Eight Views of Venice from 18th to 20th century @ Sotheby's New York

Francesco Albotto (Venice 1721-1757) Venice, A View of the Molo from the Bacino di San Marco, with the Piazzetta and the Palazzo Ducale. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 24 7/8 by 38 1/8 in.; 63.2 by 96.8 cm. Est. 200,000—300,000 USD Lot Sold 638,500 USD

PROVENANCE: Lord Clifden;
With Koetser Galleries, London, until 1951;
By whom sold to the present owners and thence by descent in the family.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: A. Graves, Art sales from early in the eighteenth century to early in the twentieth century : (mostly old master and early English pictures), London 1918-21, vol. II, p. 201 (as by Michele Marieschi).

NOTE: This wonderfully preserved work is by Michele Marieschi's only known pupil, and the greatest imitator of his style, Francesco Albotto. When Marieschi died in 1743 at the age of thirty-two, Albotto literally stepped into his master's shoes: he inherited his workshop in the San Luca district and even married Marieschi's widow Angela Fontana in October of the following year. The extremely close stylistic relationship between the artists has inevitably led to recent debate as to the correct authorship of the present picture. Ralph Toledano, in private correspondence dated 27 April 2010, fully attributes the work to Micehele Marieschi based on photographs, and in fact this picture was sold by David Koetser in 1951 as by Marieschi. Only recently, have others suggested that it may in fact be a work from the hand of Albotto.

Based on stylistic evidence, this painting appears to date to a relatively early phase in Albotto's artistic career, at a time when his stye was close to that of Marieschi, not only in his choice of composition but also in his painting technique. The view is taken from the Bacino di San Marco and follows a similar viewpoint adopted by Marieschi for a number of his own paintings. Albotto's own painted replicas, in which the staffage differs every time, all demonstrate the artist's ability to emulate Marieschi's painting technique, particularly in the depiction of water and of the wall surface of the Palazza Ducale.² When talking about Marieschi in his Abecedario, Pierre-Jean Mariette (1694-1774) remarked that Albotto liked to be called 'the second Marieschi', suggesting that he actively sought to promote his position as Marieschi's successor.³ Indeed Albotto must have enjoyed his temporary position as the principal vedutista in Venice during the later 1740s and '50s, helped in great part by Marieschi's untimely death and Canaletto's departure for England in 1746. It is quite possible that if Albotto himself had not died prematurely at the age of thirty-five, his reputation might have been more long-lasting. By the sixth decade of the 18th century, Albotto was certainly operating as an independent artist, for between 1750 and 1756 an artist called Francesco Alboro - almost certainly to be identified with Francesco Albotto - is recorded in the Fraglia (the list of Venetian painters registered at the Accademia).⁴

1. See for example, R. Toledano, Michele Marieschi, Milan 1995, pp. 40-1, cat. nos. V.1.a-V.1.d, all reproduced.
2. For three other variants by Albotto see Toledano, op. cit., pp. 28-29.
3. Mariette wrote : "Il se fit nommer 'il secondo Marieschi', et il en a épousé la veuve... Son véritable nom était François Albotto"; cited by T. Pignatti, in Bollettino dei Musei Civici Veneziani, 1965, no. 3, p. 19.
4. Moschini's manuscript, in which 'Albotto' was probably mis-transcribed as 'Alboro', is held at the Biblioteca del Museo Correr, Venice, sec. XIX, f. 32; cited by Manzelli, under Literature, 1991, p. 20, footnote 1.

Vincenzo Chilone (Venice 1758 - 1839) View of the Flooded Piazza San Marco, Venice, December 9, 1825. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas,23 1/2 by 31 1/4 in.; 59.7 by 79.4 cm. Est. 80,000—120,000 USD Lot Sold 122,500 USD

PROVENANCE: With Frost & Reed Ltd.; London;
By whom sold to a private collector on August 30, 1966;
By whom anonymously sold ("Property of a New Orleans Collector"), New York, Sotheby's, 29 May 2003, lot 157;
There purchased by the present owner.

NOTE: Throughout history, Venice has been plagued by high waters. The present painting depicts such an event. Here, the water has risen to a level so high that gondolas can easily float through the Piazza. Rather than finding these events annoying they were, in fact, a source of amusement for local Venetians. Boats and gondolas were even decorated with sollazzieri or types of decorative festoons as they were punted around the Piazza.

There were several acque alte during the early 19th century and clues in the present composition help the dating of this representation. The presence of the Byzantine horses that stand sentinel atop San Marco (removed by Napoleon in 1797, installed in the Carousel, Paris and finally returned to Venice by royal decree from Emperor Francis I of Austria) provide us with a terminus post quem of 1815. The Austrian flags that fly above the Piazza indicate that Venice was still under Austrian rule and provide a terminus ante quem of 1849 (the year the Austrians were expelled from Venice). However, other clues allow us a more precise dating of the event. The buildings at the left of the basilica are most telling. These were pulled down in January 1836 to erect the Palazzo Patriarcale. Therefore, there are enough elements to suggest that this event was the acqua alta of December 9, 1825. This flood was recorded in the Gazzetta Privilegiata di Venezia as having exceptionally high waters and was engraved by A. Lazzari.

