Decade 1860-1869
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : President Lincoln Autograph Political writing Manet Historical arms Firearms Coin Coins 1850-69 US gold coins
See also : President Lincoln Autograph Political writing Manet Historical arms Firearms Coin Coins 1850-69 US gold coins
MANET
1
1860 L'Italienne
2018 SOLD for $ 11M by Christie's
By rejecting the classical teaching of Thomas Couture, the young Edouard Manet triggered the modernism in French painting. He was inspired in the Louvre by the masterpieces of Velazquez and Titian which he applied to low level subjects such as the absinthe addict, one of the first of his works to attract fame by horrifying the bourgeois, and rejected by the 1859 Salon.
Another preferred theme was the Spanish characters in bright colors over a dark background in the manner of Velazquez. In the same style, l'Italienne, oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm, depicts at mid length a 19 year old artist's model from Ancona. The rosy cheeked young woman is dressed in a fancy Mediterranean garb drawn by the artist from his basket of clothes.
L'Italienne was sold for $ 11M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Christie's on May 15, 2018, lot 29A.
Monet's breakthrough in the Salon was Le Chanteur Espagnol, accepted in 1861 and favorably commented by Fantin-Latour and Baudelaire.
Another preferred theme was the Spanish characters in bright colors over a dark background in the manner of Velazquez. In the same style, l'Italienne, oil on canvas 73 x 60 cm, depicts at mid length a 19 year old artist's model from Ancona. The rosy cheeked young woman is dressed in a fancy Mediterranean garb drawn by the artist from his basket of clothes.
L'Italienne was sold for $ 11M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Christie's on May 15, 2018, lot 29A.
Monet's breakthrough in the Salon was Le Chanteur Espagnol, accepted in 1861 and favorably commented by Fantin-Latour and Baudelaire.
2
masterpiece
1863 Le Déjeuner sur l'Herbe
Musée d'Orsay
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Grok thought :
Quote
Musée d'Orsay @MuseeOrsay Mar 28, 2015
Incontournables d'Orsay #7: Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe de Manet >http://musee-orsay.fr/fr/collections/oeuvres-commentees/peinture/commentaire_id/le-dejeuner-sur-lherbe-7123.html?
Grok thought :
Quote
Musée d'Orsay @MuseeOrsay Mar 28, 2015
Incontournables d'Orsay #7: Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe de Manet >http://musee-orsay.fr/fr/collections/oeuvres-commentees/peinture/commentaire_id/le-dejeuner-sur-lherbe-7123.html?
- This 2015 post from Musée d'Orsay's official account spotlights Édouard Manet's "Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe" as the seventh entry in its "Incontournables" series, showcasing a cropped detail of the 1863 oil painting via a linked museum page.
- The artwork, rejected by the Paris Salon for its provocative nude female figure amid clothed men in a modern picnic scene, debuted at the Salon des Refusés, scandalizing viewers and marking a pivotal shift toward Impressionism.
- With 41 likes and two quote replies, the tweet exemplifies the museum's digital outreach to educate on its Impressionist holdings, where the full 208x265 cm canvas remains a centerpiece, drawing over 3 million annual visitors.
3
masterpiece
1863 Olympia
Musée d'Orsay
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1861 Paquet Double Eagle
2021 SOLD for $ 7.2M by Heritage
There are two varieties in existence of the double eagle dated 1861 with a reverse design modified by Anthony Paquet.
The San Francisco Paquet is a well documented regular issue of 19,250 coins. The current survivors have been circulated and no mint state specimen is known. On the opposite the Philadelphia Paquet is one of the rarest numismatic varieties with only two examples known, both in mint state, respectively graded MS67 and MS61 by PCGS.
The story begins in 1859 with a concern about an excessive cracking of reverse dies during striking. In Philadelphia the assistant engraver Anthony Paquet manages to propose some modifications which are accepted for the 1861 strike, although the impact on the original die problem is questionable. Concerned about readability, he improved the letters and reduced the edges, thus increasing the effective area of the engraved figure.
Sets of dies including that reverse are shipped to the subsidiary mints in San Francisco and New Orleans in November and December 1860. They are accompanied by an instruction stating that the new reverse die "is presenting a larger face for the device without changing the diameter of the piece. They will require a slight change in the milling to suit the border".
