Fine & Decorative
To include rare 17th century ivory diptych
Dr Who collection from ‘Holy Grail’ 1960s series
Doll’s house owned by the Duke of Bedford
March 21, 2019
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LONDON: An eclectic range of intriguing objects with distinguished provenance will go under the hammer in Roseberys London’s Fine & Decorative sale.
One of the rarest pieces in the auction is this portable Hispano-Philippine ivory triptych of the Virgin of the Rosary, c.1600-1620, which was almost certainly made for a member of the Franciscan order (lot 333). Two Franciscan saints are represented on the lower halves of the wings - Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Anthony of Padua – while the upper halves of the wings depict St Jerome and Saint John the Baptist. The Virgin and Child are carved to the central panel, each holding a rosary surrounded by winged angels in stylised clouds.
The distinctive integrally carved reeded frame, the inclusion of the haloes and the almond shaped eyes, are all characteristics of the Hispano-Philippine school of ivories.
Its early 17th century date is based on other similar surviving examples, such as a relief triptych (close in style and showing the subject of the Tota Pulchra) in the collection at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. In turn, the ivory at the V&A has been compared to another example showing the Tota Pulchra, which was on board the Santa Margarita - a Manila galleon bound for Acapulco that was wrecked in 1601. This implies that both subject and style were carved in this format in 1600, and the form is likely to have continued over the following years.
This rarity is estimated at £4,000-6,000.
The sale incorporates a distinguished collection of nine bonbonnieres – the small boxes intended for breath-freshening tablets or cachous to sweeten the breath.
As highly decorative objets d'art, these were popular with the aristocracy of the 18th century and were produced in a variety of sculptural forms including animal shapes.
The examples offered here include dogs, birds and mice. Among the highlights is an early 19th century Continental porcelain and gilt-metal mounted bonbonniere, probably made in Copenhagen and modelled as a terrier's head (lot 290). Its fur is picked out in tones of brown-grey, while the cover is painted with two hunters in the livery of Augustus III (estimate £800-1,200).
Another early 19th century highlight is a Continental porcelain and gilt-metal mounted bonbonniere modelled as a white mouse (lot 289). The cover depicts a cat in a pink dress holding a fan while the interior features a satirical scene of mice tying a cat into a baby's crib (estimate £1,200-1,800).
There is also a late 19th century Samson porcelain and gilt-metal snuff box modelled as a barking dog (lot 286). The cover is engraved with flowers and inscribed to the interior Chickie to Pet Valentine Day 1891 (estimate £300-500).
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The silver section contains several stand-out pieces with illustrious provenance.
An important piece of Australian history comes in the form of a rare and important silver rectangular entree dish and cover, bearing the arms of the lawyer and politician John Hubert Plunkett (lot 1). It carries an estimate of £1,500-2,000.
According to the inscription, the dish was presented in 1841 by The People Of New South Wales, as a token of respect For his Public Character and esteem for his Private Worth.
The Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences in New South Wales holds the pair to this entree dish and cover, which carries an identical inscription.
Irish-born Plunkett (1802-1869) became solicitor-general of New South Wales upon his arrival in Sydney in 1832. He was the first Catholic appointed to high civil office in the colony.
In 1836, he was appointed attorney-general, and in the same year was associated with Governor Bourke in bringing about a new church and schools act.
Between 1857-58, he served in the legislative council making an important contribution to Australia’s early legal and political history.
Priced at £2,000-4,000, the property of an important Russian military general is another highlight (lot 85). Made by Grachev, St. Petersburg, 1899-1908, the silver presentation equestrian figure was given to General Julian V Lyubovitsky. The piece is cast as a cavalry soldier with a drawn sabre and Mosin-Nagant rifle slung from his shoulder.
Lyubovitsky was responsible for much of the peacetime training of the Imperial army and likely played a prominent role in the selection of the Mosin-Nagant as the standard Russian service rifle.
In 1905, Lyubovitsky retired from the army to become a member of the State Council of Imperial Russia, the upper house to the State Duma following the October Manifesto.
It is most likely this lot was given to him in that year to mark the culmination of an immensely successful military career and as such serves as a key insight to the figures behind the Russian Imperial political structure in the critical years before 1917.
