Years 1570-1599
The Fool Market in Mechelen
2014 SOLD for € 3M including premium
In the mid-sixteenth century Mechelen (Malines) was a prosperous Flemish town halfway between Antwerp and Brussels. The fool market is a large oil on canvas 135 x 188 cm made by an artist from that city.
This painting shows an accumulation of anecdotal and proverbial scenes, often truculent, whose meaning is not fully decoded. Two populations coexist: humans and the fools, very tiny, wearing their pointy hat.
In this market atmosphere, humans are trading the fools who are tightly stored in baskets. Farther in the scenery, many released fools take their preferred position over the heads of the humans to whom they are the spirits. The occupations of these people are unreasonable. For example, the most profligate group, the monk kissing a nun, is accompanied by discrete fools.
Beyond the gnomes of Paracelsus, these characters join the great questioning by Erasmus half a century earlier : Who is the fool, who is the wise?
Mechelen counted at some time over one hundred artists' studios, busy in a fast and inexpensive imaging with a fragile technique that did not survive, watercolor or tempera on canvas. This fool market is instead an oil painting that has certainly been used as a modello for the various workshops of the Verbeeck family. Experts attribute it to Frans Verbeeck the Elder who died in 1570.
This extremely rare painting is estimated € 900K, for sale by Dorotheum in Vienna on October 21, lot 33.
This painting shows an accumulation of anecdotal and proverbial scenes, often truculent, whose meaning is not fully decoded. Two populations coexist: humans and the fools, very tiny, wearing their pointy hat.
In this market atmosphere, humans are trading the fools who are tightly stored in baskets. Farther in the scenery, many released fools take their preferred position over the heads of the humans to whom they are the spirits. The occupations of these people are unreasonable. For example, the most profligate group, the monk kissing a nun, is accompanied by discrete fools.
Beyond the gnomes of Paracelsus, these characters join the great questioning by Erasmus half a century earlier : Who is the fool, who is the wise?
Mechelen counted at some time over one hundred artists' studios, busy in a fast and inexpensive imaging with a fragile technique that did not survive, watercolor or tempera on canvas. This fool market is instead an oil painting that has certainly been used as a modello for the various workshops of the Verbeeck family. Experts attribute it to Frans Verbeeck the Elder who died in 1570.
This extremely rare painting is estimated € 900K, for sale by Dorotheum in Vienna on October 21, lot 33.
1570 After the Flood
2011 SOLD 1.1 M€ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
An oil on panel, 114 x 142 cm, dated 1570 and signed, is for sale on June 23 by Sotheby's in Paris.
Noah's Ark has completed its journey by arriving onto the Mount Ararat, and animals walk down the long walkway to reach the mainland.
We do not know how many fantastic animals still existed at the time of that episode of Genesis: unicorns and griffinsare displayed alongside the more common species. The struggle for life already takes its rights again: the lion kills the horse and the cat eats a fish.
These multiple scenes show humor and vitality worthy of the elder Bruegel. The ark is a house mounted on a hugeboat that could participate in the fleet of Philip II. The stylized landscape background recalls the art of Patinier.
The painting is inscribed "Simone de Myle inventor and fecit." It is the only known work of this Simon de Myle, who was probably a Dutch painter.
"Inventor" certainly means that he claims the design of this composition. The landing after the flood is exceptional in the history of art. The entry of animals into the ark is much more common, but also less funny as it was more difficult to imagine truculent scenes at this point. It is not clear why this image did not win its deserved popularity.
The auction house announced an estimate between € 300K and 400K.
POST SALE COMMENT
The interest is confirmed by a very good result: € 1.1 million including premium.
The lack of information about the artist has certainly prevented it to go to higher prices.
An oil on panel, 114 x 142 cm, dated 1570 and signed, is for sale on June 23 by Sotheby's in Paris.
Noah's Ark has completed its journey by arriving onto the Mount Ararat, and animals walk down the long walkway to reach the mainland.
We do not know how many fantastic animals still existed at the time of that episode of Genesis: unicorns and griffinsare displayed alongside the more common species. The struggle for life already takes its rights again: the lion kills the horse and the cat eats a fish.
