1898
1898 Le Pont Boieldieu et la Gare d'Orléans by Pissarro
2009 SOLD for $ 7M by Sotheby's
In addition to Paris, Pissarro featured the three Normandie cities of Rouen, Dieppe and Le Havre as examples of modern life.
He spent the summer of 1898 at Rouen where he executed some views of the harbor. The smoke of the factory chimneys and the traffic on the river are representing the human activity.
Le Pont Boieldieu et la Gare d'Orléans, soleil, is a view in sunlight with white clouds. This oil on canvas 65 x 81 cm was sold for $ 7M from a lower estimate of $ 2M by Sotheby's on May 5, 2009, lot 16.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
He spent the summer of 1898 at Rouen where he executed some views of the harbor. The smoke of the factory chimneys and the traffic on the river are representing the human activity.
Le Pont Boieldieu et la Gare d'Orléans, soleil, is a view in sunlight with white clouds. This oil on canvas 65 x 81 cm was sold for $ 7M from a lower estimate of $ 2M by Sotheby's on May 5, 2009, lot 16.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
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1898 Cinq Heures by Vallotton
2023 SOLD for £ 3.7M by Christie's
Born in Lausanne, Félix Vallotton studied art in Paris at the Académie Julian. He specialized from 1891 in woodcuts, creating black and white portraits and interior scenes in broad masses and minimal details with a biting wit. His feeling for realistic scenes and faits divers is contemporary to Zola and Maupassant.
At that time the Les Nabis group of young artists also trained in the Académie Julian made their hands to post-impressionnisme, starting from a comment by Gauguin to Sérusier in 1888. The new artists have to get rid of imitations, use vivid pure colors, exaggerate the scenery and promote decorative effects and symbolism. Vallotton joined them in 1893 as Le Nabi étranger. Famously Bonnard was Le Nabi Japonard and Sérusier Le Nabi à la barbe rutilante.
In 1898 the Intimités series of ten woodcuts features indoor encounters of man and woman. A series of paintings of domestic scenes collectively titled Intérieurs avec figures follows the same style that may also be compared with Lautrec.
One of these 1898 paintings, gouache on board 36 x 58 cm, was historically titled Intimité but Cinq heures is now preferred as an allusion to the best time in France for illegal lovers which is cinq à sept. Here that time period begins by a close embracing of man and woman, possibly patron and secretary, seated as equal players in a red armchair in an office room.
Cinq heures was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on October 13, 2023, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
At that time the Les Nabis group of young artists also trained in the Académie Julian made their hands to post-impressionnisme, starting from a comment by Gauguin to Sérusier in 1888. The new artists have to get rid of imitations, use vivid pure colors, exaggerate the scenery and promote decorative effects and symbolism. Vallotton joined them in 1893 as Le Nabi étranger. Famously Bonnard was Le Nabi Japonard and Sérusier Le Nabi à la barbe rutilante.
In 1898 the Intimités series of ten woodcuts features indoor encounters of man and woman. A series of paintings of domestic scenes collectively titled Intérieurs avec figures follows the same style that may also be compared with Lautrec.
One of these 1898 paintings, gouache on board 36 x 58 cm, was historically titled Intimité but Cinq heures is now preferred as an allusion to the best time in France for illegal lovers which is cinq à sept. Here that time period begins by a close embracing of man and woman, possibly patron and secretary, seated as equal players in a red armchair in an office room.
Cinq heures was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on October 13, 2023, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
#AuctionUpdate #FélixVallotton's 'Cinq heures' realised £3,670,000 achieving a #WorldAuctionRecord for the artist. Cinq heures depicts a couple in close embrace, entwined together on a red armchair. Lit from the left, the figures cast dark shadows across the carpeted floor. pic.twitter.com/budKvHvo6U
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) October 13, 2023
1898 Le Lit by Lautrec
2022 SOLD for $ 3.66M by Christie's
In 1897 Lautrec restarted a frenzy of painting. He was happy that a prostitute was accepting to be his hired model. Moreover she was red haired. This anonymous woman was identified by him as Madame Poupoule. Confronted with ill health, he soon retrenched in a new studio to better exercise his artistic skills.
