MUNICH.- The spring auction season at Ketterer Kunst in Munich saw a successful opening with a result of € 1.3 million grossed in the department of 19th Century Art. Special attention went to the first 35 lot numbers from a collection of a Southern German art lover. Particularly the works by Franz von Stuck were met with great enthusiasm.

The auction's top ranks are held by several works by Franz von Stuck, first and foremost an oil painting of “Susanna im Bade” (lot 20), who is surprised by two men while bathing. With a result of € 375,000, nearly five times the calling price, it made for amazement among the audience in the saleroom. Even though almost a dozen phone bidders already promised an exciting bidding race before the auction, the result eventually provided by a Swiss art dealer exceeded all expectations and relegated competitors from Germany, Cyprus and Great Britain to places second and beyond.

When Stuck's “Aschenbrödel” (lot 19) was called up a British collector stood his grounds against a fellow countryman, as well as against bidders from Germany and Switzerland. He honored the sensual picture of an innocent young lady with a result of € 131,250, while the in all respects magical Frog King motif of “Es war einmal” (lot 165) went to Switzerland for proceeds worth € 70,000. A London dealer, as well as collectors from Bavaria and Hesse were left behind in the bidding race.

Another lot at the top of the buyers' wish lists was Joseph Karl Stieler's oil painting of ”Königin Therese von Bayern“ (lot 59), which will remain, as expected, in the south of Germany, however, not without fierce resistance from the rest of the country. The representative of a public Bavarian institution in the saleroom took the painting from 1855 with him for a result of € 67,500.

What does not surprise much about Friedrich Kallmorgen's oil painting ”Die Schule ist aus“ (lot 188) from 1916 is the fact that it will become part of a Northern German private collection, the surprising thing, however, is the result of € 62,500. The small-size work realized more than a twelve-fold of its calling price of € 5,000. Strong competition from Hamburg and almost half a dozen bidders from Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg and North Rhine-Westphalia provided the outstanding result.

Another remarkable increase of more than five times the calling price was also recorded for Karl Hagemeister's ”Märkische Seenlandschaft“ (lot 163). Despite strong commitment from Northern Germany and the Rhineland, almost a dozen bidders from Berlin and Brandenburg arranged it among themselves. A private collector from the Potsdam vicinity eventually won the contention with his bid of € 38,750.

All six works by Edward Theodore Compton were sold with good increase rates. While the ”Ansicht der Marmolata vom Piz Boè aus“ (from 75) will call a private collection in London its new home for a result of € 25,000, the work ”Blick auf die Nordseite des Großglockners“ (lot 79) went to the hands of a Southern German collector for a result of € 21,250.