These multiple scenes show humor and vitality worthy of the elder Bruegel. The ark is a house mounted on a hugeboat that could participate in the fleet of Philip II. The stylized landscape background recalls the art of Patinier.
The painting is inscribed "Simone de Myle inventor and fecit." It is the only known work of this Simon de Myle, who was probably a Dutch painter.
"Inventor" certainly means that he claims the design of this composition. The landing after the flood is exceptional in the history of art. The entry of animals into the ark is much more common, but also less funny as it was more difficult to imagine truculent scenes at this point. It is not clear why this image did not win its deserved popularity.
The auction house announced an estimate between € 300K and 400K.
POST SALE COMMENT
The interest is confirmed by a very good result: € 1.1 million including premium.
The lack of information about the artist has certainly prevented it to go to higher prices.
1570-1580 Porcelain Charger from Medici Workshop
1994 SOLD for FF 8.8M before fees by Ferri
mid-1570s A Greek in Italy
2013 SOLD 900 K$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
Domenikos Theotokopoulos was born in Crete, under Byzantine influence. His progressive journey to Spain, which he reached in 1576 aged 35, made him assimilate the Christian art from East to West, before he was more usually known as El Greco (the Greek), one of the most original artists of all time.
In 1568 he was in Venice, where he met and admired Titian. The old artist still had an extraordinary creativity. The Greek began to develop a personal style, a clever synthesis of both the anecdotal abundance from the icons and the clarity of the composition of Titian. He realized at that time a first version of the Entombment of Christ.
A second version of this theme, a tempera and oil on panel 36 x 28 cm, is estimated $ 1M, for sale by Sotheby's inNew York on January 29. The press release dates it to the mid-1570s, corresponding to the end of the artist's stay in Italy. Here is the link to the catalog.
The work is emotional and expressive. The group around Christ focuses on the gloomy action reinforced by a bleak landscape and a cold sunset light.
The figuration is particularly interesting. Bodies and necks are stretched, not for a bottom up viewing which would be absurd for a such a small artwork, but simply because Greco appreciated the emotional load of such a representation in the art of Parmigianino.
Details of faces fade in the backgrounds, as for a new law of perspective. Yet we recognize among the attendants anold man with black cap and white beard : this unsigned work is a tribute to Titian.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting from the Italian period of Greco remained far below its estimate. It was sold $ 900K including premium.
Domenikos Theotokopoulos was born in Crete, under Byzantine influence. His progressive journey to Spain, which he reached in 1576 aged 35, made him assimilate the Christian art from East to West, before he was more usually known as El Greco (the Greek), one of the most original artists of all time.
In 1568 he was in Venice, where he met and admired Titian. The old artist still had an extraordinary creativity. The Greek began to develop a personal style, a clever synthesis of both the anecdotal abundance from the icons and the clarity of the composition of Titian. He realized at that time a first version of the Entombment of Christ.
A second version of this theme, a tempera and oil on panel 36 x 28 cm, is estimated $ 1M, for sale by Sotheby's inNew York on January 29. The press release dates it to the mid-1570s, corresponding to the end of the artist's stay in Italy. Here is the link to the catalog.
The work is emotional and expressive. The group around Christ focuses on the gloomy action reinforced by a bleak landscape and a cold sunset light.
The figuration is particularly interesting. Bodies and necks are stretched, not for a bottom up viewing which would be absurd for a such a small artwork, but simply because Greco appreciated the emotional load of such a representation in the art of Parmigianino.
Details of faces fade in the backgrounds, as for a new law of perspective. Yet we recognize among the attendants anold man with black cap and white beard : this unsigned work is a tribute to Titian.
POST SALE COMMENT
This painting from the Italian period of Greco remained far below its estimate. It was sold $ 900K including premium.
1580 Epic Battles by Tintoretto
2016 SOLD for € 910K including premium
The naval battle of Lepanto fought in 1571 was a decisive victory of the Christian Holy Ligue over the Turks during a series of military campaigns by the Venetians. A tender was launched for an immense painting commemorating the event in the Palazzo Ducale.
