The Rago Arts and Auction Center will hold auction on April 15, 16 and 17 featuring furniture and decorative arts, jewelry, Asian, coins, Americana, fashion and more.

Fine & Antique Jewelry/Watches/Objets de Vertu: Wednesday, April 15, 11 a.m. (lots 1 – 288)

The popularity of Rago’s Jewelry auctions continues to grow, with the addition of a Fine Jewelry sale on April 15. Leading designers: Buccellati, Cartier, David Yurman, Georg Jensen, Henry Dunay, Judith Ripka, Schlumberger, Tiffany & Co. and Van Cleef & Arpels. Timepieces for men and women; significant diamond or bridal jewelry; colored gemstones. Featured pieces include lot 11, John Hardy one-of-a-kind Cinta shell ring, the first ring of which was designed by creative director, Guy Bedarida, as a gift for John Hardy to present to his wife; lot 1, Van Cleef & Arpels Alhambra 20 motif gold necklace, a design launched in 1968, it stands as a symbol of love, good fortune and happiness as the stylistic representation of a four leaf clover. Several lots of Tiffany & Co. jewelry, such as lot 171, a lime green Paillonné enameled gold diamond bracelet by designer Jean Schlumberger, who drew inspiration from nature. Lot 117, Georg Jensen 830 silver moonstone necklace #1, was created between 1915 and 1927, the necklace design dating to 1904, and is as wearable and relevant today as it was over 100 years ago. Lot 213, Victorian Etruscan Revival gold fringe necklace, is a fine example of the Victorian interest in classical, Etruscan and other archeological styles. The high carat, granulated gold and unique forms were recreated, and 150 years later, this necklace is still incredibly supple, wearable and beautiful. Lot 139, 4.85 cts. untreated blue Burma sapphire ring, is a desirable natural, untreated sapphire from Burma, or Myanmar, one of several southeastern Asian locations where finest sapphires are mined. Jade and coral are currently a hot market trend. Lot 92 is a natural "A" jadeite and enameled gold necklace, the carved jadeite panels rendering this piece unique and desirable, as the “A” grading indicates that the jade has received little to no treatment. Several lots of coral are in available in the sale, notably lot 86, a red coral bead 18k gold necklace.

Coins and Currency: Wednesday, April 15, following Fine Jewelry (lots 400 – 560)

Following the Fine Jewelry Auction will be 160 lots of coins and currency. There are U.S. Morgan dollars, Peace dollars, Seated Liberty and Walking Liberty 50c coins, dollar gold coins. There are many rare examples, such as a 1652 Massachusetts Ghost Oak tree $1.00 coin, one of less than 30 known, with the help of a metal detector, it was discovered in Bucks County, PA; a 1790 silver Manly Medal, Baker 61 is one of under ten known; and an 1839-D $2.50 gold coin, of which there are only eight finer know in existence. There are foreign coins and tokens, 1975 Panama 100 Balboa coins, French coins and Lalique WWI Medals. There are also ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine coins, including an ancient Greek Lesbos Electrum Hekte coin; a Justinian II Byzantine gold Solidus; and ancient Greek Kingdom of Macedon AR Tetradachm coin, and an ancient Macedon uner Rome AR Tetradachm coin.

Unreserved Jewelry/Watches/Couture: Thursday, April 16, 11 a.m. (lots 600 – 928)

328 lots of Unreserved jewelry, couture, watches, costume and travel jewelry. Jewelry: antique and period gold, silver or platinum, numerous precious and semiprecious gemstones and diamonds, coral and jade jewelry, notable costume pieces. Leading designers Buccellati, Bulgari, Cartier, David Yurman, Givenchy and Judith Ripka. Timepieces: a lapel watch, pocket watches, wristwatches for ladies and gentlemen. Couture, fur coats, jackets, dresses, skirts, handbags, scarves and retro fashion, by Chanel, Gucci, Hermes, Givenchy, Versace, Tiffany & Co., Tod’s, Judith Leiber and Louis Vuitton.

Great Estates: Friday, April 17, 10 a.m. (lots 1001 – 1747)