The artist featured his new muse in the nude or semi-nude in the intimacy of an apartment, without a male or female partner.
Le Lit was painted à l'essence with the usual rich palette of Lautrec in 1898 on panel 41 x 32 cm. Madame is reclining on the bed with her legs under the blanket in the foreground. Semi nude in her nightdress rolled up to expose the bare buttocks and thighs. A feeling of quietness is brought by a sleeping position on the cozy pillow while the eyes are open in daydream.
Le Lit was sold for $ 3.66M by Christie's on October 20, 2022, lot 41.
The artist featured his new muse in the nude or semi-nude in the intimacy of an apartment, without a male or female partner.
Le Lit was painted à l'essence with the usual rich palette of Lautrec in 1898 on panel 41 x 32 cm. Madame is reclining on the bed with her legs under the blanket in the foreground. Semi nude in her nightdress rolled up to expose the bare buttocks and thighs. A feeling of quietness is brought by a sleeping position on the cozy pillow while the eyes are open in daydream.
Le Lit was sold for $ 3.66M by Christie's on October 20, 2022, lot 41.
1898-1899 Steps of Santa Maria d'Aracoeli by Prendergast
2018 SOLD for $ 3.4M by Christie's
Key features of Maurice Prendergast’s watercolors
Maurice Prendergast returned to Boston in 1894–1895 after studying in Paris, where he had absorbed Impressionist and Post-Impressionist approaches. A highly independent artist, he made groups of Americans at leisure—in parks, on beaches, or in public spaces—his preferred theme. His watercolors are distinguished by a dense, mosaic-like pattern of short, flat brushstrokes and bold outlines that create vibrant, jewel-like surfaces of bright color. This style, influenced by Cézanne’s compositional structure as well as by the decorative patterning of Post-Impressionism, produces a lively, almost tapestry-like effect. In addition to watercolors, Prendergast also produced monotypes.
The Stony Beach, depicting a crowded Massachusetts beach scene, is dominated by the red accents of parasols, orange and brown boulders, and the immaculate white of the women’s dresses. This watercolor on paper (53 × 35.6 cm), executed circa 1897, sold for $3.5 million against a lower estimate of $2 million at Christie’s on 23 May 2001, lot 11.
A fine Roman counterpart is Steps of Santa Maria d’Aracoeli, Rome. Signed lower left, this watercolor and pencil on paper measures 20¼ × 14⅛ in. (51.4 × 35.9 cm) and was executed circa 1898–99 during Prendergast’s first Italian sojourn. It captures the lively activity of men, women, and children gathered on the monumental staircase leading to the basilica atop the Capitoline Hill, with the entrance rising at the top of the composition. Architectural elements—steps, railings, trees, and buildings—serve as a strong compositional grid that organizes the animated crowd into harmonious groups. The work exemplifies Prendergast’s mastery of vivid color, intricate patterning, and the depiction of modern public leisure amid historic settings. From the Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller, it sold at Christie’s on 9 May 2018, lot 436, for $3,372,500 (against an estimate of $1.5–2.5 million).
Maurice Prendergast returned to Boston in 1894–1895 after studying in Paris, where he had absorbed Impressionist and Post-Impressionist approaches. A highly independent artist, he made groups of Americans at leisure—in parks, on beaches, or in public spaces—his preferred theme. His watercolors are distinguished by a dense, mosaic-like pattern of short, flat brushstrokes and bold outlines that create vibrant, jewel-like surfaces of bright color. This style, influenced by Cézanne’s compositional structure as well as by the decorative patterning of Post-Impressionism, produces a lively, almost tapestry-like effect. In addition to watercolors, Prendergast also produced monotypes.
