Rago Arts and Auction Center’s 20th /21st C. Design sale brought $6,772,500 on October 26 and 27, 2013.

“Our October sale, with just under 1400 lots offered in two days, totaled over $6.7 million dollars in sales including the buyer’s premium. It hammered right above the low estimate of $5.4 million dollars,” said David Rago. “The early 20th c. portion of the auction was buoyed by an established collector base, especially for high end ceramics and furniture.  The overall sell through rate was a bit lower than usual at 80%, but most unsold lots were of lesser value.  The second session, which brought in $800,000 of our total, included the best collection of Modern ceramics brought to auction – 175 lots in all.  We established record prices for a number of artists.  Modern glass was strong overall and particularly for work by Dan Dailey, Dale Chilhuly, and Lino Tagliapietra. The single owner collection of Modernist Jewelry that rounded out the Saturday sessions was likewise consistently strong, with the vast majority of lots finding buyers. Sunday’s Modern Design session was notable for the $300,000 sale of Isamu Noguchi’s collection of preparatory works for his sculpture “My Arizona”, a work about the WWII Japanese internment camps. Also receiving tremendous market support was work from the Studio movement, including a Harry Bertoia wall screen from a Princeton, NJ home at $159,750; a George/Mira Nakashima Minguren II coffee table at $59,375; a Wharton Esherick pedestal desk at $50,000; and several Paul Evans pieces, including a rare four-door Patchwork cabinet at $37,500 and a Custom two-door Argente cabinet at $36,250.”

Early 20th C. Design/Arts & Crafts:  Saturday, October 26, 2013

- Hammer:  $1,349,950

- Hammer + 25% buyer’s premium = $1,687,438

- Low Estimate:  $1,185,150

- High Estimate:  $1,690,350

- Percent sold:  83%

- 2% of online bidders outside the U.S. (Early 20th c. and Studio Jewelry, Glass, Ceramics): Canada, Brazil, Argentina, China, Australia, United Kingdom, Ireland, Bulgaria, Italy, France, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Hungary, Japan, Russia, Qatar, Netherlands, Switzerland, South Korea, Austria, Taiwan, Belguim, Singapore,

Highlighted Lots:

- 10  Fannie Levine / Albina Mangini / Edith Brown / Saturday Evening Girls Fireplace Surround  $219,750

- 56  Harriet C. Joor / Newcomb College Exceptional Early Tall Vase   $62,500

- 1   Adelaide Robineau Exceptional Porcelain Vase   $23,750

- 21  Arthur Baggs, Marblehead  Fine Vase With Geometric Design  $11,250

- 63  Sadie Irvine Untitled Painting with Original Frame  $10,000

- 75  Zsolnay Coupe with Dimples, $15,000

- 90  Riessner, Stellmacher & Kessel, Tall Amphora "Fates" Vase    $8,750

- 100 Eugene Grasset, Emile Muller Et Cie Ceramic Art Nouveau Plaque  $12,500

- 130 Moorcroft Massive Landscape Vase   $16,250

- 139 Archibald Knox, Liberty & Co. Fine Cymric Carriage Clock   $12,500

- 144 Eugene Viollet-le-Duc, Boch Freres, Floor Made from 193 Encaustic Tiles with Stylized Dogs  $5,625

- 145 Charles F.A. Voysey, Donegal Fine Donnemara Wool Carpet   $22,500

- 176 Gustave Baumann Color Woodblock Print, "Singing Trees,"  $20,000

- 195 Van Briggle Rare Early Vase with Bronzed Base   $27,500

- 205 Teco Rare and Tall Four-Buttressed Vase   $13,750

- 306 Robert "Mouseman" Thompson Carved Oak Stool and Tray Set   $2,375

- 336 Lalique "Grande Nue Socle Lierre" Statuette  $17,500

- 347 Muller Freres Exceptional wheel-carved and applied glass vase  $13,750

- 350 Francois-Emile Decorchemont Pate-de-Cristal Bowl with Classical Mask Medallion  $6,250

