YOU WILL SOON BE ABLE TO BUY A 100-KILOGRAM PILE OF SEEDS AT SOTHEBY'S IN LONDON ON 15.FEBRUARY. THE FIRST PILE OF SEEDS CARRIES AN ESTIMATE OF £80,000 to £120,000. EACH PORCELAIN SUNFLOWER SEED WAS INDIVIDUALLY HAND MADE AND PAINTED BY SPECIALISTS WORKING IN SMALL-SCALE WORKSHOPS IN THE CHINESE CITY OF JINGDESHEN. THE SOTHEBY'S LISTING SUGGESTS THAT THE PIECE CAN BE INSTALLED EITHER IN A MOUND OR SMOOTHED OUT INTO A CARPET-LIKE EXPERIENCE. THERE WILL BE A TOTAL OF TEN LOTS SOLD FROM THE WORK.

SOTHEBY'S PRESENTS PABLO PICASSO'S LA LECTURE BEFORE AUCTION

A SENSUAL 1932 PORTRAIT BY PABLO PICASSO OF HIS YOUNG MISTRESS MARIE-THERESE WALTER WHICH CAPTURES HIS ROMANTIC OBSESSION WITH HER WENT ON DISPLAY RECENTLY AT SOTHEBY'S IN PARIS, AHEAD OF ITS AUCTION NEXT MONTH. IT WAS THE FIRST PUBLIC SHOWING IN EUROPE IN SOME 80 YEARS OF 'LA LECTURE', OR 'READING', AN EROTIC AND BRIGHTLY COLOURED DEPICTION OF THE VOLUPTUOUS MARIE-THERESE SLEEPING NUDE IN AN ARMCHAIR, HER HEAD THROWN BACK AND AN OPEN BOOK IN HER LAP. PAINTED IN BRIGHT YELLOW, GREEN AND RED OILS AT THE HEIGHT OF WHAT ART EXPERTS CALL PICASSO'S 'LOVESTRUCK' PERIOD, IT WILL BE THE STAR OFFERING AT AN UPCOMING SALE OF IMPRESSIONIST AND MODERN ART BY SOTHEBY'S LONDON. EXPERTS SAY THE PAINTING COULD FETCH BETWEEN $19-29 MILLION AFTER ANOTHER PICASSO PORTRAIT OF MARIE-THERESE, 'NUDE, GREEN LEAVES AND BUST', WAS SOLD BY CHRISTIE'S, NEW YORK, FOR $106 MILLION IN 2010, AN ALL TIME RECORD FOR AN ART AUCTION. 'IN THE EARLY 1930s HE WAS VERY LYRICALLY IN LOVE AND REFLECTED THAT IN THESE GORGEOUS COLOURS, AND LOVELY COMPOSITION', PHILIP HOOK, DIRECTOR OF IMPRESSIONIST AND MODERN PICTURE DEPARTMENT AT SOTHEBY'S IN LONDON TOLD REUTERS IN A RECENT INTERVIEW. 'THIS PERIOD IS JUST ABOUT THE MOST DESIRABLE OF ALL PICASSO'S PERIODS, CERTAINLY IN MARKET TERMS', HE SAID. MARIE-THERESE WAS ONE OF A SERIES OF LOVERS AND MUSES WHO INSPIRED PICASSO THROUGHOUT HIS PROLIFIC EIGHT-DECADE CAREER. SHE FIRST CAUGHT HIS EYE IN 1927, AGED JUST 17, AS SHE WAS COMING OUT OF THE PARIS METRO ON HER BACK FROM A SHOPPING TRIP. PICASSO, IN HIS MID-FORTIES, WAS IMMEDIATELY SMITTEN. MARIE-THERESE LATER SAID HE TOOK HER BY THE ARM AND SAID: 'I AM PICASSO. YOU AND I ARE GOING TO GREAT THINGS TOGETHER.' ALTHOUGH STILL MARRIED TO HIS FIRST WIFE, RUSSIAN DANCER OLGA KHOKHLOVA, PICASSO BEGAN A COVERT AFFAIR WITH MARIE-THERESE, WHO LATER GAVE BIRTH TO THEIR DAUGHTER, MAYA OR MARIA DE LA CONCEPCION.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS CARTIER DESK CLOCK FOR £79,250

