European Sculpture & Works of Art

This December Christie’s King Street presents the first of the newly re-instituted European Sculpture and Works of Art sales to be held in London.  It covers a wide historical range from the Middle Ages – represented here by a rare dragon aquamanile of the 12th century – to the age of Neo-Classicism, including a spectacular ormolu-mounted lapis lazuli tazza which once formed part of the collection of the Dukes of Hamilton. In between there are Renaissance bronzes, Limoges enamels, terracottas and marbles including two busts from a famous Roman palazzo. Ivory features prominently with a number of turned ivories of the 17th century, as well as ivory corpus figures and colonial examples as well. The works of art section includes mother-of-pearl objects created in Gujurat, an elaborate wax double portrait of King Philip V of Spain and his queen, Maria Luisa, and a polychrome wood model for the high altar of St Peter’s Abbey church in Salzburg.