DALLAS, TX.- The silver ceremonial model commemorating the complete of Egypt's Aswan Dam, presented to King Farouk I in 1939, took top lot honors when it sold for $100,000 in
Heritage Auctions' $1.8+ million Fine & Decorative Arts Including The Gentleman Collector Signature Auction Sept. 13-14. The two-day auction held in Dallas and on HERTAGE Live! included more than 1,300 lots of fine art paintings, silver smalls, and more than 100 lots of estate jewelry.
"The Aswan Dam Model is as historically important as it is beautiful," said Nick Dawes, Vice President of Special Collections and curator of the Gentleman Collector Auction. "Needless to say, it is going to a very good home."
The auction's extensive selection of decorative arts included a Large French Silvered, Gilt Bronze And Porcelain Chinoiserie Clock, which took $81,250; a 20th century Persian Qum Silk Rug, which sold for $28,750; and a Napoleon III-Style Gilt And Patinated Bronze Figural Six-Light Candelabrum, which sold to a collector in the Dominican Republic for $22,500.
Two paintings by Chinese artist Lui Liu generated strong interest as Untitled, 1997, sold for $59,375, and Untitled (Man Embracing Woman), 1998, ended at $30,000. Jules Chéret's instantly recognizable Moulin Rouge, 1889, — an important example of original French poster art — sold for $25,000 and a French Patinated Bronze Sculpture by Christophe Fratin, one of several lots from the estate of Mildred McKinley of Wheeling, West Virginia, sold for $22,500.
A selection of Continental furniture included a circa 1740 George II Japanned Quarter-Striking Tall Case Clock by Isaac Nickals of Wells, Norfolk, England, which sold for $17,500 and a French Empire-Style Mahogany And Gilt Bronze Mounted Gentleman's Desk, circa 1900, which ended at $15,000 against a $1,500 pre-auction estimate. An elaborate Japanese Meiji Period Hardwood Cabinet, circa 1890, featuring heavily carved dragon and crane motifs, sold for $13,750.
Additional highlights include, but are not limited to:
• A Pair Of Large Chinese Cloisonné And Bone Figural Groups On Ebonized Wood Bases: Realized: $11,875.
• A lot of Three Edwardian Oak Architectural Staircase Models, circa 19th/20th century: Realized: $9,375.
• A three-piece Dale Chihuly Glass Seaform Group, dated 1993: Realized: $8,750.