The Stony Beach, depicting a crowded Massachusetts beach scene, is dominated by the red accents of parasols, orange and brown boulders, and the immaculate white of the women’s dresses. This watercolor on paper (53 × 35.6 cm), executed circa 1897, sold for $3.5 million against a lower estimate of $2 million at Christie’s on 23 May 2001, lot 11.
A fine Roman counterpart is Steps of Santa Maria d’Aracoeli, Rome. Signed lower left, this watercolor and pencil on paper measures 20¼ × 14⅛ in. (51.4 × 35.9 cm) and was executed circa 1898–99 during Prendergast’s first Italian sojourn. It captures the lively activity of men, women, and children gathered on the monumental staircase leading to the basilica atop the Capitoline Hill, with the entrance rising at the top of the composition. Architectural elements—steps, railings, trees, and buildings—serve as a strong compositional grid that organizes the animated crowd into harmonious groups. The work exemplifies Prendergast’s mastery of vivid color, intricate patterning, and the depiction of modern public leisure amid historic settings. From the Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller, it sold at Christie’s on 9 May 2018, lot 436, for $3,372,500 (against an estimate of $1.5–2.5 million).
1898 Ripe Fields by Sohlberg
2019 SOLD for £ 2.36M by Sotheby's
In 1891 Harald Sohlberg spends several months in a farm belonging to the Pettersens, a rich family of merchants in Christiania. He has just finished his studies of art and design. The Pettersens order him a painting showing their estate.
Sohlberg begins to prepare drafts of the farm in winter but he does not rush. He uses this theme to develop his personal style. In 1895-1896 he is in Paris. His oil on canvas 73 x 116 cm is completed in 1898. It is titled Modne Jorder (Ripe Fields), probably meaning that it expresses the light of the end of summer.
This landscape is structured in four distances. The background is a mountain lit by the light of dawn. The inhabited part is in the dim light, separated from the field by a fence. The first lights begin to lick the surface of the field. The foreground is a birch slope, forming a kind of framing of leaves painted in impasto. No characters are visible.
Modne Jorder announces the style that will be practiced by Sohlberg throughout his career. He will remain fascinated by the night and by the extreme moments of dawn and dusk. He paints humble landscapes in which he seeks to express a sensitivity. He was probably influenced by Gauguin's art. The extreme colors of his landscapes are similar to the symbolist scenes by Alphonse Osbert.
Modne Jorder was sold for £6 from a lower estimate of £ 1M by Sotheby's in London on December 11, 20191, lot 15. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Fiskerens hus (the fisherman's house), oil on canvas 94 x 121 cm painted in 1921, was sold for £ 1.2M by Sotheby's on December 14, 2016.
Sohlberg begins to prepare drafts of the farm in winter but he does not rush. He uses this theme to develop his personal style. In 1895-1896 he is in Paris. His oil on canvas 73 x 116 cm is completed in 1898. It is titled Modne Jorder (Ripe Fields), probably meaning that it expresses the light of the end of summer.
This landscape is structured in four distances. The background is a mountain lit by the light of dawn. The inhabited part is in the dim light, separated from the field by a fence. The first lights begin to lick the surface of the field. The foreground is a birch slope, forming a kind of framing of leaves painted in impasto. No characters are visible.
Modne Jorder announces the style that will be practiced by Sohlberg throughout his career. He will remain fascinated by the night and by the extreme moments of dawn and dusk. He paints humble landscapes in which he seeks to express a sensitivity. He was probably influenced by Gauguin's art. The extreme colors of his landscapes are similar to the symbolist scenes by Alphonse Osbert.
Modne Jorder was sold for £6 from a lower estimate of £ 1M by Sotheby's in London on December 11, 20191, lot 15. Please watch the video prepared by the auction house. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Fiskerens hus (the fisherman's house), oil on canvas 94 x 121 cm painted in 1921, was sold for £ 1.2M by Sotheby's on December 14, 2016.