THE SALE OF FINE WATCHES AT SOTHEBY'S LONDON SAW A RARE GOLD AND ENAMEL BALL-SHAPED DESK CLOCK BY CARTIER SELL FOR £79,250, SOME TEN TIMES ITS PRE-SALE ESTIMATE. CONTINUING A PATTERN THAT HAS BEEN A FEATURE OF MANY RECENT SALES AT SOTHEBY'S, STRONG PRICES FOR POCKET WATCHES WERE AGAIN A FEATURE OF THE SALE. JOANNE LEWIS, HEAD OF WATCHES AT SOTHEBY'S LONDON, SAID: 'WE SAW SOME EXCEPTIONALLY STRONG PRICES TODAY FOR EXACTLY THE TYPES OF WATCHES WE HAVE SEEN CONSISTENTLY PERFORMING WELL IN OUR AUCTIONS OVER THE PAST 24 MONTHS. THE FANTASTIC PRICE FOR THE CARTIER DESK CLOCK, WHICH MADE SOME TEN TIMES ITS PRE-SALE ESTIMATE, IS FURTHER EVIDENCE OF THE STRONG DEMAND WE'RE SEEING NOW FOR DESK CLOCKS, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY.' THE SALE MADE A TOTAL OF £1,313,650 AGAINST AN ESTIMATE OF £1,243,300.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS 18th CENTURY COMMODE FOR RECORD £3,793,250

IN THE MIDST OF THE EXCITEMENT SURROUNDING THE RECORD PRICE ACHIEVED FOR AUDUBON'S BIRDS OF AMERICA YESTERDAY, ANOTHER WORLD RECORD WAS SET IN A DIFFERENT FIELD. AN EXQUISITE SERPENTINE-SHAPED HARRINGTON COMMODE, DATING TO CIRCA 1770 AND ALMOST CERTAINLY CRAFTED BY THOMAS CHIPPENDALE, EXCEEDED THE PREVIOUS WORLD RECORD FOR ANY ENGLISH PIECE OF ENGLISH FURNITURE AT AUCTION BY OVER A £1 MILLION. FOLLOWING A STRETCH OF PROLONGED BIDDING IN THE SALE ROOM, THE COMMODE ACHIEVED A SUM OF £3,793,250, THREE TIMES THAT OF ITS HIGH ESTIMATE, SETTING A NEW BENCHMARK FOR ENGLISH FURNITURE. COMMENTING ON THE SALE, HENRY HOUSE, HEAD OF ENGLISH FURNITURE AT SOTHEBY'S AND THE AUCTIONEER FOR THE SALE, COMMENTED: 'THIS REMARKABLE COMMODE WHICH IS OUTSTANDINGLY BEAUTIFUL IN BOTH FORM AND CONDITION, WAS KEENLY CONTESTED BY FIVE BIDDERS, THE FINAL PRICE DEMONSTRATING TRUE DEMAND IN THE MARKET FOR ITEMS OF REAL QUALITY, AND I FEEL IS JUSTLY DESERVED FOR AN ITEM THAT HAS BEEN AN HONOUR TO SELL.' THE GEORGE III COMMODE, ALMOST CERTAINLY CRAFTED BY THOMAS CHIPPENDALE AND PREVIOUSLY HOUSE AT ELVASTON CASTLE, DERBYSHIRE, WAS SOLD BY ORDER OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE 10th EARL OF HARRINGTON'S WILL TRUST AS PART OF THE IMPORTANT FURNITURE, CERAMICS, CLOCKS, SILVER & VERTU SALE. THE SALE MADE £6,216,750 AGAINST AN ESTIMATE OF £2,874,000 - £4,403,000.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS IMPERIAL MARBLE BUST FOR RECORD $23,826,500