Another stand out silver lot is a harlequin part canteen of Victorian silver Kings pattern cutlery, with various dates and makers, comprising six each table forks, dessert forks, table spoons and dessert spoons, plus one differing dessert fork (lot 49). The epitome of luxury, it carries a guide of £500-700.
Of interest to Doctor Who collectors, is an archive of photographs and copies of plans from The Power of the Daleks – the completely missing third serial of the fourth season first broadcast by the BBC in six weekly parts from November 5 to December 10, 1966 (lot 539).
The master tapes of all six episodes were erased in the late 1960s, while the copies kept for foreign sales on 16mm film were destroyed in 1974. Their destruction meant that the only information to survive on the series was limited to stills photography and films made by fans when the programmes were broadcast. The series is described as the ‘Holy Grail’ of lost Doctor Who episodes.
The Power of the Daleks also marks the first time that the Doctor regenerates from the first actor to play him, William Hartnell to Patrick Troughton.
The collection was owned by the late production designer and art director, Derek Dodd (1937-2018), who made set designs for The Power of the Daleks and The Wheel in Space.
Dodd worked with some of the most formative of writers and directors from the television age including Stephen Frears, Stephen Poliakoff and Dennis Potter. His work has received BAFTA and EMMY nominations.
The collection contains approximately 100 black and white photographs of the sets, with in additional 47 similar photographs mounted on board. Three of these are coloured or toned to include a colour reproduction image of Troughton as the Doctor by the TARDIS, with other loose pieces of art work, nine plans for interiors, a copy of a special effects drawing of a Dalek by Raymond Cusick (who designed the shells that are widely familiar today) and various notes on a shooting schedule of The Power of the Daleks.
There are also thirteen copies of plans for interiors for the mostly missing seventh serial of the fifth season, The Wheel in Space, and a poster featuring a Dalek entitled To Victory. The collection will be offered as a single lot, estimated at £800-1,200.
Like Doctor Who, James Bond commands legions of enthusiastic collectors. This sale will include a James Bond poster promoting the 1967 film You Only Live Twice (lot 551). Designed and illustrated by Robert McGinnis and Frank McCarthy, the British cinema poster was purchased by the vendor from the Weidman Gallery in Los Angeles. It carries hopes of £1,000-1,500.
A late 19th or early 20th century doll’s house purchased from Christie’s South Kensington’s sale of the property of the Duke of Bedford in 1976, is guided at £2,000-3,000 (lot 529).
The six-room doll’s house includes documentation and letters between a previous owner and the Duke, explaining that he built his collection of dolls houses and games in order to amuse the younger visitors to the family seat at Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire.
With the rise in value of his collection of Japanese porcelain, however, he used the cases reserved for the toys to house his porcelain instead. With the lack of space, the Duke consigned the dolls houses to auction.
Estimated at £3,000-5,000 is a fine c.1900 steamer trunk by the secretive French luxury luggage company Goyard (lot 492). The leather-bound trunk is covered with chevron fabric and features brass fittings, a padded hinged top the interior, five cream linen covered drawers, an extending chrome rail and four original clothes hangers. It is stamped: Goyard Aine, Monte-Carlo, Biarritz, Paris.
A fabulous private collection of drinking glasses and bottles contains a number with highly collectable seals.
Among the highlights are two bottles originally found in the cellars of All Souls College in Cambridge. The college has a collection of over 1000 bottles dating from the mid 18th to mid 19th century, mostly bearing one of twenty types of seal.
Other highlights include a dated bottle from 1835, a collection of various larger bottles for champagne, a leather Black Jack type flask, together with wines glasses dating from the mid 18th century onwards.
A large 17th century German Bellermine salt glazed stoneware bottle is estimated at £400-600 (lot 310), while the All Souls bottles – one bearing the seal of All Souls College Common room – carry hopes of £500-800 (lot 300).
Thursday 21 March
Starting at 10 am
Catalogue now online
Viewing Times
Friday 15 March: 1.00 pm – 5.00 pm
Sunday 17 March: 10.00 am – 2.00 pm
Monday 18 March: 9.30 am – 5.30 pm
Tuesday 19 March: 9.30 am -12.30 pm
For further information please contact Anna Evans
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