When it comes to start the new millesime in Philadelphia, it appears that the striking difficulty is bigger than expected. On January 5 the Mint Director stops the use of the Paquet reverse and sends instructions to do the same at the subsidiaries. The mail forwarded to San Francisco by the Pony Express arrived too late, when the first releases had been made. Another issue was that the new coins did not stack properly. No coin had been released from Philadelphia where the production with the Paquet reverse was totally melted with no survivor known.
The two Philadelphia coins have a rearrangement of the reverse design clearly intended to deal with the technical issue. Indeed their strike is perfect, but it was certainly obtained with the higher pressure from a medal press. This operation is not documented at the Mint. It is now believed that they were pattern coins prepared for saving the design for the next year.
The coin graded MS67 was sold for $ 7.2M by Heritage on August 18, 2021, lot 3471. On August 7, 2014, Heritage sold for $ 1.65M the other Paquet coin from Philadelphia, graded MS61 by PCGS with a perfect reverse, lot 5702.
Interestingly the difference between the basic and Paquet designs did not disturb the users. The San Francisco Paquet coins were not differentiated until the 1930s while the two Philadelphia coins were first sold at auction in 1865 and 1875 respectively.
The San Francisco Paquet is a well documented regular issue of 19,250 coins. The current survivors have been circulated and no mint state specimen is known. On the opposite the Philadelphia Paquet is one of the rarest numismatic varieties with only two examples known, both in mint state, respectively graded MS67 and MS61 by PCGS.
The story begins in 1859 with a concern about an excessive cracking of reverse dies during striking. In Philadelphia the assistant engraver Anthony Paquet manages to propose some modifications which are accepted for the 1861 strike, although the impact on the original die problem is questionable. Concerned about readability, he improved the letters and reduced the edges, thus increasing the effective area of the engraved figure.
Sets of dies including that reverse are shipped to the subsidiary mints in San Francisco and New Orleans in November and December 1860. They are accompanied by an instruction stating that the new reverse die "is presenting a larger face for the device without changing the diameter of the piece. They will require a slight change in the milling to suit the border".
When it comes to start the new millesime in Philadelphia, it appears that the striking difficulty is bigger than expected. On January 5 the Mint Director stops the use of the Paquet reverse and sends instructions to do the same at the subsidiaries. The mail forwarded to San Francisco by the Pony Express arrived too late, when the first releases had been made. Another issue was that the new coins did not stack properly. No coin had been released from Philadelphia where the production with the Paquet reverse was totally melted with no survivor known.
The two Philadelphia coins have a rearrangement of the reverse design clearly intended to deal with the technical issue. Indeed their strike is perfect, but it was certainly obtained with the higher pressure from a medal press. This operation is not documented at the Mint. It is now believed that they were pattern coins prepared for saving the design for the next year.
The coin graded MS67 was sold for $ 7.2M by Heritage on August 18, 2021, lot 3471. On August 7, 2014, Heritage sold for $ 1.65M the other Paquet coin from Philadelphia, graded MS61 by PCGS with a perfect reverse, lot 5702.
Interestingly the difference between the basic and Paquet designs did not disturb the users. The San Francisco Paquet coins were not differentiated until the 1930s while the two Philadelphia coins were first sold at auction in 1865 and 1875 respectively.
The 1861 Paquet Reverse double eagle is one of the rarest coins in American #numismatics, and this example stands at the absolute pinnacle of rarity and exquisite condition.
— Heritage Auctions (@HeritageAuction) August 11, 2021
August 18 - 22 ANA WFOM US Coins Signature Event, No. 1333 https://t.co/MmkBNpnJan#HeritageAuctions pic.twitter.com/sQ6M1NKnYH
masterpiece
1861 Westward Ho by Leutze
US Capitol
A German historical painter, Emanuel Leutze painted in 1851 the epic moment of Washington crossing the Delaware as a symbol for freedom in the wake of the 1848 European upheavals. The third and last example was sold for $ 45M by Christie's on May 12, 2022, lot 30C.
He establishes a studio in New York in 1859. In that time between the Oregon trail and the Californian gold rush, the American mood was for the so called Manifest Destiny, the belief that the pioneering migrants to the West were supported by God to extend their civilization throughout the continent.