Il Tintoretto, sometimes nicknamed Il Furioso, is known for his speed of decision and execution. He gets this contract and performs the painting within one year. An oil on canvas 180 x 320 cm sold for € 315K including premium by Sotheby's on September 20, 2016 has the characteristics of a modello made by Tintoretto in the preparation of this work that was to be lost in the fire of the Palace in 1577.
Tintoretto was primarily an artist of religious themes but knew to convince customers of the global extent of his know how. From 1578 to 1580 he made eight large paintings in praise of the Gonzaga for their ducal palace in Mantua. The animation of the battles is hectic, in a Mannerist style. Details of the action prevail over the consistency of the whole.
On October 18 in Vienna, Dorotheum sells a Battle between the Philistines and the Israelites, oil on canvas 146 x 231 cm recently discovered. The overall design is comparable to the works of the Gonzaga series. X ray and infrared analyses show that this piece is an original with major changes realized to change the theme.
The scenes are violent, from brawl to escape. A few elephants in the background provide the Orientalist mood. The main action is decidedly on the extreme right of the picture like the conclusion of a modern comic strip : the young David pierces with his spear the giant Goliath lying on the ground.
This painting is estimated € 300K, lot 26. Please watch the video shared by the auction house :
Il Tintoretto, sometimes nicknamed Il Furioso, is known for his speed of decision and execution. He gets this contract and performs the painting within one year. An oil on canvas 180 x 320 cm sold for € 315K including premium by Sotheby's on September 20, 2016 has the characteristics of a modello made by Tintoretto in the preparation of this work that was to be lost in the fire of the Palace in 1577.
Tintoretto was primarily an artist of religious themes but knew to convince customers of the global extent of his know how. From 1578 to 1580 he made eight large paintings in praise of the Gonzaga for their ducal palace in Mantua. The animation of the battles is hectic, in a Mannerist style. Details of the action prevail over the consistency of the whole.
On October 18 in Vienna, Dorotheum sells a Battle between the Philistines and the Israelites, oil on canvas 146 x 231 cm recently discovered. The overall design is comparable to the works of the Gonzaga series. X ray and infrared analyses show that this piece is an original with major changes realized to change the theme.
The scenes are violent, from brawl to escape. A few elephants in the background provide the Orientalist mood. The main action is decidedly on the extreme right of the picture like the conclusion of a modern comic strip : the young David pierces with his spear the giant Goliath lying on the ground.
This painting is estimated € 300K, lot 26. Please watch the video shared by the auction house :
1588 Carracci between Mannerism and Baroque
2013 SOLD 3.45 M$ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
The Mannerist art no longer met the needs of popular devotion. The deformed bodies do not capture the attention of the faithful. The Catholic Church, threatened by the competition from the Reformation, wants to progress. The threeCarracci will be the main agents of this artistic revival.
They work together in Bologna. Ludovico is the theorist and his cousin Agostino is the teacher. The younger brother ofAgostino, Annibale, is a gifted painter who observes his models with empathy and emotion.
They admire the realism of Raphael and Titian, and innovate by bringing the mystical movement and the light. Theirtransitional role is essential, both to Baroque and to Caravaggio.
On January 30 in New York, Christie's sells an oil on canvas, 135 x 98 cm, showing the Annunciation. This paintingwas known only by a black and white photo, and experts were eager to learn more. They saw it, and convincinglyattributed it to Annibale, perhaps after a visit made to Venice circa 1588.
The Annunciation is cautiously estimated $ 1.5 million, a low price that may be motivated by the absence of references to similar works on the market. Indeed, these painters were essentially making frescoes and their works are very rare at auction.
POST SALE COMMENT
As expected, this rare painting of a transition period far exceeded its estimates. It was sold $ 3.45 million including premium.
The Mannerist art no longer met the needs of popular devotion. The deformed bodies do not capture the attention of the faithful. The Catholic Church, threatened by the competition from the Reformation, wants to progress. The threeCarracci will be the main agents of this artistic revival.
