Strauss & Co’s Decorative Arts department is delighted to announce its exciting spring programme of four live auctions for Cape Town Auction Week (18 – 21 September 2022). The catalogue for these auctions includes attractive pieces from four single-owner collections. The decorative arts department is especially pleased to be presenting a premier evening session on Monday, 19 September 2022, which will include 13 items from the Louis and Mavis Shill Collection of Cape silver.
Louis Shill, a pioneering investor and founder of the Sage Fund, was introduced to collecting by his wife, Mavis. Starting in 1970, the Shills began acquiring art, followed in 1973 by the acquisition of their first silver piece, a 19th-century covered sugar bowl by silversmith Carel D. Lotter (estimate R100 000 – 120 000). Equally noteworthy is an 18th-century tessie-on-stand by Daniel H. Schmidt (estimate R150 000 – 200 000) that is referenced in Strauss & Co founding director Stephan Welz’s important book, Cape Silver and Silversmiths (1976).
Bidding for the Decorative Arts lots in Cape Town Auction Week will begin on Monday, 19 September 2022 at 10am. The opening session focuses on Asian ceramics, painting and sculpture. A lot composed of 17 Qing Dynasty giltwood Lohans and a figure of Buddha (estimate R1.2 – 1.6 million) is the undeniable highlight. A South African businessman in the wool trade acquired these sacred figures in Hong Kong during a visit in 1996.
The catalogue for the Asian art session integrates two single-owner collections. The 25 lots from the Property of an Oriental Collector include lovely examples of Qing Dynasty ceramics and a very attractive enamel dish from the 19th-century (estimate R8 000 – 10 000). The 20 lots from the Estate Late Tiemen Groen include six examples of Japanese Imari ware, among them a charger with a flower-filled jardinière as its central motif (estimate R9 000 – 12 000).
Lot 13 A fine Chinese yellow-glazed wine cup, Qing Dynasty, 18th century R 15 000 – 20 000
Lot 40 A finely painted Chinese enamel dish, 19th century Estimate: R 8 000 – 10 000
Lot 67 A Japanese Imari charger, Meiji period, 1868-1912 Estimate: R 9 000 – 12 000
The extensive collection of Tiemen Groen – a 1960s Dutch cycling champion who successfully turned his hand to antique dealing before settling in South Africa in 1995 – also features in a mixed afternoon session devoted to silver, furniture and ceramics. Groen’s estate includes seven examples of Delft blue and white faience ware.
Lot 34 A Chinese blue and white vase, Qing Dynasty, 19th century R 15 000 – 20 000
Strauss & Co is pleased to present the third instalment of the Property of a Connoisseur. Among the ten pieces are four George III furniture items purchased from Norman Adams, London-based specialists in classic English period furniture. They include a gilded and carved mirror from 1760 (estimate R60 000 – 70 000) and mahogany dressing and writing table from 1775 (estimate R50 000 – 70 000). Other private properties in this session include a pair of finely engraved 18th-century Irish silver candlesticks (estimate R60 000 – 80 000) and a mahogany double ‘Cumberland’ dining table from 1795 (estimate R60 000 – 70 000).
Bidding in the premier evening session on 19 September 2022 will open at 6pm with the presentation of a rare and important Jamaican Colonial casket, circa 1680, attributed to Paul Bennett (estimate R100 000 – 120 000). The session includes a fine assortment of Cape furniture from various owners. There is a numbered Tiffany table lamp dated circa 1910 (estimate R500 000 – 600 000). South African design pieces include an impressive Ceramic Studio blue-glazed vase from 1929 (estimate R20 000 – 30 000) and three lots by Zimbabwean silversmith Patrick Mavros.
The Jewellery session, scheduled for Tuesday, 20 September 2022, concludes the decorative arts presentation. There is a handsome assortment of pieces by prized makers Piaget and Rolex. There is a Cartier wristwatch with a 48 diamond-set crown and 18ct white gold bracelet (estimate R300 000 – 400 000) that can be worn by both ladies and gentlemen. The final highlights is a platinum ring with claw-set diamond weighing 4.15 carats (estimate R720 000 – 750 000).
Lot 259 Tiffany & Co New York City, New York, USA Amazonite bead and gold bracelet, Tiffany & Co Estimate: R 25 000 – 30 000
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- Lot 198 A leather and rose. Estimate: R 40 000 – 50 000wood-veneered model 670 lounge chair and 671 ottoman released in 1956 for Herman Miller by Charles and Ray Eames, 1950s
From the mid-20th century there are three fine examples of Charles and Ray Eames leather and rosewood veneered model 670 and 671 chairs and ottomans from the 1950s – Lots 198-200. Lot 198 has the exciting South African provenance of being acquired by Sir Donald Gordon in the 1950s.
AUCTION WEEK
Modern and Contemporary Art, Decorative Arts, Jewellery and Wine
including The Property of an Oriental Collector, The Property of the Estate Late Tiemen Groen, The Property of a Connoisseur Part III, The Louis & Mavis Shill Collection of Cape Silver and The Oliver Powell and Timely Investments Trust Collection
Modern and Contemporary Art, Decorative Arts and Jewellery
Monday 19 September 2022
10 am: Session 1: Asian Art including Property of an Oriental Collector and
The Property of the Estate Late Tiemen Groen
2 pm: Session 2: Silver, Furniture and Ceramics including The Property of a Connoisseur
Part III and. The Property of the Estate Late Tiemen Groen
6 pm: Session 3: Cape and Continental Silver, Furniture and Design including The Louis & Mavis Shill Collection of Cape Silver
Tuesday 20 September 2022
10 am: Session 4: Jewellery
7 pm: Session 5: The Oliver Powell and Timely Investments Trust Collection
Wednesday 21 September 2022
3 pm: Session 6: Modern and Contemporary Art. Day Sale
7 pm: Session 7: Modern and Contemporary Art. Evening Sale
VENUE: Brickfield Canvas, 2nd Floor, 35 Brickfield Road, Woodstock
PREVIEW
Monday 12 to Friday 16 September, 10am to 5pm
Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 September, 10am to 1pm