Paris - Royal Provenance

Furniture, Works of Art, Paintings, Drawings, Silver, Jewellery, Books and Manuscripts

on 2 December 2004

EXHIBITION MONDAY 29 NOVEMBER 10AM-8PM TUESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 10AM-6PM

WEDNESDAY 1ST DÉCEMBER 10AM-6PM

The Galerie Charpentier will, for the first time, be the venue of a sale devoted to works originating from European Royal collections, (France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Austria, Germany, Russia, England, Greece and Denmark) and also South America (Brazil). The sale consists of nearly 200 lots, some historical, such as the Charter of Corbie - the oldest document of royal provenance still privately owned -and others, unusual, such as a drawing room suite covered in silver, that once belonged to the Viceroys of the Rio de la Plata. The works reflect the splendour, taste and quality demanded by the nobility of the 18th and 19th centuries.

FRANCE

Three pastels by the most fashionable portraitists of the 18th century include those by Elizabeth Vigée le Brun (1755-1842) and Anne Vallayer-Coster (1744-1818).The first two form a pair portraying Melchior and Jules Armand de Polignac (estimate: 200,000 - 300,000 €). Exiled in Vienna from 1792, Elizabeth Vigée le Brun found some of her former patrons there, and worked for them until her return to France. This was the case of Jules-François-Armand, Duc de Polignac, and his wife. The duchess, a former governess of the royal children of France, had already posed for portraits, notably the well known one in which she wears a straw hat, painted in 1782 and now at the château of Versailles. In Vienna, the artist portrayed the children of the Polignac couple, creating two natural and appealing profile portraits that are very different from her charming and fashionable effigies.

The third pastel is a portrait of Queen Marie-Antoinette painted by Anne Vallayer-Coster in 1780 (estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 €). She was also the painting teacher of the Queen, to whom she always remained loyal.

Among the sculptures is a 19th century equestrian statue of Louis XIV in bronze, after Girardon (height: 100 cm; estimate: 40,000 - 60,000   ), one of several versions of this group, the original of which was destroyed during the Revolution. Being a subject that was very much in vogue in the 18th century, it was reproduced throughout the following century, and there are consequently numerous bronze reductions in public collections - the Louvre has one of the most remarkable - and in private hands (the de Selle and Crozat de Thiers collections).

A monumental bust of an aristocrat in white marble from the end of the 17th century (height: 91 cm) shows an expressive face surrounded by a thick wig with long curls falling over the shoulders. The anonymous artist created a work typical of that period, in a style recalling the models of Jean-Louis Lemoyne and Guillaume Coustou (estimate: 45,000 - 60 ,000 €).

A set of two coffeepots in silver and vermeil, of oriental inspiration, made by Hyppolyte Bompard in Paris around 1838-1851, was offered to Doctor Horteloup by Princess Adélaïde d'Orléans, sister of the future king, Louis Philippe, for whom she became an adviser (estimate: 10,000 - 15,000 €).

Also worthy of note is a Louis XVI mahogany commode from the Louis Philippe collection (estimate: 50, 000 - 60,000 €), a breakfast set in Sèvres porcelain decorated with birds on a pink background by Aloncle in 1761, believed to have been given by Marie-Antoinette and bequeathed by the Duchesse d'Angoulême to her nephew, the Comte de Chambord (estimate: 50,000 - 60,000 €) , a chatelaine in gold given by Madame de Tourzel-Cröy, lady-in-

waiting to the children of Louis XVI, who followed the Royal family to Varennes and then to the Temple (estimate: 8,000 - 12,000 €), two napkins in damask linen « of the marriage of Louis XIV » (estimate: 6,000 - 8,000 € each) and a 17th century leather casket bearing the Royal coat-of-arms (estimate: 7,000 - 8,000 €).

ITALY

A sculpted mahogany furniture suite, consisting of a throne and sofa decorated with the coat-of-arms of the House of Savoy was commissioned by Vitttorio-Emmanuele II around 1870 for his private train wagon (estimate: 15,000 - 20,000 €).