They work together in Bologna. Ludovico is the theorist and his cousin Agostino is the teacher. The younger brother ofAgostino, Annibale, is a gifted painter who observes his models with empathy and emotion.
They admire the realism of Raphael and Titian, and innovate by bringing the mystical movement and the light. Theirtransitional role is essential, both to Baroque and to Caravaggio.
On January 30 in New York, Christie's sells an oil on canvas, 135 x 98 cm, showing the Annunciation. This paintingwas known only by a black and white photo, and experts were eager to learn more. They saw it, and convincinglyattributed it to Annibale, perhaps after a visit made to Venice circa 1588.
The Annunciation is cautiously estimated $ 1.5 million, a low price that may be motivated by the absence of references to similar works on the market. Indeed, these painters were essentially making frescoes and their works are very rare at auction.
POST SALE COMMENT
As expected, this rare painting of a transition period far exceeded its estimates. It was sold $ 3.45 million including premium.
1590 Two Apples for the Cheeks
2000 SOLD 1.4 M$ including premium by Sotheby's
2012 UNSOLD
PRE 2012 SALE DISCUSSION
Four centuries before Salvador Dali, Giuseppe Arcimboldo has made paintings which are read differently depending on the angle, or even according to the detail that catches the eye. In most cases, a portrait becomes fruit or flowers.
When he realizes Vertumnus to 1590, he resides in his hometown, Milan, having long worked at the court of Prague.His patron remains the Emperor Rudolf II, and it is considered that Vertumnus is a portrait in fruit of the Emperorhimself.
No doubt he painted at the same time for the same patron the oil on panel, 56 x 42 cm, for sale on January 25 in New York by Christie's. It has an even rarer feature: it is reversible, meaning that we must return it from top to bottom to see in turn the portrait surmounted by a cap or the mixed fruit in a basket.
Arcimboldo's art is weird, even by the standards of our time. The explanation probably lies in the passion of Rudolf for anything that could make him understand the mechanisms of nature and the world. The gryphon's egg, which Idiscussed in 2008 in the Silver group, is similar.
Returning to our reversible artwork : unlike other portraits charges by Arcimboldo, the model is not identified. It alone generates a double play. In close up, he is rather young, with well rounded cheeks consisting of apples. From a distance, the figure is dominated by the mischievous eyes and large mustache. And that mustache has a great resemblance to that of Vertumnus.
Sold $ 1.4 million including premium by Sotheby's on 28 January 2000, this painting is now estimated $ 3M.
Four centuries before Salvador Dali, Giuseppe Arcimboldo has made paintings which are read differently depending on the angle, or even according to the detail that catches the eye. In most cases, a portrait becomes fruit or flowers.
When he realizes Vertumnus to 1590, he resides in his hometown, Milan, having long worked at the court of Prague.His patron remains the Emperor Rudolf II, and it is considered that Vertumnus is a portrait in fruit of the Emperorhimself.
No doubt he painted at the same time for the same patron the oil on panel, 56 x 42 cm, for sale on January 25 in New York by Christie's. It has an even rarer feature: it is reversible, meaning that we must return it from top to bottom to see in turn the portrait surmounted by a cap or the mixed fruit in a basket.
Arcimboldo's art is weird, even by the standards of our time. The explanation probably lies in the passion of Rudolf for anything that could make him understand the mechanisms of nature and the world. The gryphon's egg, which Idiscussed in 2008 in the Silver group, is similar.
Returning to our reversible artwork : unlike other portraits charges by Arcimboldo, the model is not identified. It alone generates a double play. In close up, he is rather young, with well rounded cheeks consisting of apples. From a distance, the figure is dominated by the mischievous eyes and large mustache. And that mustache has a great resemblance to that of Vertumnus.
Sold $ 1.4 million including premium by Sotheby's on 28 January 2000, this painting is now estimated $ 3M.
1590 Gryphon Egg
2008 SOLD 580 K£ including premium
The ancient gold- and silver-wares may surprise the amateur of today. Pattern fashions change, and objects are melted to create other shapes. Sometimes, as in France under Louis XIV, silver is requisitioned to support the State. The same artistic disaster also occurred in England but it was less exhaustive and some old pieces have survived.