LAST NIGHT AT SOTHEBY'S, A MARBLE PORTRAIT BUST OF THE DEIFIED ANTINOIUS, ROMAN IMPERIAL, REIGN OF HADRIAN, CIRCA AD 130-138, SOLD FOR A RECORD $23,826,500, MANY MULTIPLES OF THE HIGH ESTIMATE OF $2-3 MILLION. THE BUST LED THE AUCTION OF ANTIQUITIES FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE LATE CLARENCE DAY, KNOWN AS ONE OF THE FINEST PRIVATE COLLECTIONS OF ANTIQUITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. THE 'WHITE GLOVE' SALE ACHIEVED A TOTAL OF $36,769,250. PROCEEDS FROM THE SALE WILL BENEFIT THE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION ESTABLISHED BY DAY. THE MARBLE PORTRAIT BUST OF THE DEIFIED ANTINOUS IS THE ONLY KNOWN CLASSICAL REPRESENTATION OF ANTINOIS, OUTSIDE OF HIS COIN PORTRAITS, TO BE IDENTIFIED BY AN INSCRIPTION. AUCTIONEER HUGH HILDESLEY OPENED THE BIDDING AT $900,000 AND TWO CLIENTS IN THE ROOM AND ONE ON THE PHONE BEGAN TO BATTLE. THE WINNING BIDDER, A EUROPEAN COLLECTOR ENTERED INTO THE FRAY AT $6.5 MILLION AND PREVAILED AGAINST THE THREE EXISTING BIDDERS AS WELL AS ANOTHER CLIENT WHO ONLY JOINED THE COMPETITION AT $11.2 MILLION. IN ALL, IT TOOK MORE THAN ELEVEN MINUTES FOR THE LOT TO SELL AND WHEN THE HAMMER FINALLY FELL THE ROOM BROKE OUT IN APPLAUSE. ANOTHER HIGHLIGHT INCLUDED A GREEN PORPHYRY FIGURE OF AN EGYPTIAN ROYAL SPHINX, ROMAN IMPERIAL, CIRCA 1st CENTURY AD, WHICH SOLD FOR $5,234,500 AFTER A CONTEST BETWEEN FIVE BIDDERS. THE PIECE IS A DIRECT ROMAN EMULATION, OR REPLICA, OF A

SOTHEBY'S SELLS AUDUBON'S 'BIRDS OF AMERICA' FOR RECORD $10,270,000

JOHN JAMES AUDUBON'S 'BIRDS OF AMERICA', A RARE BLEND OF ART, NATURAL HISTORY AND CRAFTSMANSHIP, FETCHED MORE THAN $10 MILLION AT AUCTION ON TUESDAY, MAKING IT THE WORLD'S MOST EXPENSIVE PUBLISHED BOOK. WITH ITS 435 HAND-COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS OF BIRDS DRAWN TO SIZE, THE VOLUME IS ONE OF TE BEST PRESERVED EDITIONS OF AUDUBON'S 19th CENTURY MASTERPIECE. THE SALE AT SOTHEBY'S LONDON HAD BEEN ANTICIPATED FOR MONTHS BY WEALTHY COLLECTORS. THE BOOK SOLD FOR $10,270,000 TO AN ANONYMOUS COLLECTOR BIDDING BY TELEPHONE, THE AUCTION HOUSE SAID. BECAUSE EACH PICTURE IS SO VALUABLE, THERE HAVE BEEN FEARS THE VOLUME WILL BE BROKEN UP AND SOLD AS SEPARATE WORKS OF ART. HOWEVER, EXPERTS BELIEVE THAT'S UNLIKELY. THE TOME IS PROBABLY MORE VALUABLE INTACT. AND COLLECTORS HOLD AUDUBON IN SUCH REVERENCE THAT THE NOTION OF RIPPING APART A PERFECT COPY WOULD BE AKIN TO SACRILEGE. PART NATURALIST AND PART ARTIST, AUDUBON POSSESSED AN UNEQUALED ABILITY TO OBSERVE, CATALOG AND PAINT THE BIRDS HE OBSERVED IN THE WILD. EXPERTS SAY HIS BOOK, ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN 1827, IS UNMATCHED IN ITS BEAUTY AND IS ALSO OF CONSIDERABLE SCIENTIFIC VALUE, JUSTIFYING ITS HISTORIC PRICE TAG. WHILE THE AUDUBON VOLUME HOLDS TE RECORD FOR A PUBLISHED BOOK, A 72 PAGE NOTEBOOK OF LEONARDO DA VINCI'S HANDWRITTEN NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS WENT FOR EVEN MORE. KNOWN AS THE LEICESTER CODEX, THE COLLECTION WAS BOUGHT BY BILL GATES IN 1994 FOR $31 MILLION. ALSO ON THE BLOCK TUESDAY WAS A SHAKESPEARE FIRST FOLIO FROM 1623 THAT FETCHED $2.05 MILLION. SOTHEBY'S BOOKS EXPERT DAVID GOLDTHORPE SAID THE AUDUBON AND SHAKESPEARE VOLUMES REPRESENT 'THE TWIN PEAKS OF BOOK COLLECTING.' BOTH CAME FROM THE ESTATE OF THE 2nd BARON HESKETH, A COLLECTOR WHO DIED IN 1955.