The Manifest Destiny is illustrated in 1861 by Leutze in a mural 6.1 x 9.1 m painted in the US Capitol, titled Westward the Course of Empire takes its Way, or more simply Westward Ho. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Indians attacking a Wagon Train, also titled Western Emigrant Train Bound for California Across the Plains, Alarmed by Approach of Hostile Indians, is a further illustration of the Manifest Destiny, painted by Leutze in Düsseldorf in 1863. This oil on canvas 102 x 172 cm was sold for $ 4.8M by Sotheby's on November 16, 2018, lot 44. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The theme is the panic and full chaos brought to a train of pioneers by the feeling of an impending attack by Indians. The picture is full of symbols of the Wild West and its conquest, including the US flag or the desiccated horned skeleton of an ox in the forefront. Men, women and a boy are all holding a firearm. The natives are absent but their threat is identified by a raising smoke on the horizon.
He establishes a studio in New York in 1859. In that time between the Oregon trail and the Californian gold rush, the American mood was for the so called Manifest Destiny, the belief that the pioneering migrants to the West were supported by God to extend their civilization throughout the continent.
The Manifest Destiny is illustrated in 1861 by Leutze in a mural 6.1 x 9.1 m painted in the US Capitol, titled Westward the Course of Empire takes its Way, or more simply Westward Ho. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Indians attacking a Wagon Train, also titled Western Emigrant Train Bound for California Across the Plains, Alarmed by Approach of Hostile Indians, is a further illustration of the Manifest Destiny, painted by Leutze in Düsseldorf in 1863. This oil on canvas 102 x 172 cm was sold for $ 4.8M by Sotheby's on November 16, 2018, lot 44. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The theme is the panic and full chaos brought to a train of pioneers by the feeling of an impending attack by Indians. The picture is full of symbols of the Wild West and its conquest, including the US flag or the desiccated horned skeleton of an ox in the forefront. Men, women and a boy are all holding a firearm. The natives are absent but their threat is identified by a raising smoke on the horizon.
masterpiece
1862 Le Bain Turc by Ingres
Louvre
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Grok thought :
Quote
EUROPEAN ART @EuropeanArtHIST Feb 8, 2019
The Turkish Bath (Le Bain turc) is an oil painting by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, initially completed between 1852 and 1859, but modified in 1862. The painting depicts a group of nude women at a pool in a harem. (Musée du Louvre, Paris) #Ingres
Grok thought :
Quote
EUROPEAN ART @EuropeanArtHIST Feb 8, 2019
The Turkish Bath (Le Bain turc) is an oil painting by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, initially completed between 1852 and 1859, but modified in 1862. The painting depicts a group of nude women at a pool in a harem. (Musée du Louvre, Paris) #Ingres
- Ingres' "The Turkish Bath," shared in the post, originated as a rectangular canvas from 1852–1859 but was radically reshaped into a circular tondo in 1862 at the artist's age of 82, intensifying its intimate, voyeuristic view of nude women in a harem.
- Drawing from Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's 1717 letters on Ottoman baths, the painting embodies 19th-century Orientalism, recycling figures from Ingres' earlier nudes like "La Grande Odalisque" to idealize European fantasies over authentic Eastern depictions.
- Initially rejected by collectors for its eroticism, the work joined the Louvre in 1911 after advocacy efforts and later inspired modern artists, including Picasso's "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" and Sylvia Sleigh's gender-reversed critique of the male gaze.
1862 Femme Nue Couchée by Courbet
2015 SOLD for $ 15.3M by Christie's
Gustave Courbet was a socialist in the following of the workers' movement of Proudhon. His conception of realism is ideological: the ordinary man and woman can be shown in art without being beautiful or even clean.
He is provocative. Taking the format of an epic painting on a large size, 315 x 668 cm, L'Enterrement à Ornans makes a scandal in 1850. Proudhon is delighted.
The second empire, decreed in 1852, marks the return in France of a prudish censorship that sends its policemen against a pornography now facilitated by photography. For the artists opponent to the regime of Napoléon III, the nude becomes a challenge.
The deliberate ugliness enters the theme of the nude in 1853 with Les Baigneuses by Courbet. Even Ingres, yet close to the government, is interested in this new approach. His Bain Turc, on which he worked for ten years, is an unprecedented erotic accumulation that takes Orientalism as an excuse to avoid reprisals.
Femme nue couchée, oil on canvas 75 x 97 cm painted by Courbet in 1862, was sold for $ 15.3M by Christie's on November 9, 2015, lot 10A.