On 25 November, Christie's London sells the exceptional collection of silverware of an English Lord. We learn in the press release that it was fashionable in London at the end of the sixteenth century to combine the work of the silver with materials such as shells, coral, pearls, minerals, rock crystals and eggs of ostrich. It was the time of the great explorations of the seas by the British during the reign of Elizabeth Tudor, and this sudden fashion for the exotics is logical.
The most curious lot of this sale is composed of an ostrich egg mounted in gilt as a cup in 1590 by the goldsmith John Spilman, and of a Dutch painting from the next century which represents this object in a still life. This lot is estimated 500 K£. Always from the same source, it is quite amusing to know that mounted ostrich eggs were once called the "Gryphon eggs."
POST SALE COMMENT
On this gloomy fall, important objects are hiding. I therefore have a high pleasure to announce that this exceptional piece of ancient silverware was sold £ 580 K inclusive.
On 25 November, Christie's London sells the exceptional collection of silverware of an English Lord. We learn in the press release that it was fashionable in London at the end of the sixteenth century to combine the work of the silver with materials such as shells, coral, pearls, minerals, rock crystals and eggs of ostrich. It was the time of the great explorations of the seas by the British during the reign of Elizabeth Tudor, and this sudden fashion for the exotics is logical.
The most curious lot of this sale is composed of an ostrich egg mounted in gilt as a cup in 1590 by the goldsmith John Spilman, and of a Dutch painting from the next century which represents this object in a still life. This lot is estimated 500 K£. Always from the same source, it is quite amusing to know that mounted ostrich eggs were once called the "Gryphon eggs."
POST SALE COMMENT
On this gloomy fall, important objects are hiding. I therefore have a high pleasure to announce that this exceptional piece of ancient silverware was sold £ 580 K inclusive.
1596 Paradise Brueghel
2015 SOLD for $ 4M including premium
Pieter Bruegel died in 1569, leaving two infant sons who became artists in their turn. Their careers are so different that the elder was nicknamed Hell Brueghel and the younger Paradise Brueghel. Pieter Brueghel of Hell exploited the models created by his father along with significant additions.
Jan Brueghel made a long stay in Italy at the time when Baroque succeeded Mannerism. He obtained the patronage of the very young Cardinal Federico Borromeo who became archbishop of Milan in 1595. More intellectual than theologian, Cardinal Borromeo will be in 1609 the founder of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana.
Inspired by the art and landscapes of Italy, Jan Brueghel painted around 1594 his first views of Paradise, with flexible design and pleasant colors. Certainly conceived to appeal the Cardinal, they show the variety of the animals in their heavenly vicinity, in a loose interpretation of Creation and Ark. Paradise will remain one of his favorite themes throughout his career.
On January 29 in New York, Sotheby's sells an oil on copper 27 x 36 cm, lot 54 estimated $ 3.5M. Dated 1596, this painting was probably made before Jan returned to Flanders in the same year.
The scene is loaded with symbols. The gentle animals are divided between the foreground and the ark where all will find a place. Wise travelers walk in the same direction. In the background of the scene, the festive village of sinners is a sequel to the moral style of the artist's father.
Jan Brueghel made a long stay in Italy at the time when Baroque succeeded Mannerism. He obtained the patronage of the very young Cardinal Federico Borromeo who became archbishop of Milan in 1595. More intellectual than theologian, Cardinal Borromeo will be in 1609 the founder of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana.
Inspired by the art and landscapes of Italy, Jan Brueghel painted around 1594 his first views of Paradise, with flexible design and pleasant colors. Certainly conceived to appeal the Cardinal, they show the variety of the animals in their heavenly vicinity, in a loose interpretation of Creation and Ark. Paradise will remain one of his favorite themes throughout his career.
On January 29 in New York, Sotheby's sells an oil on copper 27 x 36 cm, lot 54 estimated $ 3.5M. Dated 1596, this painting was probably made before Jan returned to Flanders in the same year.
