WENHAM, Mass. – The 12,000-square-foot, 30-room Georgian mansion known as Seven Pines, located on Boston’s North Shore, plus its entire contents of European antiques and other fine items, will be sold without reserve on Friday, July 1st, and Saturday, July 2nd, by John McInnis Auctioneers, based in Amesbury. The auction will be held on-site, at 97 Larch Row in Wenham.

For those unable to attend either session in person, Internet bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com and Invaluable.com. Telephone and absentee bids will also be accepted.

Seven Pines is a Georgian Colonial brick manor home that was designed by Joseph D. Leland and built in 1927 on 30 picturesque acres on Larch Row, a prized location in Wenham, Mass. The home has been lovingly maintained, updated and expanded over the years, and enjoys close proximity to the village center, rail lines and aviation, parks, golf courses and equestrian trails.

The contents are being called The Henry D. Audesse Collection, referring to Seven Pines’ most recent occupant. Offerings will include 19th century French furniture, porcelains, bronzes, fine decorative objects, clocks, paintings and other works of art, mosaics and lighting. Start times for both auction days will be 12 o’clock noon Eastern time. The home will be sold at 3 pm July 1st.

Session I, on Friday, July 1st, will feature over 400 lots of high-end decorative items, to include Bell Epoque, 19th century decorative furniture, porcelains, bronzes, paintings, lighting and more.

Two items in Session I should be strong candidates for top lot of the auction. One is a pair of 19th century Sevres vases, 35 inches in height, ormolu mounted cobalt ground porcelain with two handles on each side and mythological reserves. The vases are both signed “Dapoigny / Sevres” and both come in their original mahogany cases. The lot is expected to fetch $15,000-$25,000.

The other is a French 19th century Louis XVI-style pedestal clock with gilt bronze and porcelain face signed “Leroy A Paris.” The ormolu mounted inlaid kingwood and mahogany clock stands an impressive 88 inches tall and features a bell striking movement and a drum case mounted with playful putti with garlands of flowers amid billowing clouds. It should realize $12,000-$18,000.

One of the more intriguing and historically significant lots will be a porcelain monogrammed gilt banded dinner service, made in France by Vierzon (Hache Julien & Cie). The lot's provenance sheet reads: “Set of Limoges porcelain ordered and given by Napoleon III to Michael Smythson upon his return as ambassador to France from England in 1886”. It should bring $1,200-$1,800.

Other star lots from Session I will include a fine, circa-1870 French Egyptian Revival ormolu mounted rouge marble urn on a gilt and silvered bronze quatrapied stand, with mythological creatures, 27 ½ inches tall (est. $5,000-$9,000); and a circa-1900 French Louis XV-style bombe cabinet with parquetry and green marble top and mounted figures of putti (est. $3,000-$6,000).

Session II, the following day, on Saturday, July 2nd, will be packed with over 500 lots of 19th and 20th century decorative antiques, porcelains, accessories, paintings, many maritime objects and nautical antiques, scrimshaw and more. Preview exhibitions for the antique items will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, June 29-30, from 1-7 pm, and both auction days from 9 am ‘til noon.

An expected top performer in the session should be a three-volume set of books titled Audubon's Quadrupeds of America, bound in full green leather with embossed gold decoration and lettering, and gilt edges by the renowned bird scholar John James Audubon and Rev. John Bachman (NY), published by V.G. Audubon between 1849-1852. The set is expected to sell for $3,000-$6,000.

Other notable lots from Session II include a Japanese bronze statue of a peasant man sitting next to a tree eating his lunch, signed, from the Edo Period, 32 inches tall, in very good condition with a nice patina (est. $2,000-$4,000); and a 19th century French Empire gilt bronze figural clock, in two-color bronze with a beautiful gilt surface and with a figure of Mercury (est. $1,200-$1,800).

Also sold will be a circa-1910 French Art Nouveau bronze statue of a female figure, unsigned but titled Alerta, 27 inches tall and expected to hammer for $400-$600; and a fine model of an American cargo steamship in very good condition, 62 inches long, estimated at $2,000-$3,000.

The real estate will be shown by appointment only. The high bid will be subject to confirmation by the trustee to the estate of Henry D. Audesse. All internet bidders for the real estate must be pre-qualified by John McInnis Auctioneers. Interested parties are encouraged to view the listing in the real estate section of LiveAuctioneers.com and review all the terms and conditions there.

John McInnis Auctioneers is always accepting quality consignments for future auctions. To consign an item, collection or an estate, you may call them at (978) 388-0400; or, you can e-mail them at mcinnisauctions@yahoo.com. To learn more about John McInnis Auctioneers and the July 1-2 auction of Seven Pines and The Henry D. Audesse Collection, visit www.mcinnisauctions.com.

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