The woman viewed in full length is reclining on a bed, her head turned in a rest position, looking like some replica of the Venus of Urbino but without the discreet hand. Her offering attitude and the half undone stocking reveal that a sexual activity was just completed. The provocation of the picture is increased by a surrounding in romanticist style with a curtain and a landscape.
Such women by Courbet represent a milestone in modern French painting. On one hand, new private customers invite Courbet to even more daring pictures. On the other hand, Manet does not hesitate to confront the scandal with Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe and Olympia.
He is provocative. Taking the format of an epic painting on a large size, 315 x 668 cm, L'Enterrement à Ornans makes a scandal in 1850. Proudhon is delighted.
The second empire, decreed in 1852, marks the return in France of a prudish censorship that sends its policemen against a pornography now facilitated by photography. For the artists opponent to the regime of Napoléon III, the nude becomes a challenge.
The deliberate ugliness enters the theme of the nude in 1853 with Les Baigneuses by Courbet. Even Ingres, yet close to the government, is interested in this new approach. His Bain Turc, on which he worked for ten years, is an unprecedented erotic accumulation that takes Orientalism as an excuse to avoid reprisals.
Femme nue couchée, oil on canvas 75 x 97 cm painted by Courbet in 1862, was sold for $ 15.3M by Christie's on November 9, 2015, lot 10A.
The woman viewed in full length is reclining on a bed, her head turned in a rest position, looking like some replica of the Venus of Urbino but without the discreet hand. Her offering attitude and the half undone stocking reveal that a sexual activity was just completed. The provocation of the picture is increased by a surrounding in romanticist style with a curtain and a landscape.
Such women by Courbet represent a milestone in modern French painting. On one hand, new private customers invite Courbet to even more daring pictures. On the other hand, Manet does not hesitate to confront the scandal with Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe and Olympia.
The #GustaveCourbet settles just within estimate for a final of $15,285,000 @ChristiesInc pic.twitter.com/EeCHeSopZi
— Art Observed (@ArtObserved) November 10, 20151862 Tigre jouant avec une Tortue by Delacroix
2018 SOLD for $ 9.9M by Christie's
Eugène Delacroix is the romanticist interpreter of violent passions. His allegories do not call for realism. He fascinates his contemporaries with his mastery of colors and his exotic scenes are spectacular.
The artist appreciates that passion is not a human exclusivity and he loves the powerful savagery of tigers and lions. A great admirer of Rubens, he is inspired by the whirlwind of his hunting scenes.
An artist needs real models, although Dürer's rhinoceros is a wonderful exception. Géricault is passionate about horses and Raden Saleh remembers big game hunting. For his tigers and lions, Delacroix looks at his pet cat and at stuffed animals in the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle. Fortunately the menagerie of the Jardin des Plantes hosts a tiger from 1847.
In 1862 the artist feels old and tired. The tiger remained his emblem and his friends flatter him by comparing his behavior with the anthropocentric emotions attributed to this animal. Delacroix imagines confrontations with reptiles. Facing the threat of the snake, the big cat no longer knows how he can still win.
Tigre jouant avec une tortue, oil on canvas 45 x 62 cm painted in 1862, was sold for $ 9.9M from a lower estimate of $ 5M by Christie's on May 8, 2018, lot 3.
As ever the animal behavior is fanciful. A fully grown tiger no longer plays because game is used by cubs to train in hunting. This one with a paw on the tortoise is stopping as if he waited some advice. The tortoise disturbed and threatened by the predator omitted to close its shell.
The artist appreciates that passion is not a human exclusivity and he loves the powerful savagery of tigers and lions. A great admirer of Rubens, he is inspired by the whirlwind of his hunting scenes.
An artist needs real models, although Dürer's rhinoceros is a wonderful exception. Géricault is passionate about horses and Raden Saleh remembers big game hunting. For his tigers and lions, Delacroix looks at his pet cat and at stuffed animals in the Museum d'Histoire Naturelle. Fortunately the menagerie of the Jardin des Plantes hosts a tiger from 1847.
In 1862 the artist feels old and tired. The tiger remained his emblem and his friends flatter him by comparing his behavior with the anthropocentric emotions attributed to this animal. Delacroix imagines confrontations with reptiles. Facing the threat of the snake, the big cat no longer knows how he can still win.