A painting by Giuseppe Borsato (1771-1849) represents an official reception at the Palace of the Doges, hosted by the King of Lombardy and Venice, a region that used to be under Austrian domination (estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 €). Giuseppe Borsato, a painter-decorator, depicts the reception in the Senate Hall that was used to receive Venetian Ambassadors paying an official visit to report on their foreign missions

GERMANY

The sale features several lots from the Kingdom of Bavaria, including an attractive portrait of Princess Elvira Von Bayern at the age of 17 painted by Karl Gampenrider. The granddaughter of Louis I of Bavaria, she was the Abbess of the Sainte Anne Abbey in Wurzburg before she married Comte Rudolf Wrbna-Kaunitz-Rietberg-Questenberg und Frendenthal, a rich landowner in Moravia (estimate: 10,000 - 15,000 €).

Other interesting items include a gun signed by Boutet & fils of Versailles, belonging to Prince Karl of Bavaria (1795-1875), (estimate: 3,000 - 4,000 €), and a set of sixteen porcelain plates and bowls decorated with still life motifs and the coat-of-arms of the Royal family, ordered from the Parisian Boyer manufacturer (estimate: 15,000 - 25,000 €).

A large ewer in silver and vermeil inlaid with 38 coins was made by Körner and Pröll, probably on the occasion of the coronation in 1888 of Emperor Frederick III of Germany, who was ill and subsequently only reigned for a few months (estimate: 25,000 - 35,000 €).

BRAZIL

The most spectacular ensemble is possibly a drawing room suite in wood covered with silver, composed of two armchairs, a console table and a mirror created for the two Viceroys of Rio de la Plata. The armchairs belonged to Don Nicolas de Arredondo y Pelegrin (1726-1802), 4th Viceroy from 1789 to 1795. The console table belonged to José Marquis d'Alives (1735-1810), Captain General of Chili in 1795, who was nominated 7th Viceroy of Rio de la Plata on 27 October 1797, and then Viceroy of Peru (estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 €).

BOOKS AND MANUSCRIPTS

The last part of the sale is devoted to books and manuscripts. The Charter of Corbie (825), bearing the hand written signatures of Emperors Louis the Pious and Lothair, son and grandson of Charlemagne is probably the oldest document of Royal provenance still in private hands (estimate: 100,000 - 120,000 €). This charter granted imperial protection to the most important French monastery in the early Middle Ages.

The jewel of the sale is without a doubt the Prières de la messe of Jean-Pierre Rousselet, an illuminated manuscript offered by Louis XV to Marie Lecsinska on 4 September 1725, the day of their first meeting on the eve of their marriage. For this occasion, Louis XV asked the leading book artists of the time to produce an exceptional illuminated manuscript. This wedding gift, bound by Padeloup and bearing the interlaced initials of the Royal couple, was kept as a talisman in the collection of the Royal family in exile during the French Revolution. The Duchesse de Berry sold it in 1864. The freshness of the gouache paintings, the historic luxury of the binding, its perfect condition and its

impeccably prestigious provenance classifies this manuscript among the finest objects of the French Court (estimate: 280,000 - 350,000 €).

Finally, the bound Table of Genealogy with the coat-of-arms of Marie de Medicis is a Royal manuscript par excellence. Commissioned by Louis XIII for Marie de Medicis, it bears her coat-of-arms and is bound in red morocco leather. The greatest French genealogist made it around 1628-1630 (estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 €).

Marie de Médicis (1575-1642) was the second wife of Henri IV. She was crowned Queen of France on 13 May 1610, the eve of the assassination of Henri IV, and immediately became the Regent. The famous genealogist Pierre d'Hozier (1592-1660), who was unquestionably the greatest name in French genealogy, gave this manuscript to her on the request of her son, Louis XIII. He started his career in 1619 and was appointed historiographer to the King in 1634. He founded a dynasty of genealogists lasting five generations, all Judges of Arms who worked for the King of France and the leading members of the French nobility.

Sotheby's France - Galerie Charpentier 76 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré - 75008 Paris

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Agrément N° 2001 - 002 du 25 octobre 2001 Vente dirigée par Alain Renner, Stéphanie Denizet