US GOVERNMENT TO RETURN STOLEN PAINTING TO FRANCE

AN EDGAR DEGAS PAINTING THAT WAS STOLEN 37 YEARS AGO AND RECENTLY REDISCOVERED BEFORE AN AUCTION IN NEW YORK WILL BE RETURNED TO THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT, US OFFICIALS SAID RECENTLY. US ATTORNEY LORETTA LYNCH AND JAMES T HAYES JR, HEAD OF THE NEW YORK OFFICE OF IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT, ANNOUNCED THAT A MANHATTAN SELLER HAD AGREED TO TURN OVER THE PAINTING, 'LAUNDRY WOMAN WITH TOOTHACHE', WITHOUT A FORFEITURE PROCEEDING. SOTHEBY'S HAD GIVEN THE SMALL OIL PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG WOMAN HOLDING HER JAW AN ESTIMATED VALUE OF $350,000 to $450,000. COURT PAPERS SAID THE SELLER, WHOSE FATHER HAD OBTAINED THE SIGNED PIECES, DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS STOLEN. THE FAMILY HAS THE RIGHT TO FILE A CLAIM FOR COMPENSATION FROM FRENCH AUTHORITIES. THE RETURN OF THE RARE 19th CENTURY WORK 'REFLECTS OUR COMMITMENT TO ENSURE THE RETURN OF STOLEN ARTWORK AND CULTURAL PATRIMONY', LYNCH SAID IN A STATEMENT. SOTHEBY'S OFFICIAL DIANA PHILLIPS SAID THE AUCTION HOUSE 'IS HAPPY TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS DISCOVERY AND WE ARE PLEASED THAT THIS PAINTING WILL BE RETURNED TO THE GOVERNMENT OF FRANCE.' THE SELLER, SHE ADDED, 'WAS SHOCKED TO LEARN ABOUT THIS AND THROUGHOUT HAS BEEN EXTREMELY COOPERATIVE.' AUTHORITIES SAID DEGAS PAINTED 'BLANCHISSEUSES SOUFFRANT DES DENTS' IN THE EARLY 1870s. A COLLECTOR DONATED IT TO THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT AND IT WAS REGISTERED WITH THE LOUVRE MUSEUM. IN 1961, THE LOUVRE LENT THE PAINTING TO THE MALRAUX MUSEUM IN NORMANDY. IN LATE 1973, A STILL UNKNOWN THIEF PULLED IT OFF THE MUSEUM WALL AND SLIPPED AWAY. EARLIER THIS YEAR, SOTHEBY'S FEATURED THE PAINTING IN THE CATALOG FOR A SALE OF IMPRESSIONIST ART. A MALRAUX EMPLOYEE SPOTTED THE LISTING AND NOTIFIED SOTHEBY'S WHICH IMMEDIATELY PULLED IT FROM THE AUCTION. STENCILED ON THE BACK OF THE CANVAS BUT HIDDEN BY THE FRAME WAS 'RF 1953-8', SHORTHAND FOR IT BEING THE EIGHTH WORK OF ART ACQUIRED BY THE FRENCH REPUBLIC IN 1953. PHILLIPS SAID THAT BEFORE THE AUCTION, SOTHEBY'S HAD CHECKED TO SEE IF THE PIECE WAS LISTED ON THE LONDON BASED ART LOSS REGISTER, WHICH TRACKS DOWN STOLEN, LOOTED OR MISSING ART, AND SIMILAR DATABASES. 'UNFORTUNATELY, THIS PAINTING WAS NOT LISTED IN THESE DATABASES SO SOTHEBY'S HAD NO EVIDENCE THAT IS HAD BEEN STOLEN WHEN IT ACCEPTED THE PAINTING FOR SALE', SHE SAID.