Tigre jouant avec une tortue, oil on canvas 45 x 62 cm painted in 1862, was sold for $ 9.9M from a lower estimate of $ 5M by Christie's on May 8, 2018, lot 3.
As ever the animal behavior is fanciful. A fully grown tiger no longer plays because game is used by cubs to train in hunting. This one with a paw on the tortoise is stopping as if he waited some advice. The tortoise disturbed and threatened by the predator omitted to close its shell.
François de Ricqlès, President of Christie’s France, explains how this exceptional Romantic work that ‘marks the beginning of modernity’ also speaks to the Rockefeller family’s long and mutually admiring relationship with France. Check it out here: https://t.co/8QpCJrNHVH pic.twitter.com/alUUMid0bs
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) March 25, 2018
1863 US Grant's Remington Revolvers
2022 SOLD for $ 5.2M by RIAC
During the Civil War, General Ulysses S. Grant was the chief of the Armies of the Union. He was famous for his well conceived, quick and aggressive military victories. He will later serve as a US President during the Reconstruction period.
Remington released in 1863 their New Model Army revolver. The serial numbers 1 and 2 were presented in the summer or fall of 1863 or in early 1864 to Grant as a cased set by two veterans made wealthy from the cotton trade. The ivory grips were carved in raised relief with his bust on one side and US attributes including the flying eagle on the opposite side. These unsigned figures were made by the master engraver Louis D. Nimschke.
Hidden from public view, the pair surfaced on display in the Las Vegas Antique Arms Show in 2018. Offered in its deluxe rosewood case, was sold for $ 5.2M from a lower estimate of $ 1M by RIAC on May 13, 2022, lot 106. Both revolvers are in excellent condition with a deep sharp engraving. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Russia, which was a staunch ally to the Union, followed that example. In 1864, after a visit of the Russian fleet to the USA, their government commissioned another pair from the same model for presentation to Tsar Alexander II. Their ivory grips are decorated in raised relief, the left side with the Russian double headed eagle and the opposite side with the same US attributes as on the Grant revolvers. Nimschke signed these pieces with his trademark.
Re-united in 1991 by a keen historian after being separated since the Russian Revolution, the Russian pair in an exceptionally fine condition was sold for $ 460K by RIAC on May 15, 2021, lot 1158.
Remington released in 1863 their New Model Army revolver. The serial numbers 1 and 2 were presented in the summer or fall of 1863 or in early 1864 to Grant as a cased set by two veterans made wealthy from the cotton trade. The ivory grips were carved in raised relief with his bust on one side and US attributes including the flying eagle on the opposite side. These unsigned figures were made by the master engraver Louis D. Nimschke.
Hidden from public view, the pair surfaced on display in the Las Vegas Antique Arms Show in 2018. Offered in its deluxe rosewood case, was sold for $ 5.2M from a lower estimate of $ 1M by RIAC on May 13, 2022, lot 106. Both revolvers are in excellent condition with a deep sharp engraving. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Russia, which was a staunch ally to the Union, followed that example. In 1864, after a visit of the Russian fleet to the USA, their government commissioned another pair from the same model for presentation to Tsar Alexander II. Their ivory grips are decorated in raised relief, the left side with the Russian double headed eagle and the opposite side with the same US attributes as on the Grant revolvers. Nimschke signed these pieces with his trademark.
Re-united in 1991 by a keen historian after being separated since the Russian Revolution, the Russian pair in an exceptionally fine condition was sold for $ 460K by RIAC on May 15, 2021, lot 1158.
Remington New Model Army revolvers presented to Civil War general & 18th U.S. president Ulysses S. Grant sold for $5,170,000 (est. $1/3 million) May 13 at @RIAuction https://t.co/LL2Y9iwwcJ #antiques #antique #vintage #appraisal #Americana #gun #guns #Grant #POTUS #Remington pic.twitter.com/LcartuGeoR
— Maine Antique Digest (@AntiqueDigest) June 22, 2022
1865 The Thirteenth Amendment
2025 SOLD for $ 13.7M by Sotheby's
The founding fathers of the USA stated that all men are created equal. The slavery of the Negroes is seen as a disgrace by President Lincoln, not for moral or economic reasons but indeed because it opens up the possibility for a persecution of other minorities.