When last sold in 2003, Charles Beddington first suggested the attribution to Chilone. Dr. Lina Urban confirmed this attribution and furthermore, identified the composition as the flood of December 9, 1825.

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. 03 Jun 10. New York www.sothebys.com

Edward Brian Seago (1910 - 1974), Morning Sunlight, Chioggia. photo Sotheby's

oil on masonite, signed Edward Seago (lower right) 20 by 29 1/2 in. 50.8 by 75 cm. Est. 10,000—15,000 USD Lot Sold 30,000 USD

PROVENANCE: Sale: Christie's London, June 6, 1991, lot 30

Félix Ziem (1821-1911) Venise, le Grand Canal. photo Sotheby's

oil on cradled marble, signed Ziem (lower right) 17 3/8 by 22 1/4 in. 44 by 57.2 cm. Est. 10,000—15,000 USD Lot Sold 20,000 USD

The present work will be included in the third volume of Anne Burdin-Hellebranth's Félix Ziem catalogue raisonné currently being prepared by Mathias Ary Jan.

PROVENANCE: Acquired by the grandmother of the present owner, 1920s
Then by descent in the family

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Pierre Miquel, Ziem: Second Volume du Catalogue, Maurs-la-Jolie, 1996, no. 2720 (illustrated)

Antoine Bouvard (1870 - 1956) Afternoon in Venice. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, signed Bouvard (lower right) 19 7/8 by 25 3/4 in. 50.5 by 65.4 cm. Est. 6,000—9,000 USD Lot Sold 12,500 USD

Paul-Charles-Emmanuel Gallard-Lépinay (1842 - 1885) Bacino di San Marco. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas laid down on masonite, signed E. Gallard-Lépinay (lower right) 31 3/4 by 49 3/4 in. 80.6 by 126.4 cm. Est. 7,000—9,000 USD Lot Sold 10,000 USD

Antoine Bouvard (1870 - 1956) Venetian Capriccio with San Simeone Piccolo in the distance. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, signed Bouvard (lower right) 20 1/8 by 26 in. 51 by 66 cm. Est. 8,000—12,000 USD Lot Sold 7,500 USD

Old Master & 19th Century European Art. 03 Jun. New York www.sothebys.com

Plateau de cabaret de forme rectangulaire en faïence de Rörstrand ou Marieberg. Dernier tiers du XVIIIe siècle

Plateau de cabaret de forme rectangulaire en faïence de Rörstrand ou Marieberg. Dernier tiers du XVIIIe siècle. photo Pierre Bergé & associés

reposant sur une table en bois naturel, décor en grisaille d'un paysage de bord de mer animé de deux bergères et moutons sur la rive près de ruines dans un cadre rectangulaire, aux angles écoinçons à fond de treillage, godrons simulés et rubans sur le bord. Sans marque. Plateau L_89 cm P_60,5 cm H_totale 79 cm

Pierre Bergé & associés. Meuble et objets d'art Vendredi 04 juin à 14h00. Drouot Richelieu - Salle 5-6. EMail : contact@pba-auctions.com - Tél. : Paris +33 (0)1 49 49 90

French School, 17th Century, Vanitas still life with a whisk broom, an hourglass, a burning candle, playing cards, dice, ...

French School, 17th Century, Vanitas still life with a whisk broom, an hourglass, a burning candle, playing cards, dice, an open letter and other objects. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 29 3/4 by 22 1/4 in.; 75.6 by 56.5 cm. Inscribed on the letter: Omnia Vana and on the upturned playing card: Jean Hemav. Est. 40,000—60,000 USD Lot Sold 68,500 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science,1983 (Acc. FMM 82.32).

EXHIBITED: Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 33, reproduced (as Jean Hemau);
Columbus, OH, Columbus Museum of Art; West Palm Beach, FL, Norton Gallery of Art, More Than Meets the Eye: The Art of Trompe l'Oeil, 7 December 1985 – 27 April 1986, cat. no. 19, reproduced p. 70 (as Jean Hemau);
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 27, reproduced p. 65 (as Jean Hemau).

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 22, reproduced (as Jean Hemau).

NOTE: This painting was long mistakenly attributed to Jean Hemau, the name inscribed on the banderole of the playing card. Hemau was, in fact, one of the earliest makers of playing cards. He was active in the early 17th Century in Epinal, a town on the Moselle River in northeast France that was an early center of print making, including the printing of tarot and playing cards. The artist of this work has given us a highly accurate representation of Hemau's unique card designs with the lozenge pattern on the top side and his signature yellow banderole on the face cards.

