Adam’s first big auction of 2017 – the “At Home” sale in the St Stephen’s Green salesroom last Sunday – achieved a sold rate of 81 per cent with bidders spending €400,000.
Many lots sold for well above estimate which Adam’s said was due to the particularly good-quality lots, most of which had come from three private collections that had been well assembled and properly cared for.
Managing director James O’Halloran said that viewing numbers, registered bidders and the volume of online bidders was noticeably higher than recent sales and that “perhaps the tide is beginning to turn”.
Among the key prices achieved, Lot 1 – a George III silver entrée dish made by John Houle in London in 1814, sold for €4,500 (it was estimated to fetch €1,500-€2,500); Lot 11, a George III Irish silver coffee pot by John Lloyd, €2,400 (€800-€1,200); Lot 166, an 85-piece early Victorian Mason's Ironstone dinner service, €4,600 (€2,000-€4,000); Lot 235, a set of fourteen George IV mahogany dining chairs, €3,000 (€3,000-€5,000); Lot 134, a set of Malton's 25 views "A Picturesque and Descriptive view of the City of Dublin'', €13,000 (€8,000-€10,000); Lot 123 Still Life with Wine Cooler and Flowers by Cecil Kennedy, €14,000 (€6,000-€10,000); and Lot 133, Still Life with Vase of Flowers (Glass) also by Kennedy, €10,000 (€5,000-€7,000); Lot 237, a large, Irish George III mahogany brass-bound fuel bucket, €7,500 (€8,000-€12,000); and Lot 239, an Irish George IV giltwood console table, €11,000 (€4,000-€6,000).
78 per cent of lots sold
There was a lot of interest in Lot 256, a "Vintage Louis Vuitton Steamer Trunk" that attracted bidding from several European bidders and was eventually bought by an Italian collector for €7,500 – well above the estimate (€3,000-€5,000). For more results see adams.ie.
On Monday evening at the RDS, Whyte’s held an Irish & International Art auction where 78 per cent of lots sold for a total of €850,000 with over half the lots exceeding their top estimate.
As expected, the top price was achieved for Lot 20, a Paul Henry painting, Lough Altan, County Donegal. It sold for €58,000 – under the low estimate of €60,000-€80,000.
Lot 32, Fresh Horses by Jack B Yeats made €42,000 (€40,000-€60,000) and the other top prices were for Lot 72: Louis le Brocquy's Study for Riverrun: Procession with Lilies, €46,000 (€40,000-€60,000) and Lot 65, Life Study (Self), €34,000 (€30,000-€50,000).
Lot 109, a bronze sculpture, "Mask of the Barrow" by Mark Breslin, made €10,000 (€5,000-€7,000); and Lot 167, Spring Flowers by Stuart Morle sold for €1,300 (€1,000-€1,500).
For more results see whytes.ie. Auctioneer Ian Whyte said the results represented "a confident start to the 2017 series of art auctions, continuing the trend" seen last year.