The thirteenth amendment to the Constitution was a major political achievement by Lincoln. It was not an easy operation, especially as the President did not want to wait for the end of the Civil War.
On 8 April 1864 the Senate voted at 38 against 6 a resolution in favor of the thirteenth amendment, but its embedding into the Constitution also required the approval of the House of Representatives and of 3/4 of the States.
In the House, the required 2/3 majority of voters was impossible to achieve in 1864 but the new elections have strengthened the power of Lincoln. The text was accepted on January 31, 1865 at 119 against 56 plus 8 abstentions after a first negative vote.
The official copy is signed by President Lincoln, Vice President Hamlin representing the Senate and Speaker of the House Colfax. It is kept in the National Archives in Washington DC.
Slavery was abolished in the United States of America in December 1865 when Georgia becomes the 27th state to ratify the thirteenth amendment, eight months after the death of the President.
In the enthusiasm of this joint Congress achievement, some manuscript duplicates are prepared from February 1 on the official paper of the Congress.
The clerk of the House of Representatives had a few copies signed by the three official signers plus the Senate secretary Forney, for their own use plus one for himself. Three examples are surviving.
Somebody managed to have manuscript commemorative copies signed by nearly all the congress members who had voted in favor of the amendment, in addition to the four officials. Lincoln endorsed them as 'Approved'. After six days he stopped providing his signature on new examples.
Nine examples are known to survive with the signatures of 36 to 38 senators plus 109 to 117 representatives.
One of them, a large vellum folio 52 x 39 cm with the signatures through five neatly ruled columns, was sold for $ 720K by Christie's on March 27, 2002, lot 95 and for $ 13.7M by Sotheby's on June 26, 2025, lot 27.
Some copies had the signatures of the senators but not of the representatives. The three known examples were signed at the same time by 36 of the 38 approving senators. One of them is in private hands. This document 55 x 40 cm was sold for $ 2.4M by Sotheby's on May 25, 2016, lot 79.
The thirteenth amendment to the Constitution was a major political achievement by Lincoln. It was not an easy operation, especially as the President did not want to wait for the end of the Civil War.
On 8 April 1864 the Senate voted at 38 against 6 a resolution in favor of the thirteenth amendment, but its embedding into the Constitution also required the approval of the House of Representatives and of 3/4 of the States.
In the House, the required 2/3 majority of voters was impossible to achieve in 1864 but the new elections have strengthened the power of Lincoln. The text was accepted on January 31, 1865 at 119 against 56 plus 8 abstentions after a first negative vote.
The official copy is signed by President Lincoln, Vice President Hamlin representing the Senate and Speaker of the House Colfax. It is kept in the National Archives in Washington DC.
Slavery was abolished in the United States of America in December 1865 when Georgia becomes the 27th state to ratify the thirteenth amendment, eight months after the death of the President.
In the enthusiasm of this joint Congress achievement, some manuscript duplicates are prepared from February 1 on the official paper of the Congress.
The clerk of the House of Representatives had a few copies signed by the three official signers plus the Senate secretary Forney, for their own use plus one for himself. Three examples are surviving.
Somebody managed to have manuscript commemorative copies signed by nearly all the congress members who had voted in favor of the amendment, in addition to the four officials. Lincoln endorsed them as 'Approved'. After six days he stopped providing his signature on new examples.
Nine examples are known to survive with the signatures of 36 to 38 senators plus 109 to 117 representatives.
One of them, a large vellum folio 52 x 39 cm with the signatures through five neatly ruled columns, was sold for $ 720K by Christie's on March 27, 2002, lot 95 and for $ 13.7M by Sotheby's on June 26, 2025, lot 27.
Some copies had the signatures of the senators but not of the representatives. The three known examples were signed at the same time by 36 of the 38 approving senators. One of them is in private hands. This document 55 x 40 cm was sold for $ 2.4M by Sotheby's on May 25, 2016, lot 79.
1865-1870 Baroda Carpet
2009 SOLD for $ 5.5M by Sotheby's
The splendor of the Maharajahs was proverbial. When, shortly before 1870, the Prince of Baroda, Khande Râo of Gâekwâr dynasty, converted to Islam, he wanted to honor his new faith by an exceptional work.
He commissioned the creation of a carpet in pearls and gems, whose beauty can be worthy of the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad at Medina. This work unique in its kind was made, but the Maharaja died in 1870 before the gift was made. The carpet was retained by the family, and remained there for over a hundred years.