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. 03 Jun 10. New York www.sothebys.com

Huit timbales en argent, Paris, Strasbourg, Meaux, XVIIène & XVIIIème siècles

Magnifique et rare timbale de forme tulipe à piédouche en vermeil. Paris, 1705.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Décor sur deux registres. Appliques en forme de lambrequins et frise de godrons. Bordure de moulures de doucine. Maître-Orfèvre: poinçon incomplet (prenom E, différent soleil). (revermeillée). Poids : 193 g. H_9,5 cm.

Timbale droite à fond arrondi en vermeil. Strasbourg, 1700-1725. Maître-Orfèvre: Jean Reinold Buttnner. photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Corps guilloché. Bordure de moulures et filets. (petits chocs). Poids : 117 g. H_7,4 cm.

Timbale tronconique à fond plat en argent. Amsterdam, vers 1640.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Décor de côtes torses gravées sur fond amati et frises de volutes sur deux registres séparés par une grosse moulure. Poids : 124 g. H_8,8 cm.

Très grande timbale de forme tulipe à piédouche. Meaux, 1771.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

en argent finement ciselée de fleurs, rinceaux et coquilles. Base gravée « Françoise Elisabeth Saillard ». Maître-Orfèvre: Charles-Joseph Fontaine, reçu Maître le 18 Mars 1765. Poids : 183 g. H_13 cm

Timbale de forme tulipe en vermeil à piédouche. Strasbourg, milieu du XVIIIe siècle.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Corps à côtes pincées. Décor gravé de guirlandes de fleurs. Bordure à filets (usures). Poids 183g. H_10 cm

Rate timbale de forme tulipe en vermeil à piédouche. Strasbourg, deuxième quart du XVIIIe siècle. Maître-Orfèvre : Johann Gotfried Stahl.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Corps à côtes pincées. Décor gravé de ferrures et coquille. Poids: 115 g. H_10,2 cm

Timbale de forme tulipe à piédouche en vermeil. Strasbourg, années 1730.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Elle est gravée de lambrequins au registre supérieur. Le registre inférieur porte un grand écusson rond armorié. Gravé d'un envoi « Raths für Herin-Antoni(sic) Hugard-Ambt v. Flecken Shreiber in Ernstein-Anno 1733 ». Poids : 155 g. H_9,2 cm

Petite timbale de forme tulipe à piédouche en argent uni. Avallon, deuxième moitié du XVIIIe siècle.  photo Pierre Bergé & associés

Base à frise de godrons (gravée postérieurement, chocs à la base). Poids : 74 g. H_7,7 cm.

Pierre Bergé & associés. Meuble et objets d'art Vendredi 04 juin à 14h00. Drouot Richelieu - Salle 5-6. EMail : contact@pba-auctions.com - Tél. : Paris +33 (0)1 49 49 90

Two 18th Century Trompe L'oeil of the James S. Copley Library

English School, 18th Century (Follower of Edward Collier) Trompe l'oeil still life of a letter rack holding a newspaper, letters, a letter opener, wax, a quill, a comb and other objects. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 28 by 23 in.; 71.1 by 58.4 cm. Est. 20,000—30,000 USD Lot Sold 53,125 USD

PROVENANCE: Berry-Hill Galleries, New York, by 1959.

Property of the James S. Copley Library.

Attributed to Bernardo Lorente Germán (Séville 1680 - 1759), Trompe L'oeil still life with newspapers, sheet music, oil paintings and other objects resting on a wood shelf.

oil on canvas, 25 3/4 by 20 1/2 in.; 65.3 by 52 cm. Est. 8,000—12,000 USD Lot Sold 10,625 USD

PROVENANCE: With Berry-Hill Galleries, New York, by 1959.

Property of the James S. Copley Library.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: A.E. Pérez Sánchez, La Nature Morte Espagnole du XVIIe siècle à Goya, Fribourg 1987, pp. 171 and 174, reproduced (as Anonymous Sevillian, circa 1725);
A. Sánchez López, La Pintura de Bodegones Y Floreros en España en el Siglo XVIII, 2008, p. 632, no. 5 , reproduced fig. 71 (as close to Lorente or his follower Juanfranco Morales).

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. 03 Jun 10. New York www.sothebys.com

Rare mobilier de salon. Attribué à Jean Baptiste Claude Sené. Epoque Louis XVI

Rare mobilier de salon comprenant une paire de canapés d'alcôve et huit fauteuils. Attribué à Jean Baptiste Claude SENE Epoque Louis XVI. photo De Maigret Thierry.

