Auction Block: January 12, 2022 Issue
By • January 19, 2022 0 2251
Over the holiday season, auction houses were busy with a host of interesting sales including a nearly 30-year-old bottle of wine, a sapphire and diamond ring, a first edition of “Leaves of Grass” and lots more. Highlights include:
SOTHEBY’S AUCTION HOUSE
Romanée Conti 1996
Sold for: $60,000
A vintage red burgundy wine with hints of violets, peat and raspberries, wild cherries and licorice sold for $60,000. The bottle was from a private collection and shipped by Allyn & Scott Wines, Ltd., London.
BONHAM’S AUCTIONS
Sapphire and Diamond Bulgari Ring
Sold for: $570,000
This spectacular sapphire and diamond emerald-cut ring by Bulgari is a prodigious 48.38 carats. Including baguette-cut diamonds mounted in platinum, the size 8 ring is a signed Bulgari with maker’s mark. Of Sri Lankan (Ceylon) origin, the piece has no indications it was heated. Most sapphires in recent times have some level of heat treatment to evoke color and clarity. Only one percent of sapphires mined today are gem-quality stones, so untreated ones are extremely rare (hence this ring’s hefty selling price).
DOYLE AUCTION HOUSE
Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass” (First Edition)
Sold for: $63,000
Last month, Doyle held an auction for rare books, autographs and maps. A highlight of the affair was a first edition of Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass,” circa 1855. The book sold for $63,000 with Whitman himself being quite involved in the printing. Whitman designed the cover, chose the binding for the collection and set some of the type of the book of a dozen untitled poems.
HINDMAN AUCTIONS
Gladys Nilsson Acrylic on Canvasboard
Sold for $212,500
Part of an auction of Post War and Contemporary Art, artist Gladys Nilsson’s “See Far: Son Good” sold for over $200,000. The acrylic on canvasboard is in an artist-painted frame and signed by Nilsson. The piece measures 30 x 24 inches and is property from the Collection of Susan Larsen. It was estimated at $30-$50,000.
HINDMAN AUCTIONS
Sold for $256,250
Also from Hindman, an intricately made ring with numerous old European and single cut diamonds mounted in platinum sold for over a quarter million dollars.
“This ring is a true showstopper, said Hindman’s Director and Senior Specialist for Jewelry and Timepieces, Sally Klarr. “Colored gemstones that are rare and top quality continue to see notable demand—this sapphire in particular was over 20 carats, so that will grab people’s attention no matter the trends of the day.” Klarr also mentioned that the stone was original to the handmade setting by Gillot.