Asian Decorative Arts: Tibetan ceremonial objects, Chinese glass jars and vases, Chinese and Japanese cloisonné vessels, Asian silver, a Chinese boxwood sculpture, a Mongolian silver headdress, a Ming Dynasty cloisonné box, Chinese carved jade, jadeite and coral objects, Chinese Rose Medallion porcelain, a Korean Joseon wood-carved figure, Chinese table screens, snuff bottles, rock crystal figures, a Tang Dynasty pottery jar and a pottery ewer, a Ming bronze Fang Ding censer, a Ming Dynasty wood-carved figure, Qing Dynasty silk robes, a pair of Chinese ancestor portraits. Japanese Myochin School iron articulated snake, Meiji bronze vessels and figures, incense burner, enamel inkwell, articulated enameled crayfish, and Kutani porcelain vases. Japanese woodblock prints by Kawase Hasui, Hiroshi Yoshida, Kasamatsu Shiro, Utagawa Hiroshige, and Katsushika Hokusai.  Asian furniture: a Chinese painter’s table, parlor set, and lacquered screen; two Japanese painted screens. Porcelain and china: Royal Worchester, Meissen, Wedgwood, featuring Meissen porcelain figures, a Royal Crown Derby porcelain service, a Herend porcelain tea service, and several KPM and Dresden porcelain plaques. Bronze and marble sculpture by Emilio P. Fiaschi, Alfred Boucher, Albert Ernest Carrier-Belleuse, William Rudolph O’Donovan, Vital-Gabriel Dubray, Etienne-Henri Dumaige, Antonio Amorgasti, Eugene Wagner, Professor Aristide Petrilli, Edouard Drouot, Hippolyte Francois Moreau, Egide Rombaux, Clovis Edmond Masson, Edward Fenno Hoffman III, Eugene Marioton. Kristen Kokkin and Erte. Paintings by Jules Joseph Guillaume Bourdet, Robert Fowler, Eugene Verboeckhoven, Edmond Charles Joseph Yon, Karl Girardet, Frederick Goodall, John Frederick Herring Jr., George Derville Rowlandson, Aaron Bohrod, Walt S. Louderback, Colin Campbell Cooper, Oleg Stavrowsky, Edouard Benedictus, Granville Perkins, Arthur Vidal Diehl, Leo Roth and a ten painting portfolio by Andrew Wyeth. Portraits by Bartholomeus Van Der Helst, Peter Raadsig, and Eastman Johnson. Advertising posters and works on paper by Louis Galice, Theophile Tailandier, Erte, Adriaen Van Ostade and Louis Icart. Silver: a humidor, cigar lighters, Russian enamel, trays, vases, cups, frames, candle stands, compotes, tea services, souvenir spoons and other flatware, and an important Revolutionary War silver cup. Furniture from the 18th and 19th and early 20th centuries, English Regency, George II and George III, American Chippendale, Philadelphia Federal, Victorian. Lighting: an English cut glass chandelier, a continental gilt-bronze chandelier, a Charles et Fils table lamp, a pair of gilt-bronze sconces; lamps by Handel, Slag and Bailey Banks & Biddle. Louis XVI and Federal gilt mirrors. Clocks: Louis XV style and Tiffany & Co. tortoise mantel clocks; French gilt-bronze, Empire gilt and patinated bronze, French porcelain, and Louis Philippe gilt-bronze mantel clocks; Gubelin bronze pendant clock; Sevres porcelain garniture set; Austrian guilloche annular clock; French white metal swinger clock; Louis XIV style Gribelin bracket clock; French bronze and marble figural clock; miniature French gilt-bronze carriage clock; and a Waterbury silver mounted dresser clock. Featured Grandfather clocks: George II style japanned tall case clock, Scottish tall case clock and Isaac Schoonmaker grandfather clock. Rugs: a Kerman Palace rug, a Lambo Kazak Area rug, an Art Deco Chinese rug, a William Morris runner, Oriental rugs, Kashan, Odegard, Hamadan and Bokhara. Americana: Cigar store Indian attributed to William Demuth & Company, NYC, ca. 1875-1890; a pair of Noah’s Arks with animals.  Music: Classical style harp and Swiss cylinder music box. Glass by Quezal, Durand, Tiffany, Steuben, Legras and Loetz, Lalique, Baccarat, and several lots of art glass paperweights. There are stained and leaded glass panels. Weaponry: Japanese Iron Tsubas, a Japanese Edo Tanto, a Japanese Gunto Katana, a Mughal style Khanjar dagger, Winchester items, Colt pistols (1851-1860), a Springfield M1861 Musket, an Ames Model 1861 Calvary Saber, and military ephemera. Ephemera: Autographed baseballs, first editions, and a notable lot of Women’s Suffrage Movement ephemera collected by Newark, NJ suffragist Amelia Berndt Moorfield, who served as Secretary-Treasurer of the Woman’s Political Union of New Jersey.

Lots 1232 through 1255 in the Great Estates auction are art, crafts and photography from the U.S. Japanese Internment Camps (1942-1946) collected by Allen Hendershott Eaton. In 1945, social activist Allen Hendershott Eaton began his collection of art and crafts made by persons of Japanese ancestry incarcerated in U.S. internment camps during World War II. Included in this portion of the auction are two groups of watercolors and two oil paintings by Estelle Peck Ishigo; watercolors by Nakanishi; jewelry, calligraphy and works on paper; crafts from native found materials; a camp dining chair and multiple lots of photographs.

Auction Exhibition/Preview/Bidding

• Saturday, April 11 through Tuesday, April 14, 12-5 p.m. and by appointment. Open until 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 16. Doors open on April 15, 16, and 17 at 9:00 a.m.
• Open House with guest speaker, Eric Muller, “Colors of Confinement”. Wednesday, April 15, 6 p.m. RSVP to raac@ragoarts.com or 609.397.9374 ext. 119. Rago’s will also be showing a 20 minute Academy Award winning short film on artist Estelle Ishigo, whose work we will be selling on April 17.
• Rago’s is located midway between New York City and Philadelphia. Directions online at www.ragoarts.com.
• Telephone/absentee/online bidding available at www.ragoarts.com and www.bidsquare.com for those unable to attend.

Catalogue

• View complete catalogues with color images online as of March 30 at ragoarts.com.
• Printed catalogues are available for $15 each or 2 for $25. Call 609.397.9374 or email info@ragoarts.com. 

• About Rago Arts and Auction Center: Rago is a leading U.S. auction house with $30 million in annual sales. It serves thousands of sellers and buyers yearly with a singular blend of global reach, personal service and competitive commissions for single pieces, collections and estates. Rago holds auctions of 20th/21st c. design, fine art, decorative arts, furnishings, jewelry, Asian, militaria, coins and currency, silver, historic ephemera, and ethnographic property. Rago also provides a range of appraisal services conducted by USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) compliant appraisers, performed to the highest standards set by the IRS, insurers and the Appraisers Association of America. Rago is located in New Jersey, midway between New York City and Philadelphia.
• Consignments invited for all of Rago’s Auctions. Please call 609.397.9374 or email info@ragoarts.com.

END OF PRESS RELEASE