1898 Patek Philippe ex Palmer
2013 SOLD for $ 2.25M by Christie's
The Patek Philippe company was created in Geneva in 1851, succeeding the workshop founded by Patek and Czapek twelve years earlier. The competition was tough for Swiss watches. However, three quarters of a century later, Patek Philippe was the undisputed leader in complicated watches.
In the nineteenth century Patek Philippe had already filed many patents. However, a pocket watch recently discovered with its certificate and invoice changes the vision that historians could have on the development of the brand.
In October 1900, an American banker and benefactor of Princeton University named Stephen S. Palmer came to Geneva to buy three Patek Philippe watches, one of which is narrated below. It includes the best complications available at that time : minute repeater, months, days of the week, split-seconds chronograph, grande and petite sonnerie and phases of the moon.
The story of its design is not known. The Palmer monogram filling the entire back of this gold watch leaves no doubt that it meets the requirements of a special order similar to those, better documented but much later, by Packard or Graves.
This watch manufactured in 1898 is the earliest known watch in which Patek Philippe succeeded in bringing together so many complications in a single pocket watch. It was sold for $ 2.25M by Christie's on June 11, 2013. This watch is discussed by Aurel Bacs in a video shared by Meehna Goldsmith. Please read the article shared by Haute Time.
This masterpiece representing a technological breakthrough cannot be unique. Where are the other watches purchased by Palmer ? What are their features ? Are similar wonders still sleeping in the chests of the descendants of unidentified wealthy clients ?
In the nineteenth century Patek Philippe had already filed many patents. However, a pocket watch recently discovered with its certificate and invoice changes the vision that historians could have on the development of the brand.
In October 1900, an American banker and benefactor of Princeton University named Stephen S. Palmer came to Geneva to buy three Patek Philippe watches, one of which is narrated below. It includes the best complications available at that time : minute repeater, months, days of the week, split-seconds chronograph, grande and petite sonnerie and phases of the moon.
The story of its design is not known. The Palmer monogram filling the entire back of this gold watch leaves no doubt that it meets the requirements of a special order similar to those, better documented but much later, by Packard or Graves.
This watch manufactured in 1898 is the earliest known watch in which Patek Philippe succeeded in bringing together so many complications in a single pocket watch. It was sold for $ 2.25M by Christie's on June 11, 2013. This watch is discussed by Aurel Bacs in a video shared by Meehna Goldsmith. Please read the article shared by Haute Time.
This masterpiece representing a technological breakthrough cannot be unique. Where are the other watches purchased by Palmer ? What are their features ? Are similar wonders still sleeping in the chests of the descendants of unidentified wealthy clients ?
1898 single 9 South African Pond
2025 SOLD for $ 2.16M by Heritage
The first strike of a gold pond by the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek is a low mintage in 1874 with the name and profile effigy of the then President Burgers and the date on obverse. Two variants exist, with coarse and fine beard. They had been milled in Birmingham, England from a design by Wyon. The designation of the coin is a Boer alteration of the UK pound.
The pond comes back in 1892. It is then the highest value of a full range of designations and metals from penny to pond with the effigy of another long bearded president, Kruger. The year was inscribed in the reverse of the Kruger coins.
In November 1898 the dies for the next year were seized by the British forces during their shipment to Pretoria. The Boer officials decided to have the next year inscribed on the obverse of the 1898 pond. A test was made with a 9 manually punched under the bust at the same place as the date on the Burgers coin.
The 9 was too large and that figure was superseded by a smaller 99 that did not intersect with the effigy. The unique coin with the single 9 was presented to the US Consul General at Pretoria. It was later owned by King Farouk. In 2010 a private sale was reported at ZAR 20M worth US $ 2.7M at that time.
It was sold for $ 2.16M by Heritage on January 13, 2025, lot 31069. It is graded MS63 Prooflike by NGC. Please watch the videos shared by the auction house.