It looks in its patterns like a textile carpet centered with three rosettes, and otherwise based on the millefleurs motif fashioned in India in the previous century. It consists of two millions of natural pearls, hundreds of gems of all kinds and a countless colored glass beads.
The Baroda carpet was sold for US $ 5.5M by Sotheby's in Doha on March 19, 2009.
He commissioned the creation of a carpet in pearls and gems, whose beauty can be worthy of the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad at Medina. This work unique in its kind was made, but the Maharaja died in 1870 before the gift was made. The carpet was retained by the family, and remained there for over a hundred years.
It looks in its patterns like a textile carpet centered with three rosettes, and otherwise based on the millefleurs motif fashioned in India in the previous century. It consists of two millions of natural pearls, hundreds of gems of all kinds and a countless colored glass beads.
The Baroda carpet was sold for US $ 5.5M by Sotheby's in Doha on March 19, 2009.
MONET
1
1867 Route de la Ferme Saint-Siméon en Hiver
2008 SOLD for £ 4.3M by Sotheby's
Claude Monet was early captivated by the effects of winter light on a snow covered road or path, which he boldly caught in the outdoor while wearing three overcoats, with gloved hands, his face half-frozen.
He attended a heavy snowfall in January 1867 at La Ferme Saint-Siméon, between Trouville and Honfleur. He had previously visited that location with Bazille and painted its scenery without snow.
One of the four 1871 snowscapes, oil on canvas 49 x 65 cm, was sold for £ 4.3M from a lower estimate of £ 3M by Sotheby's on February 5, 2008, lot 36. The scenery is animated with a few walkers and a flight of crows. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
He attended a heavy snowfall in January 1867 at La Ferme Saint-Siméon, between Trouville and Honfleur. He had previously visited that location with Bazille and painted its scenery without snow.
One of the four 1871 snowscapes, oil on canvas 49 x 65 cm, was sold for £ 4.3M from a lower estimate of £ 3M by Sotheby's on February 5, 2008, lot 36. The scenery is animated with a few walkers and a flight of crows. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
2
1868 La Jetée du Havre
1993 SOLD for $ 9.7M by Christie's
La Jetée du Havre, oil on canvas 147 x 226 cm painted by Monet in 1868, had been praised by Zola when it was refused at the Salon in that year. It was sold for $ 9.7M by Christie's on May 12, 1993, lot 15.
The Havre jetty, or north dike, was a popular place for walking, even in bad weather. The waves crash against the pier and onto the pebble beach. In 1857 Le Gray had shot a photo in quiet weather from the same viewpoint, angle and framing.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The Havre jetty, or north dike, was a popular place for walking, even in bad weather. The waves crash against the pier and onto the pebble beach. In 1857 Le Gray had shot a photo in quiet weather from the same viewpoint, angle and framing.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
3
masterpiece
1868-1869 La Pie
Musée d'Orsay
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
ROSSETTI
1
1867 A Christmas Carol
2013 SOLD for £ 4.6M by Sotheby's
Dante Gabriel Rossetti was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite movement. Then temporarily abandoning his medieval themes, he endeavoured to draw the portrait of the ideal woman.
His art combining painting, poetry, music and the expression of feelings became highly original, anticipating Klimt. He isolated himself from other artists but his life remained unconventional and romantic. His act of burying his unpublished poems in his wife's grave is spectacular but attests to his difficult relationship with the world.
A Christmas Carol, oil on panel 46 x 38 cm painted by Rossetti in 1867, was sold for £ 4.6M by Sotheby's on December 4, 2013.
The young woman in brightly colored exotic dress plays a two-stringed mandolin. She is completely absorbed by this activity. The Christian inspiration evoked by the title is confirmed by an image of the Holy Family on the wall.
The artist's work was a meticulous quest for perfection. Two other versions are known with the same composition. A study in pencil is in the British Museum, and a red and white chalk drawing in same size as the oil was sold for £ 360K by Christie's on November 21, 2007.
The worsening mental problems of Rossetti did not diminish his artistic creativity. A beautiful Proserpine made with colored chalks, 120 x 56 cm, dated 1880, was sold for £ 3.3M by Sotheby's on November 19, 2013.
