Hamburg (kk) - With overall proceeds amounting to more than € 1.3 million, the first auction of Old Masters & Art of the 19th Century held by Ketterer Kunst in Hamburg on October 28, 2006, was a complete success. Overall proceeds exceeded the total estimates by 20 per cent.
"Getting a firm foothold in earlier art is not all that easy. That is why I am so pleased that we have succeeded in chalking up such a resounding success in our first auction devoted primarily to this field. The afternoon auction especially provided exciting hammer prices," thus Robert Ketterer, auctioneer and managing director of Ketterer Kunst.
The Art of the 19th Century especially seemed to exert a pull on the crowded auction room at Meßberg 1 as well as some 150 telephone bidders and bids in writing:
The top lot of about 500 was Adolph von Menzel’s "Chorgestühl im Dom zu Mainz" ["Choir Pews in Mainz Cathedral"], which was acquired for an American museum by a German dealer after a fierce bidding skirmish with a north German lady in the auction room. The watercolor finally fetched € 333,000, more than trebling the original estimate of € 100,000.
A French art dealer acquired the Henri Lebasque oil painting "Moissonneurs aux environs de Lagny" ["Reapers near Lagny"], carrying an estimate of € 60,000, for € 107,000.
At an astonishing 13 times the original estimate of € 6000, a Vassily Ivanovich Surikov oil painting (c 1870) depicting the "Tanz um das goldene Kalb" ["Dance round the Golden Calf"] was acquired by a south German private collection for € 79,000 in the face of an onslaught of bidding by several interested parties from the artist’s native land.
Lively interest was also awakened in the russian Commonwealth of Independent States by Klavdiy Vasilievich Lebedev’s "Porträt eines Jungen mit blondem Haar" ["Portrait of a Youth with Fair Hair"]. Carrying an estimate of € 15,000, the oil painting dating from c. 1900 went to a north German dealer for € 35,000.
The Philipp Otto Runge copperplate from "Die Vier Tageszeiten (Die Zeiten)" ["The Four Times of the Day (The Times)"] appreciated considerably (estimate: € 28,000) thanks to a south German dealer, who honoured this celebrated work by paying € 44,000 for it.
At € 40,000, the Johann Georg Dillis oil painting on paper, "Waldweg am Fluss" ["Forest Track along the River"], climbed to four times the estimate to be bought by a Swiss private collection that outstripped a large field of eager bidders.
Other works that handsomely exceeded their estimates included August von Kreling’s "Im Badehaus" ["In the Bathhouse"] (estimate: € 3000; sale price: € 21,000), Fritz Overbeck’s "Bäume an der Aue im Sommerwind" ["Trees on the Aue in a Summer Breeze"] (estimate: € 12,000; sale price: € 21,000), Wilhelm Busch’s "Zwei Bauern mit Krug" ["Two Peasants with a Jug"] (estimate: € 6000; sale price: € 15,000) and Heinrich von Zügel’s "Schafherde und liegender Schäfer am Stall in der Lüneburger Heide" ["Sheep and Shepherd at the Stall in the Lüneberg Heath"](estimate: € 7000; sale price: € 12,000).
Entirely appropriate to the auction location are works by north German artists, including Albert Aereboe’s “Kürbisstilleben” [“Still Life with Pumpkin”] (estimate: € 6,000-8,000) and Thomas Herbst’s “Kuhhirtin auf einem Waldweg” [“Woman Herding Cows on a Forest Track”] (estimate: € 5,000-7,000), and especially the Fritz Overbeck oil painting “Bäume an der Aue im Sommerwind” [“Trees on the Aue in a Summer Breeze”], carrying an estimate of € 12,000-14,000.
The limelight in the OLD MASTERS division was stolen by the Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn etching "Christus heilt die Kranken" ["Christ Healing the Sick"], which was hotly contested by bids in writing and numerous telephone bids. The € 30,000 estimate was bid up to dizzy heights before a bid in writing from California secured the etching for € 61,000.
Whereas the Rembrandt etching "Zweiter Orientalenkopf" ["Second Oriental Head"] also crossed the Atlantic for € 9300, "Christus, die Händler aus dem Tempel treibend" ["Christ Driving the Money-Lenders from the Temple"] (estimate: € 8000) went to the artist’s own country for € 9000.
A French gallery bidding on the telephone acquired two Alexander-Jean Noël landscapes for € 24,000: "Südliche Küstenlandschaften mit Fischern und Leuchtturm" ["Southern Coastal Landscapes with Fishermen and Lighthouse"].
Two pencil drawings (c. 1750) by Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner confirmed that this artist is much in demand. A German art dealer who had enlivened the bidding on more than one occasion at this auction, snapped up "Parkszene mit Nischenbrunnen" ["Park Scene with Colonnaded Fountain"] and "Hafenansicht mit Palast" ["Harbour View with Palace"] for more than € 10,000 each.
Other works in the Old Masters division that excitingly exceeded their estimates included "Portrait eines jungen Mannes" ["Portrait of a Young Man"], attributed to Agnese Dolci (estimate: € 2000; sale price: € 7000) and the attractive Jan Miense Molenaer genre scene "Wirtshausschlägerei" ["Tavern Brawl"] (estimate: € 3500; sale price: € 5100)./p>
In the MARINE ART division, an oil painting attributed to Louis Verboeckhoven was the star lot: "Schiffe am Strand" ["Beached Vessels"] sailed to Belgium for € 9500.
Despite its title, Willy Stöwer’s "S. M. Yacht ‘Hohenzollern’ verlässt Corfu" ["H. M. Yacht ‘Hohenzollern’ Leaving Corfu"] stayed at her home port. A north German gallery rode out a storm of bidding to acquire this gouache for € 7500.
Post-auction sales continue in Hamburg until November 24, 2006.
Since it was founded in 1954, Ketterer Kunst has been firmly established in the front ranks of auction houses dealing in art and rare books. While our Munich headquarters in the Prinz-Alfons-Palais is responsible for the two traditional annual auctions of Modern Art & Post War, the Meßberghof in Hamburg is the venue for two auctions a year each based on the following fields: Old Masters and Art of the 19th Century/Marine Art and Rare Books - Autographs - Manuscripts - Decorative Prints as well as Modern Art & Post War, with a focus on works on paper. In addition, exhibitions, special auctions and benefit auctions for charity are regular events at Ketterer Kunst.
Hamburg, November 07, 2006
Note: All sale prices represent the hammer price
+ 19 per cent surcharge below € 100,000 and
+ 17 per cent surcharge on hammer prices above € 100,000