Studio Jewelry, Glass, Ceramics:  Saturday, October 26, 2013

- Hammer:  $816,000

- Hammer + 25% buyer’s premium:  $1,020,000

- Low estimate:  $768,300

- High estimate:  $1,113,200

 -Percent sold:  80% 

Highlighted Lots:

- 419  Edwin Scheier Large Figural Wood Sculpture   $11,250

- 482  Rose and Erni Cabat Large Feelie, Malachite and Lapis Glaze  $5,000

- 546  Jun Kaneko Large Glazed Ceramic Dango   $23,750

- 550  Brother Thomas Bezanson Porcelain Spherical Vase  $8,125

- 600  Lino Tagliapietra Exceptional Vessel   $ 28,750

- 616  William Morris Large Blown Glass Stone Vessel   $13,750

- 619  Dale Chihuly Venetian Vase   $ 25,000

- 623  Dan Dailey Pair of Sconces, "Birds with Diamonds"  $59,375

- 634  Harvey Littleton "Implied Movement" Sculpture   $32,500

- 658  Ercole Barovier / Barovier & Toso Oriente Vase  $20,000

- 696  Elsa Freund Fringe Necklace  $5,625

Modern Design: Sunday, October 27, 2013

- Hammer:  $3,248,250

- Hammer + 25% buyer’s premium:  $4,060,313

- Low estimate:  $3,422,600

- High estimate:  $4,876,150

- Percent sold:  78% 

- 12% of online bidders outside the U.S.: Canada, Mexico, Chile, France, Italy, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Germany, Austria, UK, Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, China, Japan, Australia.

Highlighted Lots:

- 700  Josef Hoffmann / Wiener Werkstatte Hammered Silver Candelabrum  $43,750

- 724  Paul Evans Rare Four-Door Patchwork Cabinet   $37,500

- 726  Paul Evans Custom Two-Door Argente Cabinet   $36,250

- 758  Phil Powell Exceptional and Massive Dining/Conference Table  $35,000

- 760  Harry Bertoia Sculpture, "Devon Dunes"  $159,750

- 802  Gio Ponti / Rolando Hettner Unique, tall glazed ceramic vase   $21,250

- 849  Gio Ponti / Singer & Sons Figured Walnut Four Drawer Dresser   $15,000

- 857  Osvaldo Borsani (Attr.) Coffee Table  $20,000

- 884  Line Vautrin Wall-Hanging Mirror Frame, $21,250

- 993  Isamu Noguchi Important Sculpture, "My Arizona"  $300,000

 -995  Wharton Esherick Pedestal Desk   $50,000

- 1023 George/Mira Nakashima Minguren II Coffee Table   $59,375

- 1051 Wendell Castle Exceptional Starfish Console Table, "Quest"  $35,000

- Bidders in-house: 119

- Bidders on phone:  345

- Absentee Bidders: 181

- Bidders online:  603 (Early 20th C. and Studio Jewelry, Glass, Ceramics); 574 (Modern)

- Number of lots:  1379

- Percent sold:  80%

Consignments are now being accepted for the next 20th C. Design auctions, March 1/2, 2014 and all Rago auctions: 609.397.9374 or info@ragoarts.com.  

TO THE EDITOR

High resolution images/more information available on request.

About Rago Arts and Auction Center

Rago is a leading U.S. auction house with $28 million in sales in 2012. We serve thousands of sellers and buyers internationally with a singular blend of global reach and personal service. Rago holds auctions of 20th/21st c. design, fine art, decorative arts, furnishings, jewelry, militaria, coins and currency, Asian, historic ephemera, and ethnographic property.  A world-class venue through which to buy and sell, it offers valuations for personal property (from a single piece to collections and estates), appraisals, estate services, exhibitions and lectures in house and online. Rago is based in New Jersey, midway between Philadelphia and New York City.

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