Almost 4,000 lots have been entrusted to the auction house Hermann Historica, based in Grasbrunn near Munich. An extremely exciting and fascinating collection has come together, which will be offered in seven auction catalogues from 16-20 May.
Here are six highlights of the impressive and historic auction series. The sales starts on 16 May with the 891-lot ‘Art and Antiquities’ catalogue, which includes antiques as well as Asian and Russian art. Four historic treasures are being called up here, with starting prices in the six-figure range.
One of these is this outstanding late Sasanian silver bowl, which has a starting price of €250,000. Toreutics played an important role in the art of the Sasanian Empire, which lasted from the early third century to the mid-seventh century and at its height stretched from present-day Iran to Egypt and Turkey. Embossed and chiselled silver and gold bowls told in detailed reliefs display the splendour at the court of the Great King, where he was usually at the centre of the action. This is also the case here: the banquet scene shows the Great King being entertained by servants.
Another gem coming up for auction is this Apulian grave hydria, for which at least €25,000 is being asked. While the back of the monumental vessel has a palmette pattern, the front shows a naiskos scene: a deceased lady with two servants is depicted in a small funerary temple (naiskos). Other female figures offering various handicrafts surround the architecture. The Naiskos vases were a special form of Apulian vase painting, which was created in fourth century BC and was limited almost exclusively to this region.
We are now making a leap from antiquity to the early modern period with this seventeenth-century highlight, an Augsburg casket which represents “a rare example of masterful German inlay work”. The wooden body is decorated with inlays and ivory applications. Three rectangular cartouches are embedded in the lid, containing the enamelled and gold-enhanced coats of arms of the Principality of Anhalt, the Margraviate of Brandenburg and the Duchy of Württemberg.
Continuing on 17 May is the ‘Antique Arms and Armour from Around the World’ auction, which includes 286 lots. Special attention must be paid to the collectable edged weapons from all over the world. The noble Ottoman yatagan is just as much a part of the call as the Indian kanjar with a jade handle, as is this extremely rare Viking sword with the blade inscription ‘INGELRII’.
About twenty specimens of the swords marked in this way are known today.
With 967 lots, the ‘Firearms from Five Centuries’ auction, which will take place on 18 May, is the most extensive of the entire auction series. Here, collectors can look forward to early wheelock rifles and luxurious percussion pistols, as well as hunting guns suitable for everyday use and modern weapon systems.
A weapon which is rarely found on the market, especially in view of the wide range of accessories, is this wind rifle, which was made in southern Germany or Austria around 1800. These air-fired ammunition-firing weapons have been around since the seventeenth century. In the late eighteenth century, they were improved by Bartolomeo Girardoni from Tyrol, as with the version present here.
The last two auction days each include two sales. On the morning of 19 May, the auction of the 351 lots from the catalogue ‘Orders and Militaria until 1918’ will take place. In the afternoon, the Van Bosstraeten collection will be auctioned off, comprising 427 lots with militaria from the German Imperial period.
As has often been the case in the past, Hermann Historica is also auctioning off an ensemble from the elegant wardrobe of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. This 1860s or 1870s two-piece lime-green summer dress with a cream sash is sure to delight the many admirers of the legendary monarch.
The auction series will conclude on 20 May with the 696-lot ‘Orders and Militaria from 1919’ catalogue, and a highly interesting Viennese binocular collection, the 324 lots of which cover a period of one hundred years.
The auctions are taking place at the auction house Hermann Historica, Bretonischer Ring 3, in Grasbrunn near Munich. Previews are possible there from 9-14 May.