SOTHEBY'S TO SELL 1500 LOTS FROM THE ESTATE OF QUEEN JULIANA

IN THE SPRING SOTHEBY'S AMSTERDAM WILL OFFER 1500 LOTS FROM THE ESTATE OF QUEEN JULIANA ON THE INSTRUCTIONS OF THE EXECUTORS ON BEHALF OF HER FOUR HEIRS, HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN AND THEIR ROYAL HIGHNESSES PRINCESS IRENE, PRINCESS MARGRIET AND PRINCESS CHRISTINA. THE TOTAL SUM REALIZED BY THE 1500 LOTS TO BE SOLD WILL GO TO CHARITY AND THE SALE WILL BE AT SOTHEBY'S AMSTERDAM ON 14-17.MARCH.2011. THE REALIZED AMOUNT WILL BE DIVIDED INTO TWO PORTIONS; THE FIRST PART WILL BE DONATED TO THE RED CROSS, CHOSEN BY THE FOUR HEIRS BECAUSE OF THE LONG TERM INVOLVEMENT OF QUEEN JULIANA IN ITS WORK. THE REMAINING PORTION WILL BE DIVIDED INTO FOUR EQUAL PARTS; THE PRINCESS BEATRIX FUND WHICH IS THE CHOICE OF QUEEN BEATRIX, PRINCESS IRENE CHOSE THE NETUURCOLLEGE, PRINCESS MARGRIET CHOSE THE RED CROSS AND THE PRINCESS CHRISTINA CONCOURS WAS CHOSEN BY PRINCESS CHRISTINA. WHILE MOST OF THE ITEMS ON SALE, WHICH INCLUDES FURNITURE, PORCELAIN, GLASS, SILVER, PAINTINGS AND SOME DRAWINGS, COME FROM THE PALACE SOESTDIJK WHERE QUEEN JULIANA LIVED FOR ALL HER MARRIED LIFE, SOME OF THE FURNITURE WAS IN THE STORES OR ATTICS AT OTHER ROYAL PALACES, AND MANY OF THE DRAWINGS AND PRINTS WERE HELD IN THE ROYAL ARCHIVE. FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF QUEEN JULIANA AN EXHAUSTIVE PROCESS OF CONSULTATION FOLLOWED. OFFICIAL GIFTS FROM THE ESTATE WERE TRANSFERRED TO VARIOUS FOUNDATIONS OF THE ROYAL HOUSE OF ORANGE-NASSUA AND NATIONAL MUSEUMS. AFTER THE EXHAUSTIVE PROCESS, WHICH HAS TAKEN OVER SIX YEARS, IT BECAME CLEAR THAT THERE WAS A CONSIDERABLE VOLUME OF FURNITURE, PAINTINGS, PORCELAIN AND SILVER WHICH WAS BEYOND ANY REQUIREMENTS. THE HEIRS DECIDED THAT THE RESIDUAL PROPERTY SHOULD BE SOLD FOR CHARITY AND WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE SALE AT SOTHEBY'S AMSTERDAM. THE AUCTION WILL BE A REMARKABLE AND CERTAINLY UNIQUE EVENT. THE PROPERTY TO BE SOLD WAS ONLY IN PART ACQUIRED BY QUEEN JULIANA AND PRINCE BERNHARD, WHILE THE LARGER PART HAD BEEN ACCUMULATED OVER THE LAST ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS, HAVING BEEN PASSED BY INHERITANCE TO QUEEN JULIANA FROM KING WILLEM I, II AND III, QUEEN EMMA AND QUEEN WILHELMINA. THE INVENTORY MARKS AND LABELS ON MANY OF THE PIECES SHOW THAT OVER THE GENERATIONS THEY WERE USED IN FOURTEEN DIFFERENT PALACES AND ROYAL RESIDENCES THROUGHOUT THE NETHERLANDS. SOTHEBY'S WILL DONATE THE PROFITS FROM THE SALE OF THE CATALOG TO THE SAME FOUR CHARITIES THAT HAVE BEEN CHOSEN BY THE HEIRS. THE CATALOG, WHICH WILL BE A PERMANENT RECORD OF THE MEMORABLE ROYAL EVENT, IS NOW BEING PREPARED AND WILL BE AVAILABLE IN FEBRUARY. IT WILL BE VERY DETAILED WITH ALL THE 1500 LOTS ILLUSTRATED IN COLOUR. ALSO, WHEREVER IT IS POSSIBLE, LINKS WILL BE MADE BETWEEN THE INDIVIDUAL LOTS, THE MONARCHS WHO OWNED THEM AND THE MANY ROYAL PALACES AND RESIDENCES WHERE THEY WERE USED OVER THE GENERATIONS.