Ils sont à dossier cabriolet en médaillon, sculptés et dorés en profils inversés d'une frise de feuilles d'acanthe soulignés d'un rang de perles. Les assises ovales en forme d'écusson sont ornées sur les traverses de feuilles de chêne et glands rubanés. Supports de dossier à feuilles d'eau crispées. Supports d'accotoirs à frise de piastres enroulements de feuilles d'acanthe. Dés à rosaces ; pieds fuselés à cannelures à asperges. (restaurations d'usage et renforts) Garniture de velours vert frappé de feuillages ou bordeaux (pour deux fauteuils) Fauteuil H : 88,5 - L : 67 - P : 67 cm Canapé H : 99 - L : 169 - P : 68 cm - Estimation : 40 000 - 60 000 €

Elégance de la composition, équilibre des proportions et raffinement de la sculpture peuvent qualifier cette suite de sièges qui témoigne de l'aboutissement des recherches stylistiques des menuisiers du dernier tiers du XVIIIème siècle. Leur dessin général pourrait être rapproché des réalisations de certains menuisiers réputés de cette période tels Claude Chevigny, Jean-Baptiste Boulard, Jean-René Nadal ou Georges Jacob.

Concernant ce dernier notamment mentionnons les similitudes qu'ils existent avec un fauteuil du menuisier conservé au Musée des arts décoratifs à Paris (reproduit sur la couverture et page 128 de l'ouvrage de Guillaume Janneau, Le mobilier français, Les sièges, Paris, 1993). Toutefois il convient, de préférence, d'attribuer les sièges proposés au rival direct de Georges Jacob à cette époque : Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené.

Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené (1747-1803) est un artisan en sièges parisien issu d'une dynastie de menuisiers dont il est le plus membre le plus important. A l'instar de Georges Jacob, il va véritablement connaître une grande notoriété grâce à sa participation à l'ameublement des résidences de la famille royale et de son entourage proche à partir du milieu des années 1780. Dès cette époque, le menuisier hausse considérablement son niveau de technicité et d'inventivité ; il est vrai qu'il est confrontait alors à de très importantes commandes destinées notamment à Louis XVI et Marie-Antoinette pour leurs divers appartements dans les châteaux royaux, pour Madame Elisabeth à Montreuil, ou bien encore pour le prince de Condé et le duc de Penthièvre. Son oeuvre, tout comme celle de Georges Jacob, témoigne de la parfaite maîtrise du menuisier et fait partie, de nos jours, des collections privées et publiques les plus prestigieuses.

De Maigret Thierry. Hotel Drouot - salles 1 et  7. Tableaux Anciens, Objets d'art, Mobilier des XVIIème, XVIIIème et XIXème Siècle. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

Five Trompe l'Oeil from the Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection

Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts (Antwerp, active 1659 - after 1683) Trompe l'oeil of an open cupboard. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, signed and dated on the etching at center: C.N. Gijsbrechts Aº 1665, 33 1/2 by 29 1/2 in.; 85.1 by 74.9 cm. Est. 120,000—180,000 USD Lot Sold 104,500 USD

PROVENANCE: With Hanover Gallery, London, by 1950;
With F. Frank, London, by 1951;
Marcus, Paris, before 1964;
Probably with Duits Gallery, London;
Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science,1983 (Acc. FMM 82.31).

EXHIBITED: Lawrence, KS, Museum of Art, The University of Kansas, The Salzer Collection, Trompe L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 4 October - 1 November 1964, cat. no. 20, reproduced on the catalogue cover;
Charlotte, NC, The Mint Museum of Art, The Salzer Collection, Trompe-L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 14 February - 7 March 1965, cat. no. 20;
Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 30, reproduced and on catalogue cover;
Columbus, OH, Columbus Museum of Art; West Palm Beach, FL, Norton Gallery of Art, More Than Meets the Eye: The Art of Trompe l'Oeil, 7 December 1985 – 27 April 1986, cat. no. 2, reproduced pp. 10 and 50;
Dartmouth, NH, Hood Museum of Art; Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art; Houston, TX, Museum of Fine Arts; Atlanta, GA, High Museum of Art, Age of the Marvelous, 21 September 1991 - 3 January 1993, cat. no. 197, reproduced p. 431;
Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum; Cleveland, OH, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Still-Life Paintings from the Netherlands, 1550-1720, 19 June 1999 - 9 January 2000, cat. no. 56;
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 28, reproduced pp. 66 and 67.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: G. Marlier, "Het stilleven in de Vlaamse schilderkunst der XVIe eeuw," in Jaarboek van het Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten te Antwerpen, 1941, p. 103;
P. Gammelbo, "Cornelius Norbertus Gijsbrechts og Franciscus Gijsbrechts," in Kunstmuseets Arsskrift 39-42 (1952-55), p. 147, no. 11, reproduced;
G. Marlier, "C.N. Gysbrechts, l'illusioniste," in Connaissance des Arts, no. 145, March 1964, p. 103, reproduced;
A.P. de Mirimonde, "Les peintres de trompe l'oeil et de natures morte aux XVIIe siècle, et les fujets de musique," in Jaarboek van het Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen," 1971, p. 247, reproduced pl. 27;
M. Battersby, Trompe l'oeil: The Eye Deceived, 1974, p. 108, reproduced;
D. Folga-Januzewska, "Trompe l'oeil de C.N. Gijsbrechts dans les collections du Musée National de Varsovie," in Bulletin du Musée National de Varsovie 22, 1981, pp. 57-61;
Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 21, reproduced in color on the cover;
S.B. Sherrill, "Current and Coming," in Antiques Magazine, December 1985, reproduced;
P.C. Sutton, The Age of Rubens, exhibition catalogue, Boston 1993, p. 551, reproduced p. 554, fig. 1;
M. Braun, Cornelis Norbertus Gijsbrechts und Fransiscus Gijsbrechts, (Diss.), Berlin 1994, p. 95-96, cat. no. 1.1.16;
G. Apgar, S. O'L. Higgins, C. Striegel, The Newspaper in Art, Spokane 1996, p. 10, reproduced fig. 14;
A. Chong and W. Kloek, Still-Life Paintings from the Netherlands, 1550-1720, exhibition catalogue, Amsterdam and Cleveland 1999, pp. 231-233, cat. no. 56, reproduced pp. 58 (detail) and 232;
O. Koester, Illusions: Gijsbrechts, Royal Master of Deception, exhibition catalogue Copenhagen, 1999, p. 152, reproduced.