The scene is loaded with symbols. The gentle animals are divided between the foreground and the ark where all will find a place. Wise travelers walk in the same direction. In the background of the scene, the festive village of sinners is a sequel to the moral style of the artist's father.
#AuctionUpdate: Jan Brueghel the Elder’s "Paradise Landscape" achieves $3.9M #MastersWeek pic.twitter.com/5YzsGNy8a3
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) January 29, 2015
1596-1599 The Last Table of the Duke of Urbino
2010 SOLD 937 K£ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
The Italian princes of the end of the Renaissance had not necessarily an easy or happy life. Francesco Maria della Rovere was the last Duke of Urbino. Having failed to ensure his lineage, which is the supreme shame for a monarch, he had to bequeath his duchy to the Papal States.
He had a granddaughter, who inherited his furniture and his regrets.
The small center table for sale at Sotheby's in London on July 6 is perfectly proportioned, 83 cm high with a top 133 x 83 cm, according to those models of antique furniture which were made for transporting from castle to castle. It is in rosewood, with the top and trestles artistically ivory inlaid by patterns of branches and leaves of oak, the emblem of the ducal family.
This princely piece executed between 1596 and 1599 is estimated between £ 500K and £ 1M. This estimate is very open, a feature that often accompanies the rarest. Experience shows that this does not mean that they are easy to sell.
POST SALE COMMENT
Very good result, 937 K £ including premium, for this precious little furniture from an Italian palazzo. It has not reached its high estimate, but the result was not a foregone conclusion.
The image of the top was shared just before the sale by AuctionPublicity.
The Italian princes of the end of the Renaissance had not necessarily an easy or happy life. Francesco Maria della Rovere was the last Duke of Urbino. Having failed to ensure his lineage, which is the supreme shame for a monarch, he had to bequeath his duchy to the Papal States.
He had a granddaughter, who inherited his furniture and his regrets.
The small center table for sale at Sotheby's in London on July 6 is perfectly proportioned, 83 cm high with a top 133 x 83 cm, according to those models of antique furniture which were made for transporting from castle to castle. It is in rosewood, with the top and trestles artistically ivory inlaid by patterns of branches and leaves of oak, the emblem of the ducal family.
This princely piece executed between 1596 and 1599 is estimated between £ 500K and £ 1M. This estimate is very open, a feature that often accompanies the rarest. Experience shows that this does not mean that they are easy to sell.
POST SALE COMMENT
Very good result, 937 K £ including premium, for this precious little furniture from an Italian palazzo. It has not reached its high estimate, but the result was not a foregone conclusion.
The image of the top was shared just before the sale by AuctionPublicity.
<1600 Roman Marble Tops
2013 SOLD 960 K£ including premium
PRE SALE DISCUSSION
Two table tops are awaited for next week in London. Both are Roman, of similar size and same period: the last quarter of the sixteenth century. The beautiful colors of marbles and pietre dure and the sharpness of the inlay are exceptional.
The top for sale by Sotheby's on July 3, 179 x 125 cm, estimated £ 800K, is impressive with the geometric quality of its decor. Pieces from the later Renaissance often invite to heraldic comparisons. The rare presence of acorns makes it close to the Dukes of Urbino.
The sources of the marbles is known: the artist drew on the ruins of the Roman monuments. Masterpiece in its own right, the top was once mounted on a baroque console table with a fake Medici mask. A British expert had the good sense to get rid of the console.
The fineness of the decoration of the top for sale at Christie's on July 4 makes it a technical feat. This very aesthetic piece 180 x 120 cm is estimated £ 600K. It is presented on a center table made in Florence in the early eighteenth century.
POST SALE COMMENTS
1
Good result at Sotheby's : £ 960K including premium, within the range of estimates.
2
Unsold with the hammer but sold in post sale, Christie's lot is included in the final list of results at £ 613K including premium.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
Two table tops are awaited for next week in London. Both are Roman, of similar size and same period: the last quarter of the sixteenth century. The beautiful colors of marbles and pietre dure and the sharpness of the inlay are exceptional.
