133rd Auction

A large Ceylon sapphire with an Indian cut in beautiful cornflower blue was sold for €6,000 (estimate €5,000), while an Art Deco diamond necklace was sold for €4,800. A highly contested pocket watch from Lange & Söhne Glashütte fetched more than twice its estimate, finally selling for €4,600. Among the silver items that followed, a small Russian trophy surprised by quickly surpassing its estimate of €300 and was ultimately sold to a bidder from Lithuania for €1,800.

As expected, the highest bid among the art offered on Wednesday morning was secured by Heinz Mack. His winged object brought in €20,000 (including buyer's premium), and was acquired by a renowned German gallery. A significant portrait of Friedrich Wilhelm I as Crown Prince required €8,750 (including buyer's premium), and an elector's portrait from the 17th century increased its estimate tenfold to €5,000. Two 18th-century Boulle clocks led the clock results, selling for €3,000 and €2,600, respectively, while a figurative mantel clock in the shape of an elephant with Orientalist figures sold for €2,500.

Four bidders competed over a mantel clock decorated with porcelain birds and flowers, raising its price from €800 to €2,200. Among the lots offered in the sculpture department, a charming and extremely delicate Art Nouveau nude carved from ivory was convincing, selling for €1,200, while "The Pensive One" by the late Arno Breker was hammered down at €1,500. A sumptuous floor vase from KPM, depicting a Russian troika in a snowy landscape, found a buyer for €20,000. Overall, there were several pleasing results in the porcelain section.

For instance, Meissen's Monkey Band brought in €13,500, and a pair of large French Schneeball vases, initially estimated at €3,000, ultimately sold for €13,000 to a buyer in Shanghai. A Meissen ceremonial service tripled its estimate of €2,000 and will now grace a Christmas table. The biggest surprise was certainly two pieces from what is likely a royal service from KPM, which started at €120 and, after intense bidding, finally sold for €5,200. Among the furniture, an architectural corner cabinet from the 18th century impressed and was sold for €2,700 to a buyer in Austria.

Collector's items were up on Friday morning. Here, a lot of postwar German orders attracted the most interest. The estimate of €150 was nearly twentyfolded to €2,600. A tea box painted in the Stobwasser style rose from €180 to an impressive €2,200, as did a naval honor dagger with original portepee and hanger, and a large cylinder music box with orchestrion, which sold for €1,900. Two photo albums featuring figures from the Franco-Prussian War were also popular, rising from €400 to €1,700. The upcoming auction, scheduled for the end of February 2017, already promises some special pieces. Consignments are requested by mid-January.