NOTE: During the early 1650s in the Netherlands and other parts of northern Europe, trompe l'oeil paintings were sought after by collectors and princely patrons who admired the skill and sophistication of these "praiseworthy deceptions".¹ As the audience for them grew, a number of different variants evolved, including cut-outs, letter boards and open or closed cupboards, such as the present work.

Here we see a glass-windowed cupboard, its door ajar. Tucked behind a horizontal metal bar and into the wooden frame are various written and printed documents and writing implements, while dimly visible within are stacks of coins, eye glasses, sticks of sealing wax and a wooden box. On the door itself, at the very center of the composition, is a small sheaf of prints, stitched together in the upper margins. The etching on top -- the only one visible to the viewer -- is a small head of a man in profile based on a print by Jan Lievens,² but Gijsbrechts has added his own signature underneath and the date 1665. To the left is a 1657 almanac from Liège, which partly obscures a newspaper with the headline "Victor...". This latter has been identified as referring to the English victory over the Dutch in the Battle of Lowestoft , June 1665.³ The other elements of the still life are more generic in nature and have not been linked to any known pamphlets or books.

Gijsbrechts painted very few cupboard still lifes. He was undoubtedly inspired by Hoogstraaten, who began painting similar wall cupboards with glass windows in the early 1650s. The present work and a painting of a closed cupboard in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Rouen, both dated 1665, are the earliest known. Another closely related picture, dated 1666 was with Noortman Master Paintings, Maastricht.⁴ Unlike the later works that Gijsbrechts painted while in the service of the Danish King Frederick III, now in the Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen, which include small bronzes and other elements familiar to curiosity cabinets, these three works all feature more mundane elements. It is Gijsbrechts' masterful arrangement of these ordinary materials that attracts and excites us. Using the small etching as an anchor, he fans out the letters and pamphlets around it, curling the edges of the sheets and tilting them just out of the vertical plane so that they catch the light and our eye. Completing the circle at the bottom is a quill pen, whose shadow falls on the cabinet door, which appears to have just swung open.

1. C. Brusati in Still-Life Paintings from the Netherlands, 1550-1720, p. 59, see Literature.
2. Bust of a Man with Thick Lips (Holl. 88).
3. A. Chong and W. Kloek,in Still-Life Paintings from the Netherlands, 1550-1720, p. 231, see Literature.
4. See O. Koester, The Eye Deceived: Painted Illusions by Cornelius Gijsbrechts, exhibition catalogue, The Hague 2005, pp. 52-53, cat. 12, reproduced.

Edwaert Collier (Breda active before 1663 - 1708 Leiden (?)), Trompe l'Oeil still life of a letter rack holding newspapers, letters, a comb, scissors, wax, a letter opener, a magnifying glass and other objects. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 25 1/8 by 30 in.; 63.7 by 76.2 cm, signed and inscribed on the leter lower center: ffor/M^r E. Collier/Painter att/London and dated on the almanac: 1698. Est. 50,000—70,000 USD Lot Sold 92,500 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science,1983 (Acc. FMM 82.19).