Please watch the video in which Sotheby's introduces A Christmas Carol as one of three outstanding paintings from the Leverhulme collection.
His art combining painting, poetry, music and the expression of feelings became highly original, anticipating Klimt. He isolated himself from other artists but his life remained unconventional and romantic. His act of burying his unpublished poems in his wife's grave is spectacular but attests to his difficult relationship with the world.
A Christmas Carol, oil on panel 46 x 38 cm painted by Rossetti in 1867, was sold for £ 4.6M by Sotheby's on December 4, 2013.
The young woman in brightly colored exotic dress plays a two-stringed mandolin. She is completely absorbed by this activity. The Christian inspiration evoked by the title is confirmed by an image of the Holy Family on the wall.
The artist's work was a meticulous quest for perfection. Two other versions are known with the same composition. A study in pencil is in the British Museum, and a red and white chalk drawing in same size as the oil was sold for £ 360K by Christie's on November 21, 2007.
The worsening mental problems of Rossetti did not diminish his artistic creativity. A beautiful Proserpine made with colored chalks, 120 x 56 cm, dated 1880, was sold for £ 3.3M by Sotheby's on November 19, 2013.
Please watch the video in which Sotheby's introduces A Christmas Carol as one of three outstanding paintings from the Leverhulme collection.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s "A Christmas Carol" sold at Sotheby’s London on December 4, 2013, at $7.47 million #Christmas #art pic.twitter.com/GnOlB7CrDd
— Maine Antique Digest (@AntiqueDigest) December 25, 2016
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masterpiece
1868 Venus Verticordia
Russell-Cotes Art Gallery
Dante Gabriel Rossetti stood away from all artistic conventions. In the 1860s, with the complicity of Swinburne, he was interested in representing the ideal woman as altogether domineering and sensual.
In 1868, he painted Venus Verticordia, a Latin term which means that the goddess plays the role of protector of female chastity. This painting is the best nude by Rossetti and a masterpiece of erotic symbolism. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The warrior woman is authoritative. She firmly holds two weapons. Her apple threw such a discord among men that it generated the Trojan War, yet the fruit is also peacefully or surreptitiously feeding the butterfly. Cupid's arrow is just another source of havoc. She holds it ambiguously as if it were Lucretia's dagger.
Apple leads to Eve, and it is no coincidence that the thick red hair of Rossetti's Venus is surrounded by a halo. In the previous year, his Christmas carol had already approached the theme of the position of the woman in the Christian civilization.
Below the nude breast, the body of Venus is hidden by an abundant rose bush, another voluptuous symbol. John Ruskin went into a rage when he saw the flowers on this painting.
He was probably right not to consider it only as a pre-Raphaelite symbol. Since his marriage failed by lack of consummation in 1846, his approach to women was a subject of ridicule. A recent attempt to restart his life had also just failed, with a very young woman named Rose.
The Venus of Rossetti fortunately pleased other amateurs and the artist made some replicas. A watercolor 67 x 59 cm, also dated 1868, was sold for £ 2.9M by Sotheby's on December 10, 2014, lot 8.
In 1868, he painted Venus Verticordia, a Latin term which means that the goddess plays the role of protector of female chastity. This painting is the best nude by Rossetti and a masterpiece of erotic symbolism. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
The warrior woman is authoritative. She firmly holds two weapons. Her apple threw such a discord among men that it generated the Trojan War, yet the fruit is also peacefully or surreptitiously feeding the butterfly. Cupid's arrow is just another source of havoc. She holds it ambiguously as if it were Lucretia's dagger.
Apple leads to Eve, and it is no coincidence that the thick red hair of Rossetti's Venus is surrounded by a halo. In the previous year, his Christmas carol had already approached the theme of the position of the woman in the Christian civilization.
Below the nude breast, the body of Venus is hidden by an abundant rose bush, another voluptuous symbol. John Ruskin went into a rage when he saw the flowers on this painting.
He was probably right not to consider it only as a pre-Raphaelite symbol. Since his marriage failed by lack of consummation in 1846, his approach to women was a subject of ridicule. A recent attempt to restart his life had also just failed, with a very young woman named Rose.
The Venus of Rossetti fortunately pleased other amateurs and the artist made some replicas. A watercolor 67 x 59 cm, also dated 1868, was sold for £ 2.9M by Sotheby's on December 10, 2014, lot 8.
