Auction Block

Casey O'Brien • December 7, 2012

Sotheby?s (London)
James Bond?s Walther gun used by Sean Connery
Auction Date: December 12
Estimate: $160,370-240,555

Sotheby?s of London will be auctioning off the famous pistol Sean Connery used in promotion pictures for his James Bond films. The Walther air pistol, LP Model 53 comes with the manufacturer?s case, as well as letter of provenance from the original owner, and photograph of Connery with the pistol. The shots with the gun were used in promotion for From Russia with Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, and You Only Live Twice. www.Sothebys.com

Weschler?s
Louis XV Style Ormolu Mantel Clock, late 19th century
Auction Date: December 7
Estimate: $300-500

This mantel clock will be auctioned off by Weschler?s on December 6 at 10:00 a.m. The Ormolu mantel clock has a two-train movement, striking a bell on the hour and half-hour. The movement is stamped ?C Detouche F?seur de L?Empereur? and is 16 inches in height. www.Weschlers.com

The Potomack Company
Winston Churchill Handwritten Letter, 1945
Auction Date: December 8
Estimate: $600-800

Up for auction is a handwritten letter from Britain?s legendary former Prime Minister Winston Churchill, dated shortly after the end of WWII in 1945. Writing to Dale Taylor, General Manager of one of the first U.S. radio stations. The letter, written on House of Commons stationary, reads ?I thank you sincerely for your?kind message to me?I have received and read with great pleasure. Winston Churchill.? The letter comes with its original envelope. www.PotomackCompany.com

Doyle New York
Triple Strand Cultured Pearl Necklace with clasp, Schlumberger, France
Auction Date: December 12
Estimate: $10,000-15,000

Doyle New York?s Important Estate Jewelry auction will auction off hundreds of stunning jewels, including this cultured pearl necklace. The three-strand necklace is platinum with 18-karat gold, and finished by an oval platinum class containing an oval emerald, surrounded by 72 single-cut diamonds. www.DoyleNewYork.com

Quinn?s Auction Galleries
Bone netsuke depicting a sennin grasping a mokugyo
Kyoto, mid-18th century.
Auction Date: December 7
Estimate: $12,000-$18,000

Quinn?s Auction Galleries will be auctioning off the Netsuke collection of the late D.C. Diplomat Jack A. Mang and his wife, Helen Randall Mang on Dec.7. Netsukes are the miniature carvings used in Japan as ornamental fasteners on boxes and silk robes, often made of bone, ivory and wood. The Mang?s had an extensive collection of netsukes, and founded the D.C. chapter of the International Netsuke Society. The auction of the 1,100 piece collection will take place at 360 South Washington Street, Falls Church, VA, and online through www.LiveAuctioneers.com. www.QuinnsAuction.com

Georgetowner • November 14, 2012

**Weschler ?s**
*Bronze Eiffel Tower Clock*
**Auction Date: December 7**
**Estimate: $1,000 ? 2,000**

Washington D.C.?s only auction house, Weschler?s has been a local tradition for over 120 years. On December 7th they will host an auction of Miller-Topia Designers, a longtime gallery in Alexandria, Va., that is closing and auctioning off most of their assets, which include fine art, furniture, and exotic props and accessories from both movie and theatrical sets. This French bronze Eiffel Tower clock strikes a two-train movement that strikes a bell on the hour and half-hour, and stands 44 inches tall. To see the collection before it goes on auction, you can visit the gallery: 1120 N Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. www.Weschlers.com

**The Potomack Company**
*Antique Serapi Rug*
**Auction Date: December 8, 9**

The Potomack Company is a fast-growing auction house based in the Washington, DC area, founded in 2006. Their December 8 ? 9 catalogue sale will showcase, among other things, antique Oriental rugs, like this exquisite Serapi rug. From the northwest corners of Iran, Serapi rugs are known to become more beautiful with age, their durability the result of a major copper deposit in the nearby Mount Sabalan; traces of copper in the sheep?s drinking water produces high quality, resilient wool. This is a classic Serapi design, with geometric patterns and a large medallion at its center. The exhibition for the two-day sale will begin Dec. 1 in the gallery and online. www.PotomackCompany.com

**Sotheby?s (London)**
*Mick Jagger Love Letters*
**Auction Date: December 12**
**Estimate: $111,300 ? 159,000**

Handwritten love letters from Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger to his former lover Marsha Hunt will go on
the auction in London next month. Hunt is an American born singer who was the inspiration for the Stones? 1971 classic ?Brown Sugar? and bore Jagger?s first child, Karis. Sotheby?s books specialist Gabriel Heaton said the letters sent in the summer of 1969 show a ?poetic and self-aware? 25-year-old Jagger. In his letters, the rock star touches upon the unraveling of his relationship with singer Marianne Faithful, whom he was also dating at the time, and the death of Rolling Stones? guitarist Brian Jones. ?They provide a rare glimpse of Jagger that is very different from his public persona: passionate but self-contained, lyrical but with a strong sense of irony,? Heaton said. The collection also includes song lyrics and a Rolling Stones playlist. www. Sothebys.com

**Bonham?s**
*Ernest Hemingway (American, 1899 ? 1961) For Whom the Bell Tolls Signed original advanced printing
**Auction Date: December 4**
**Estimate: $25,000 – $35,000**

Founded in 1793, Bonham?s offers more sales categories in more auction rooms around the world than any other firm. From their offices in Georgetown, they provide local clients expert advice and international reach. Of the many and varied items for sale in their auction of Fine Books, Maps & Manuscripts, one highlight is a presentation copy of Hemingway?s seminal novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls, one of only 15 advanced copies of the first edition, untrimmed and without a dust jacket as issued. It is inscribed and signed by the author on the front free endpaper: ?To Harold Cadmus / with grateful appreciation / Ernest Hemingway.? At the time of publication Harold Cadmus was production chief at Scribner?s and one of the Directors.
www.Bonhams.com

**Freeman?s Auction House**
*Asher Brown Durand (American 1796-1886) Landscape*
*Oil on canvas*
**Auction Date: Dec. 2**
**Estimated Value: $50,000 ? $80,000**

Freeman?s, America?s oldest auction house, will hold its annual winter Fine American & European Paintings & Sculpture auction on December 2. Comprised of over 160 lots, with an emphasis on late 19th and early 20th century American paintings, it is an excellent assortment of period paintings, nearly all culled from private collections and estates. Featured in this auction is lot 86, a rare oil painting by the important Hudson River School artist Asher Brown Durand. This majestic work depicts a single figure seated on a large rock in an expansive landscape, and is a superb example of the Hudson River School?s emphasis on capturing the sublime. The America landscape is idealized as a utopia in which man lives in harmony with vast and glorious Nature. www.FreemansAuction.com

**Doyle New York**
*Art Deco Platinum, Diamond & Ruby Bracelet, circa 1930*
**Estimate: $12,000 – $18,000**
*Art Deco Platinum, Diamond & Emerald Bracelet, circa 1930*
**Estimate: $10,000 – $15,000 Auction Date: December 12**

Founded in 1962, Doyle New York is one of the world?s foremost auctioneers and appraisers of fine art, jewelry, furniture and more, with representatives throughout the U.S., including an office here in Georgetown. Doyle?s auction of Important Estate Jewelry will offer glittering creations for that special someone on your list. Showcased will be hundreds of lots of exquisite jewelry span- ning Victorian, Edwardian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Modern eras by such designers as Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Tiffany?s, among others. Featured are stunning rings, necklaces, brooches and bracelets set with diamonds, colored stones, jade and natural perals, as well as gold jewelry and gentlemen?s accessories. www.DoyleNewYork.com