EXHIBITED: Lawrence, KS, Museum of Art, The University of Kansas, The Salzer Collection, Trompe L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 4 October - 1 November 1964, cat. no. 9;
Charlotte, NC, The Mint Museum of Art, The Salzer Collection, Trompe-L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 14 February - 7 March 1965, cat. no. 9;
Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 15, reproduced;
Dartmouth, NH, Hood Museum of Art; Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art; Houston, TX, Museum of Fine Arts; Atlanta, GA, High Museum of Art, Age of the Marvelous, 21 September 1991 - 3 January 1993, cat. no. 195, reproduced p. 429;
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 32, reproduced p. 71.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art, History and Science, Celebration of the Opening, Fresno 1984, p. 12, reproduced;
Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 8, reproduced in color.

NOTE: Trained as a painter in Haarlem and Leiden, Edwaert Collier joined the Guild of Saint Luke in Leiden in 1673. He moved to London in 1693 and had a prolific career there as a painter of vanitas and trompe l'oeil still lifes. These witty and highly decorative works, which were incredibly popular during the late 17^th and 18^th centuries, have found favor with collectors and connoisseurs in the present day due to their ability to blend reality with deception and their unique resolution to the question at the heart of painting's practice for centuries: how to depict the three-dimensional world on a two-dimensional surface.

The theme of the letter rack seems to have preoccupied Collier during his years in London; we know many examples of these works today – all dated 1693 and later – which can be generally divided into two groups: those with plain, dark, monochromatic backgrounds as seen in the present work, and those with faux bois backgrounds, as in the work sold New York, Sotheby's 28 January 2010, lot 262. Although all of the letter rack works in Collier's oeuvre are composed differently, they do tend to feature similar objects. Indeed, almost every object in the present work reappears elsewhere in other works by the artist. Particularly characteristic are the inclusion of the Apollo Anglicanus Almanac, which the artist often uses to date his works (here, 1698); the folded and dog-eared copy of the London Gazette; a royal speech before parliament (here by King William); and the hand-written "Memory" pad. Also typical is the way in which Collier has signed the work: on a letter tucked into the rack addressed to "Mr. E. Collier Painter att. London". During his time in London, Collier used both the Dutch and English versions of his signature interchangeably; thus, he was sometimes Edwaert or Edwaerd, other times Edward; sometimes Painter at London, others Schilder tot Leyden. A master of the trompe l'oeil genre, Collier's genius lay in his ability to make his carefully arranged and remarkably naturalistic works appear effortless, random and uncomposed.

We are grateful to Dr. Dror Wahrman for his assistance in cataloguing the present lot.

French School, 19th Century, Trompe l'Oeil of a Barber's Cabinet. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 25 3/8 by 21 3/8 in.; 64.5 by 54.3 cm. Est. 12,000—18,000 USD Lot Sold   43,750 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science, 1983 (acc. no. FMM 82.62).

EXHIBITED: Lawrence, KS, Museum of Art of the University of Kansas, The Salzer Collection. Trompe l'Oeil and Still Life Paintings: A Loan Exhibition, 4 October - 1 November 1964, no. 30, reproduced p. 21 (as Attributed to Jean-Baptiste Oudry);
Charlotte, NC, The Mint Museum of Art, The Salzer Collection, Trompe-L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 14 February - 7 March 1965, cat. no. 30 (as Attributed to Jean-Baptiste Oudry);
Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 81, reproduced (as French School, 19th Century);
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 26, reproduced p. 64 (as French School, 19th Century).

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 51, reproduced (as French School, 18th Century).

Edwaert Collier (Breda active before 1663 - 1708 Leiden (?)), Trompe l'oeil still life with an Engraving of Erasmus of Rotterdam affixed to a wood board. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 18 1/4 by 14 3/4 in.; 46.3 by 37.5 cm., signed and dated: E. Coljer fecit/Anno 1693. Est. 15,000—20,000 USD
Lot Sold 37,500 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science,1983 (Acc. FMM 82.20).

EXHIBITED: Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 16, reproduced;
Dartmouth, NH, Hood Museum of Art; Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art; Houston, TX, Museum of Fine Arts; Atlanta, GA, High Museum of Art, Age of the Marvelous, 21 September 1991 - 3 January 1993, cat. no. 195, reproduced p. 428;
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 19, reproduced p. 56.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 9, reproduced.

NOTE: A recurring motif in Collier's work, the artist often incorporated the print of Erasmus of Rotterdam into his trompe l'oeil still lifes, sometimes alone, and sometimes incorporated into arrangements of various objects.

Flemish School, 17th Century, Trompe l'Oeil Marble Relief of The Adoration of the Shepherds. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 15 1/2 by 11 1/8 in.; 39.4 by 28.3 cm. Inscribed indistinctly, lower right ...er pinx 71 ? Est. 6,000—8,000 USD Lot Sold 11,875 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science, 1983 (acc. no. FMM 82.59).