SOTHEBY'S SELLS DUCHESS OF WINDSOR JEWEL COLLECTION

TONIGHT AT SOTHEBY'S, A GROUP OF 20 EXCEPTIONAL JEWELS AND PRECIOUS OBJECTS FORMERLY IN THE COLLECTION OF THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR WERE PRESENTED FOR SALE, SOME 23 YEARS AFTER THEY WERE LAST AUCTIONED IN THE LEGENDARY AUCTION OF 'JEWELS OF THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR', STILL THE MOST VALUABLE SINGLE-OWNER JEWELRY COLLECTION EVER SOLD. THE 20 PIECES, WHICH WERE ANNOUNCED FOR SALE BACK IN JULY OF THIS YEAR AND HAVE SINCE TRAVELED TO ASIA, THE MIDDLE EAST, RUSSIA AND THE US AND WHICH ALSO INCLUDE SOME SIGNATURE PIECES FROM THE 1987 SALE, BROUGHT A TOTAL OF £7,975,550, A FIGURE WELL IN EXCESS OF PRE-SALE EXPECTATIONS OF £2,906,000-4,211,000. IN 1987 THE 20 PIECES HAD BEEN ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR £197,531-268,189. SPEAKING AFTER THE SALE, DAVID BENNETT, CHAIRMAN OF SOTHEBY'S JEWELRY IN EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST, SAID: 'IT HAS BEEN AN IMMENSE PLEASURE TO BRING ONCE AGAIN TO SALE THESE JEWELS WORN BY A WOMAN WHO WAS A LEADER OF FASHION AND THE EPITOME OF ELEGANCE AND SOPHISTICATION FOR HER GENERATION AND BEYOND. THE COLLECTION COMPRISED NOT ONLY MASTERPIECES OF 20th CENTURY JEWELRY BY CARTIER, BUT ALSO PIECES WHOSE INTIMATE INSCRIPTIONS TELL THE STORY OF PERHAPS THE GREATEST LOVE STORY OF THE 20th CENTURY, THE ROMANCE THAT LED EDWARD VIII TO ABDICATE THE THRONE OF GREAT BRITAIN. WHEREVER WE HAVE EXHIBITED THE JEWELS IN RECENT MONTHS, WHETHER IT BE MOSCOW, NEW YORK, HONG KONG OR THE MIDDLE EAST, THE RESPONSE HAS BEEN EXTRAORDINARY; AND THE WINDSOR COLLECTION HAS BEEN INTRODUCED TO A NEW AUDIENCE OF BUYERS. BY FAR AND AWAY THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE SALE WAS LOT #19, THE ONYX AND DIAMOND PANTHER BRACELET BY CARTIER, PARIS IN 1952, WHICH SOLD FOR £4,521,250, MORE THAN DOUBLE THE PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF £1-1.5 MILLION. THE PRICE ESTABLISHES A NEW RECORD FOR CARTIER AT AUCTION AND ALSO FOR ANY BRACELET AT AUCTION. THE SECOND HIGHEST PRICE OF THE EVENING WAS FOR LOT #20, THE RUBY, SAPPHIRE, EMERALD, CITRINE AND DIAMOND FLAMINGO CLIP, MOUNTED BY CARTIER, PARIS, 1940, CREATED BY JEANNE TOUSSAINT FOR CARTIER. ESTIMATED AT £1-1.5 MILLION, THE SPECTACULAR BROOCH WAS PURCHASED BY COLLECTION CARTIER FOR £1,721,250. AND, LOT #17, THE DIAMOND BRACELET BY CARTIER WHICH SUPPORTS NINE GEM-SET LATIN CROSSES, EACH REPRESENTING SPECIAL MOMENTS OF THE DUCHESS'S LIFE DURING THE YEARS 1934-44, A JEWEL OF GREAT PERSONAL SIGNIFICANCE AND ONE OF HER FAVORITE PIECES, BROUGHT £601,250 AGAINST AN ESTIMATE OF £350,000-450,000.