1898 was decidedly a maverick year in South African numismatics. The silver tickey worth 3 pence was not struck but an influential friend of Kruger named Sammy Marks had some coins struck in gold with its dies for a highly original presentation purpose.
The pond comes back in 1892. It is then the highest value of a full range of designations and metals from penny to pond with the effigy of another long bearded president, Kruger. The year was inscribed in the reverse of the Kruger coins.
In November 1898 the dies for the next year were seized by the British forces during their shipment to Pretoria. The Boer officials decided to have the next year inscribed on the obverse of the 1898 pond. A test was made with a 9 manually punched under the bust at the same place as the date on the Burgers coin.
The 9 was too large and that figure was superseded by a smaller 99 that did not intersect with the effigy. The unique coin with the single 9 was presented to the US Consul General at Pretoria. It was later owned by King Farouk. In 2010 a private sale was reported at ZAR 20M worth US $ 2.7M at that time.
It was sold for $ 2.16M by Heritage on January 13, 2025, lot 31069. It is graded MS63 Prooflike by NGC. Please watch the videos shared by the auction house.
1898 was decidedly a maverick year in South African numismatics. The silver tickey worth 3 pence was not struck but an influential friend of Kruger named Sammy Marks had some coins struck in gold with its dies for a highly original presentation purpose.
1898 Tiffany Studios window
2026 SOLD for $ 1.6M by Christie's
Tiffany Studios in the 1890s, before the 1900 Exposition Universelle, focused on innovating in opalescent stained glass, Favrile (iridescent) glass, and large-scale ecclesiastical and memorial windows while expanding production facilities.
The Boyd Family Memorial Window (The Falls), 1898 (Christie’s lot), exemplifies the studio’s output just before the 1900 exposition. It was sold for $ 1.6M on June 10, 2026, lot 66.
Technique: Leaded and plated opalescent glass (multiple layers for depth). It features streaky and textured glass for the cascading waterfall’s movement and froth, rippled drapery glass for palm fronds, mottled and confetti glass for lush foliage (lilies, irises), acid-etched elements for distant cobalt mountains, and a vivid orange sunset glow. A roundel medallion above depicts a jeweled crown with hand-cut high-relief "jewels."
The window is signed "COPYRIGHT 1898 TIFFANY GLASS & DECORATING COMPANY NEW YORK" and dedicated to John Boyd (1799–1881) and Emily W. Boyd (1805–1842). Dimensions: approximately 94 ½ in. high overall, with lancets and a roundel.
Theme and Memorial Usage: A serene sunset landscape with a prominent foreground waterfall (rare in Tiffany’s oeuvre), rocky outcrops, palms, flowers, and distant mountains—evoking peace, eternity, and natural beauty suitable for a memorial. Commissioned by Ellen Wright Boyd (daughter) for her parents and installed in the Second Congregational Church, Winsted, Connecticut, in 1899 (above the balcony). It was one of several memorial windows in the church.
Other windows from the same period (late 1890s): Tiffany produced many ecclesiastical and memorial landscapes or figurative works using similar opalescent techniques. Examples include early landscape memorials (e.g., around 1895), floral motifs by designers like Agnes Northrop (lilies, palms), and resurrection/angel themes. Plating for depth, mottled glass for foliage, and drapery glass for texture were common.
Comparison with Tiffany glass at the 1900 Exposition Universelle: The Boyd window (1898) aligns closely with the technical peak shown in Paris. At the exposition, Tiffany exhibited windows (including the Four Seasons set, c. 1899–1900, with seasonal landscapes/figures), lamps (e.g., Dragonfly by Driscoll), Favrile vases, mosaics, and enamels. He won a grand prize and Legion of Honor recognition for innovative opalescent effects, layering, iridescence, and naturalistic rendering.