EXHIBITED: Lawrence, KS, Museum of Art of the University of Kansas, The Salzer Collection. Trompe l'Oeil and Still Life Paintings: A Loan Exhibition, 4 October - 1 November 1964, no. 12, reproduced (as Dutch School, 17th Century);
Charlotte, NC, The Mint Museum of Art, The Salzer Collection, Trompe-L'Oeil and Still Life Paintings, A Loan Exhibition, 14 February - 7 March 1965, cat. no. 12 (as Dutch School, 17th Century);
Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 77, reproduced (as Dutch School, 17th Century);
Nagoya, Nagoya City Art Museum; Bunkamura, The Bunkamura Museum of Art; Hyogo, Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Visual Deception, 11 April 2009 - 3 November 2009, cat. no. 35, reproduced p. 74 (as Dutch School, 17th Century).

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 48, reproduced (as Dutch, 17th Century).

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. 03 Jun 10. New York www.sothebys.com

Rare ensemble de cinq consoles* en bois finement sculpté et doré sur des fonds rechampis crème. Attribuées à Georges Jacob

Rare ensemble de cinq consoles en bois finement sculpté et doré sur des fonds rechampis crème. Attribuées à Georges Jacob. Epoque Louis XVI. photo De Maigret Thierry.

Les traverses ornées d'une frise à palmettes et feuilles d'acanthe crispées soulignées d'un rang de godrons et de perles. Les pieds en console à large enroulement, soulignés de rosaces et graines feuillagées se terminant en gaine à larges palmes. Entretoise en dessin géométrique ajouré à palmettes présentant au centre un petit chapiteau central (manque). Il comprend deux paires de consoles dont une en demi-lune, une autre rectangulaire et une dernière formant desserte.

Plateaux de marbre gris Sainte Anne et bleu Turquin. Desserte : H : 89 - L : 150 - P : 61,5 cm. Console rectangulaire : H : 89 - L : 100 - P : 51 cm Console demi lune : H : 89 - L : 88 - P : 58 cm

Estimation : 60 000 - 80 000 €. Pourront être présentées séparément sur enchères provisoires, avec faculté de réunion, avec les estimations suivantes : 229 A : 25 000 / 35 000 229 B : 15 000 / 20 000 229 C : 7 000 / 12 000

La paire de consoles demi-lune présente des cotés et des marbres rapportés car elles devaient être présentées dans des alcôves

Les ensembles conservés de meubles de menuiserie de cette importance sont rarissimes. En effet, avoir pu conserver au fil des siècles une suite de cinq consoles de cette qualité d'exécution est quasiment un fait unique dans les arts décoratifs français du XVIIIème siècle. Le plus souvent, ils ont été dispersés au gré des ventes aux enchères et des successions, puis parfois reconstitués en partie.

Tel est notamment le cas de l'ensemble de sièges et de consoles commandé au milieu du XVIIIème siècle, probablement à Michel Cresson, par Louis II du Bouchet marquis de Sourches (1711-1788) pour le grand salon du château d'Abondant (Eure-et-Loir). Une partie de ce mobilier se trouve actuellement au Musée du Louvre, tandis que d'autres éléments sont apparus sur le marché de l'art parisien (voir Bill G.B. Pallot, Le mobilier du musée du Louvre, Tome 2, Sièges et consoles (menuiserie) XVIIème et XVIIIème siècles, Dijon, 1993, p.66-68, catalogue n°17). Ces sièges et consoles étaient bien évidemment destinés à s'intégrer pleinement dans un décor de boiseries aux lignes sinueuses. Quant aux consoles présentées, bien qu'à l'heure actuelle leur historique n'ait pas pu être reconstitué, les prestigieuses alliances de la famille à laquelle elles sont rattachées suggèrent l'un des grands salons d'un hôtel particulier parisien remanié dans le dernier quart du XVIIIème siècle ; elles témoignent probablement de la collaboration d'un architecte tel que Claude-Nicolas Ledoux et du menuisier Georges Jacob. Ce dernier intervenant est particulièrement intéressant pour notre étude, puisqu'il peut être véritablement qualifié de « maître du pied en console terminé en enroulement », type ornemental qu'il déclina aussi bien dans la réalisation de certains de ses sièges estampillés, que dans l'élaboration de certaines pièces de boiserie. Les consoles présentant ce motif caractéristique sont particulièrement nombreuses dans la menuiserie parisienne, elles sont souvent rapprochées de l'oeuvre de Georges Jacob ou de Jean-Baptiste-Claude Séné.

Citons notamment une grande table à pieds en consoles terminées en enroulements passée en vente chez Christie's, à New York, le 23 octobre 1998, lot 82 ; ainsi qu'une deuxième, en bois doré et rechampi blanc, vendue dans ce même lieu le 30 octobre 1993, lot 400 ; mentionnons également une paire, d'une composition simple mais particulièrement élégante, ayant fait partie de la vente à Paris, Me Ferri, le 12 décembre 2007, lot 257 ; enfin notons les analogies avec une table en console conservée au Petit Trianon et portant la marque au fer du Garde-Meuble de Marie-Antoinette (illustrée dans Francis J.B. Watson, Le meuble Louis XVI, Paris, 1963, illustration 214). Toutefois, il faut bien convenir que les consoles susmentionnées, bien que relativement proches des créations de Georges Jacob, n'ont pas de rapport certain avec l'oeuvre du menuisier.