VERSACE'S RETURN ZOFFANY PAINTING TO HEIRS

A PAINTING STOLEN FROM A LONDON HOME IN 1979 AND WHICH ENDED UP IN THE COLLECTION OF LATE ITALIAN LUXURY FASHION DESIGNER GIANNI VERSACE HAS BEEN RETURNED TO ITS ORIGINAL OWNERS, BRITAIN'S ART LOSS REGISTER SAID ON MONDAY. THE WORK BY 18th CENTURY GERMAN ARTIST JOHANN ZOFFANY HAD BEEN BILLED AS THE STAR LOT IN SOTHEBY'S AUCTION OF TE CONTENTS OF VERSACE'S LAKE COMO VILLA LAST YEAR, BUT IT WAS WITHDRAWN AS THE LAST MOMENT. A DIRECT DESCENDANT OF THE SUBJECT OF 'PORTRAIT OF MAJOR GEORGE MAULE' CONTACTED THE ART LOSS REGISTER, WHICH TRACKS LOST AND STOLEN ART AND ANTIQUITIES, AND THE ALR IN TURN CONTACTED SOTHEBY'S. 'WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN A PROTRACTED LEGAL BATTLE BETWEEN TWO VERY WELL FINANCED EUROPEAN FAMILIES AND THEIR COPIOUS SETS OF LAWYERS HAS BEEN AMICABLE SETTLED BY THE ARL LOSS REGISTER'S MEDIATION TEAM', A SPOKESPERSON FOR THE ALR SAID IN A STATEMENT. ALTHOUGH THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO FAMILIES REMAINED CONFIDENTIAL, THE ALR's CHRISTOPHER MARINELLO SAID: 'THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT GIANNI VERSACE HAD NO KNOWLEDGE THAT THIS PORTRAIT WAS STOLEN WHEN HE PURCHASED IT IN THE 1980s. THIS PORTRAIT DOES...HOLD PARTICULAR SENTIMENTAL VALUE TO THE ... HEIRS AND THE VERSACE FAMILY WERE EXTREMELY GRACIOUS IN THEIR WILLINGNESS TO COMPROMISE IN SEEING ITS RETURN.'