The top for sale by Sotheby's on July 3, 179 x 125 cm, estimated £ 800K, is impressive with the geometric quality of its decor. Pieces from the later Renaissance often invite to heraldic comparisons. The rare presence of acorns makes it close to the Dukes of Urbino.
The sources of the marbles is known: the artist drew on the ruins of the Roman monuments. Masterpiece in its own right, the top was once mounted on a baroque console table with a fake Medici mask. A British expert had the good sense to get rid of the console.
The fineness of the decoration of the top for sale at Christie's on July 4 makes it a technical feat. This very aesthetic piece 180 x 120 cm is estimated £ 600K. It is presented on a center table made in Florence in the early eighteenth century.
POST SALE COMMENTS
1
Good result at Sotheby's : £ 960K including premium, within the range of estimates.
2
Unsold with the hammer but sold in post sale, Christie's lot is included in the final list of results at £ 613K including premium.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
1597 Trade with Southern Barbarians
2011 SOLD 4.8 M$ including premium
The short Momoyama period, from 1573 to 1603 of our calendar, is significant in Japanese history. During these thirty years, three warlords succeeded to the unification and consolidation of the country. Precisely because of this prosperity, foreigners are regarded as curiosities, not only as enemies.
They are named collectively Nanban, a word that means "Southern Barbarians". Around 1545, Portuguese sailors had founded the harbour of Nagasaki, in the extreme south-west, just opposite Korea. They provided silk and porcelain from China to the Japanese. Soon, distrust will again dominate, Japan will close to foreigners in 1638 and memories of Nanban be destroyed.
The major Japanese art is the screen, whose favorite subjects are scenes animated by many small figures. The artists, according to Japanese tradition, handed down from one to the other the name of their foreman. Kano is one of the most renowned.
Christie's has found a wonder that had remained hidden for four centuries: a pair of screens, each consisting of six panels made with gold leaf. Each screen measures 160 x 360 cm.
One scene shows a large boat in front of which the "Barbarians" are busy. On the other, the ship just arrived at Nagasaki and receives a warm welcome from the Japanese.
One of the figures involved in this intense activity has particularly attracted the attention of the author of the auction catalog. It is an elephant of India, which carries an official on a palanquin. It is known that Don Pedro, the elephant who was presented in 1597 to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was the first of his species to come to Nagasaki and had no immediate successor. Both screens are marked with the seal of Kano Naizen, an artist who worked in the service of Toyotomi.
The sale will be held on March 23 in New York.
POST SALE COMMENT
Great price for this exceptional pair of screens: $ 4.8 million including premium.
The image of one of them was shared by Artdaily before the sale.
They are named collectively Nanban, a word that means "Southern Barbarians". Around 1545, Portuguese sailors had founded the harbour of Nagasaki, in the extreme south-west, just opposite Korea. They provided silk and porcelain from China to the Japanese. Soon, distrust will again dominate, Japan will close to foreigners in 1638 and memories of Nanban be destroyed.
The major Japanese art is the screen, whose favorite subjects are scenes animated by many small figures. The artists, according to Japanese tradition, handed down from one to the other the name of their foreman. Kano is one of the most renowned.
Christie's has found a wonder that had remained hidden for four centuries: a pair of screens, each consisting of six panels made with gold leaf. Each screen measures 160 x 360 cm.
One scene shows a large boat in front of which the "Barbarians" are busy. On the other, the ship just arrived at Nagasaki and receives a warm welcome from the Japanese.
One of the figures involved in this intense activity has particularly attracted the attention of the author of the auction catalog. It is an elephant of India, which carries an official on a palanquin. It is known that Don Pedro, the elephant who was presented in 1597 to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, was the first of his species to come to Nagasaki and had no immediate successor. Both screens are marked with the seal of Kano Naizen, an artist who worked in the service of Toyotomi.
The sale will be held on March 23 in New York.
POST SALE COMMENT
Great price for this exceptional pair of screens: $ 4.8 million including premium.
The image of one of them was shared by Artdaily before the sale.
