Asian seal could press out $4,000
A gilt and bronze Asian seal, boasting a design featuring dragons, and weighing 15 pounds, will come before bidders through Converse Auctions March 24.
MALVERN, Pa. - Over 300 lots of fine American, European, African, Chinese items, including a 15-pound Asian seal are coming to auction. The items will be sold in an internet-only Spring East Meets West Auction on Friday, March 24th, by Converse Auctions.
The auction will take place at Converse Auctions gallery, in Malvern, Pennsylvania. Online bidding will be available via www.converseauctions.com, LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com. Phone and absentee bids will also be accepted.
Offered will be antique clocks, fine furs, a Colt .44 revolver, sterling silver, and a gilt bronze dragon Asian seal. In addition, bronze Buddhas, scrolls, furniture, and fine cloisonné will be presented. The auction will begin at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
Asian Seal, Fine Furs, Antique Clocks On Offer
A strong candidate for top lot of the auction is a rare Leslie & Price (Philadelphia) tall case clock. The item features a rocking ship graphic on the face with Roman numerals and gold gilt spandrels. The clock, 90 inches in height, should sell for $7,000-$12,000. Also, an early 19th century English Pimlico bracket clock by Samuel Moginie may see $500 to $800.
African lots will feature a colorful mask obtained in the mid-20th century (est. $300-$500). Also a wooden statue of a carved bird-god head figure on a stand with a U-shaped handle could finish at $300-$500). Plus, a sculpture of Nigerian twins, collected by a missionary family in the 1930s may sell for $200 to $400.
Gilt Bronze Asian Seal Weighs In at 15 Pounds
A large gilt bronze Asian seal headlines Asian offerings. It is covered by two dragons facing a
flaming pearl on top of swirling clouds on each side.The top is adorned by a forward-facing, horned dragon, and weighs 15 pounds. it should realize $2,000 to $4,000. A scroll with large, colorful peonies and calligraphy and the artist’s seal is estimated at $200-$400.
Fans of Chinese jade will be able to bid on a carved white jade mountain. The piece measures 8 inches tall. It features three figures standing on the ledge in the shade of trees near a pagoda with a bird nearby ($2,000-$4,000). Also included in the catalog is a pair of jade table screens, 9 ½ inches by 5 ½ inches ($1,000-$1,500).
Not many auctions feature an African mask, Asian seal, guns and furs, but this sale does. A US Army Civil War 1862 Colt .44 revolver with a cartouched cylinder scene and “C.T. Palmer” scratched on the butt is up for bid. It is in excellent condition for its age comes into the sale with an estimate of $2,000-$4,000. In addition, bidders will see three full length fur coats coming with estimates of $200 to $400).
Rosewood and Nacre Inlaid Armchairs in Spotlight
A pastoral painting by David Ellinger, titled Long Lane Farm, is coming to auction. It was shown in the 1958 Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts’ Twentieth Century American Painting and Sculpture. It is expected to hit $1,000 to $1,500. Also, an 1877 Sevres lamp, signed Thomas Allen, with painted porcelain reliefs illustrating John Milton poems, should sell for $300-$500.
Drawing on the appeal expected to surround earlier items, like the Asian seal, Chinese furniture will be presented. This includes a pair of rosewood and nacre inlaid armchairs. They were formed of an undulating crest rail above a large pierced splat carved with ruyi scepters surrounding a Shou character. They carry an estimate of $1,000 to $1,500. Plus, a pair of brass mounted zitan high-back folding chairs could realize between $800 and $1,200.
A pair of glazed bowls decorated with nine fierce, colorful dragons among clouds and flaming pearls will cross the auction block. The lot is expected to garner $1,000-$1,500. Meanwhile, a huanghuali jewelry chest, inlaid in nacre with birds, flowers and butterflies should knock down at $500 to $800.
Antique Painting Table May Finish at $1,200
A huanghuali painting table should finish at $800-$1,200. The table features a half-round banded apron and with a round mitered inset top, highly grained, and giant arm braces. Also, a circa 1800 chest with a top that opens to a desk with storage, possibly made in Bermuda, is expected to sell for $600-$900.
A Chinese Chen Xiang wooden chao zhu made from wood, jade, lapis, jasper beads and rock crystal pendants with gold inclusions, 50 inches in length, surmounted by enamel butterflies, is expected to achieve $800-$1,200; and a seven-stringed instrument (or guqin), lacquered and incised with a design of a herd of deer in a bamboo forest, 48 inches long, should hit $500-$800.
Rounding out just some of the day’s top lots, a three-piece sterling silver tea set with an oval tray measuring 11 inches by 14 inches and stamped J. E. Caldwell, is estimated at $1,000-$1,500; while a harp with brass reliefs and accents, having four pedals and signed “Sebastian and Pierre Eraro’s, Marlborough St., London,” 68 ½ inches tall, should play a sweet tune for $800-$1,200.
For more information, visit www.ConverseAuctions.com, call 610-722-9004 or email info@converseauctions.com.