Pour créer un lien entre l'ensemble proposé et ce menuisier d'exception, il s'agit de citer particulièrement deux exemples. Tout d'abord, une belle console en bois sculpté et rechampi blanc commandée à Georges Jacob en mai 1776 par la princesse de Conti pour le grand salon de son hôtel particulier de la rue Saint Dominique dont l'installation était due à l'architecte Pierre-Claude Convers (reproduite dans M. Beurdeley, Jacob et son temps, Paris, 2002, p.27). Enfin, notons les proximités stylistiques qu'il existe avec une seconde console finement sculptée supportée par six pieds, dont les deux de devant terminés en enroulements, le tout réuni par une entretoise ; estampillée par Georges Jacob, elle fut inventoriée dès 1782 dans un des salons du château de Karlsberg en Allemagne, puis passa dans les collections de la Résidence de Munich où elle est toujours conservée (B. Langer, Die Möbel der Residenz München, Die französischen Möbel des 18. Jahrhunderts, Prestel, Munich, 1995, p.222-223, catalogue n°57).

Georges Jacob (1739-1814) est de toute évidence le plus important menuisier parisien du XVIIIème siècle. Son oeuvre se distingue notamment de ses confrères par la quantité de sièges portant son estampille, alliée à l'inventivité des compositions et à une qualité d'exécution inégalée. A ses débuts, son passage chez Louis Delanois, l'un des principaux promoteurs du néoclassicisme dans les sièges, va profondément influencer son style. Après son accession à la maîtrise le 4 septembre 1765, il s'établit rue de Cléry, puis rapidement transporte son atelier rue Meslée en 1775. Auparavant il avait déjà était sollicité par le Garde-Meuble royal dès 1773. Il connaîtra une carrière exceptionnelle, dépassant même les frontières du royaume. Ainsi parallèlement à une clientèle de riches particuliers, Jacob travaille activement à la fourniture de sièges et de consoles pour les membres de la famille royale et de son entourage ; citons parmi tant d'autres : Marie-Antoinette, Louis XVI, le comte d'Artois, le comte de Provence, le prince de Condé, le duc de Penthièvre, la marquise de Marbeuf, le prince de Galles et l'Electeur de Bavière. De nos jours ses sièges figurent dans la plupart des grandes collections privées et publiques.

De Maigret Thierry. Hotel Drouot - salles 1 et  7. Tableaux Anciens, Objets d’art, Mobilier des XVIIème, XVIIIème et XIXème Siècle. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

Manner of Antoine Berjon, Possibly circa 1900, Still Life with Shells and Coral, resting on a stone ledge

Manner of Antoine Berjon, Possibly circa 1900, Still Life with Shells and Coral, resting on a stone ledge. photo Sotheby's

oil on canvas, 10 1/8 by 8 1/4 in.; 25.7 by 21 cm. Est. 8,000—12,000 USD Lot Sold 16,250 USD

PROVENANCE: Oscar and Maria Salzer, Los Angeles;
By whom given to the Fresno Metropolitan Museum of Art and Science,1983 (Acc. FMM 82.14).

EXHIBITED: Los Angeles, Fisher Gallery, University of Southern California; Seattle, WA, Seattle Art Museum; Honolulu, HI, Honolulu Academy of Art; Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Reality and Deception, 16 October 1974 – 20 April 1975, cat. no. 8, reproduced (as by Antoine Berjon).

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Portraits of Objects, Oscar and Maria Salzer Collection of Still Life and Trompe-L'Oeil Paintings, Fresno 1984, cat. no. 3, reproduced (as by Antoine Berjon).

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. 03 Jun 10. New York www.sothebys.com

Petite coupe en porcelaine blanche et émaux de type doucai. Époque Kangxi & Vase balustre en porcelaine et émaux wucai. XVIIIe s

Petite coupe en porcelaine blanche et émaux de type doucai. Époque Kangxi (1662-1722).

à décor en médaillon central d'un grenadier s'élevant derrière un rocher en forme de tablette votive. Le pourtour est orné de rinceaux floraux. Sur la base, marque apocryphe Chenghua en six caractères kaishu. Diam. 16 cm - Estimation : € 1,800-2,000

Vase balustre en porcelaine et émaux wucai. XVIIIe siècle.

à décor de chevaux galopants parmi des pics montagneux sur fond de spirales. Haut. 23,5 cm - Estimation : € 1,100-1,500

Tajan SVV. Arts d'Asie, 07 juin 2010 19:00, Espace Tajan www.tajan.com