The Four Seasons window (now at the Morse Museum) used similar plated/mottled glass, drapery effects, and atmospheric landscapes—showcasing the same mastery of light, color depth, and nature as the Boyd window, but on a more ambitious, multi-panel scale for international acclaim. The Boyd piece demonstrates the studio’s pre-1900 maturity in memorial landscapes, directly feeding into the exposition’s triumph.
This window highlights Tiffany Studios’ blend of technical innovation, female artisanal labor, and emotional resonance in late-19th-century American decorative arts.
Boyd and Four Seasons : which is the earlier ?
The Boyd window predates the Four Seasons by roughly 1–2 years, representing slightly earlier mature work from Tiffany Studios’ opalescent landscape phase just before the major international acclaim at the 1900 Paris fair. Both pieces showcase similar techniques (plated opalescent glass, drapery glass, mottled foliage effects), but the Boyd example is a single memorial commission while the Four Seasons was an ambitious exhibition set.
The Boyd Family Memorial Window (The Falls), 1898 (Christie’s lot), exemplifies the studio’s output just before the 1900 exposition. It was sold for $ 1.6M on June 10, 2026, lot 66.
Technique: Leaded and plated opalescent glass (multiple layers for depth). It features streaky and textured glass for the cascading waterfall’s movement and froth, rippled drapery glass for palm fronds, mottled and confetti glass for lush foliage (lilies, irises), acid-etched elements for distant cobalt mountains, and a vivid orange sunset glow. A roundel medallion above depicts a jeweled crown with hand-cut high-relief "jewels."
The window is signed "COPYRIGHT 1898 TIFFANY GLASS & DECORATING COMPANY NEW YORK" and dedicated to John Boyd (1799–1881) and Emily W. Boyd (1805–1842). Dimensions: approximately 94 ½ in. high overall, with lancets and a roundel.
Theme and Memorial Usage: A serene sunset landscape with a prominent foreground waterfall (rare in Tiffany’s oeuvre), rocky outcrops, palms, flowers, and distant mountains—evoking peace, eternity, and natural beauty suitable for a memorial. Commissioned by Ellen Wright Boyd (daughter) for her parents and installed in the Second Congregational Church, Winsted, Connecticut, in 1899 (above the balcony). It was one of several memorial windows in the church.
Other windows from the same period (late 1890s): Tiffany produced many ecclesiastical and memorial landscapes or figurative works using similar opalescent techniques. Examples include early landscape memorials (e.g., around 1895), floral motifs by designers like Agnes Northrop (lilies, palms), and resurrection/angel themes. Plating for depth, mottled glass for foliage, and drapery glass for texture were common.
Comparison with Tiffany glass at the 1900 Exposition Universelle: The Boyd window (1898) aligns closely with the technical peak shown in Paris. At the exposition, Tiffany exhibited windows (including the Four Seasons set, c. 1899–1900, with seasonal landscapes/figures), lamps (e.g., Dragonfly by Driscoll), Favrile vases, mosaics, and enamels. He won a grand prize and Legion of Honor recognition for innovative opalescent effects, layering, iridescence, and naturalistic rendering.
The Four Seasons window (now at the Morse Museum) used similar plated/mottled glass, drapery effects, and atmospheric landscapes—showcasing the same mastery of light, color depth, and nature as the Boyd window, but on a more ambitious, multi-panel scale for international acclaim. The Boyd piece demonstrates the studio’s pre-1900 maturity in memorial landscapes, directly feeding into the exposition’s triumph.
This window highlights Tiffany Studios’ blend of technical innovation, female artisanal labor, and emotional resonance in late-19th-century American decorative arts.
Boyd and Four Seasons : which is the earlier ?
The Boyd window predates the Four Seasons by roughly 1–2 years, representing slightly earlier mature work from Tiffany Studios’ opalescent landscape phase just before the major international acclaim at the 1900 Paris fair. Both pieces showcase similar techniques (plated opalescent glass, drapery glass, mottled foliage effects), but the Boyd example is a single memorial commission while the Four Seasons was an ambitious exhibition set.
