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Sale 1455, Lot 238 An Egyptian bronze cat Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, 664-630 B.C. 14 3/4in. high Estimate: $25,000-35,000
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Sale 1455, Lot 938 A pair of gilt repoussé deer Tibet or Mongolia, 19th century Estimate: $25,000-35,000
Sale 1455, Lot 442 Supplied to the 4th Duke of Beaufort for the Chinese Bedroom at Badminton House, Gloucestershire William and John LinnellA George II giltwood overmantel mirror, c. 1752-1753 Estimate: $250,000-400,000
Sale 1455, Lot 609 Mark of Simon Pantin, London A Queen Anne silver cup and cover, 1713 Estimate: $20,000-30,000
Sale 1455, Lots 491 & 492 A pair of cut-glass decanters and stoppers, c. 1800 & a cut-glass centerpiece bowl, c. 1820 Estimates: $1,500-2,500 & $800-1,200
Sale 1455, Lot 457 A large pair of Chinese export famille rose porcelain fishbowls, Qianlong period (1736-1795) Estimate: $30,000-50,000
Sale 1455, Lot 828 Blue crossed swords mark at the back of one Modeled by Johann Joachin Kändler Two Meissen porcelain models of Indian parakeets, c. 1741 Estimate: $20,000-30,000
Sale 1455, Lot 1211 Venetian School, first half of the 18th century Venice, the Piazza San Marco, at Carnival timeOil on canvas Estimate: $10,000-15,000
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One of the most glamorous figures of the 20th century, Doris Duke was also one of the most private. Her many homes—which she refined and enhanced throughout her life with objects and collections of discerning and often exquisite taste—provided a refuge from the relentless publicity that followed her.
However, it was always Doris Duke's intention to share with the public the most significant of the unique properties and collections that she spent a lifetime cultivating.
In 1964, she opened her greenhouse display gardens at Duke Farms for public tours. After her death—and in accordance with her will the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation opened her houses in Hawaii and Newport for public tours and educational purposes, and more recently opened the 700-acre park at the heart of Duke Farms for guided tours.
And now, for the first and only time, the decorative arts she collected and lived with at Duke Farms, Falcon Lair in Los Angeles, and her New York penthouse will be seen publicly as part of this spectacular sale, which will benefit the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
The interiors of Duke Farms—with their aged oak paneling, leaded windows, massive carved staircase and the seemingly endless enfilade of rooms—evoke the great rooms of an English country house, and in much the same fashion became a depository of furniture and decorations collected by one family over nearly a century.
The items from Duke Farms to be auctioned by Christie's have, until now, been left largely undisturbed. Also included in the sale are pieces that Doris Duke moved to Duke Farms from 'Rough Point', her family's dramatic cliff-top mansion in Newport, Rhode Island, and from the Duke house on the corner of East 78th Street and 5th Avenue, one of the most elegant private mansions ever built in New York, which Doris Duke and her mother donated to New York University's Institute of Fine Arts in 1958.
'Thus it is happened …we must all seek the barbarous gaudy goût of the Chinese; and fat headed Pagods and shaking Mandarins bear the prize from the greatest works of antiquity; and Apollo and Venus must give way to the fat idol with a sconce on his head.'
So wrote Mrs. Montagu in 1749, describing the rage for chinoiserie decoration in England—of which the Badminton overmantel mirror from the residence at Duke Farms is one of the most spectacular examples. Commissioned by Charles, 4th Duke of Beaufort (d.1756), for the Chinese Bedroom at Badminton House, Gloucestershire, it was supplied by John and William Linnell in 1753-55.
Originally comprising at least sixteen pieces, the suite was sold by Christie's in 1921, and Doris Duke purchased the mirror from Mallett's in 1965. The remaining pieces are on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and other public and private collections.
An entirely fantastic and European rococo interpretation of 'Chinese' design and motifs, it perfectly encapsulates the 18th-century European fascination with the Far East. It is also a dazzling and virtuosic display of craftsmanship and design by several of the most talented and original artisans working in 18th-century England.
Doris Duke's extensive travels throughout Europe and Asia made a lasting imprint on her taste—and the exciting and eclectic collections of decorative arts at Duke Farms reflect her fascination with this interplay between East and West.
Another exceptional group of chinoiserie objects is the set of five Continental silk and wool-embroidered pelmets, circa 1730, which are probably either German or Dutch. They show that the chinoiserie-mania spread from the courts of France and England to the minor principalities of the German states and even beyond to the courts of St. Petersburg and Scandinavia.
These almost certainly formed part of an elaborate hanging for an important—or even ceremonial—bed. With glittering metallic thread, they contain cartouches depicting different scenes of 'Chinamen' hunting, fishing, playing games and other intimate and imagined scenes of daily life.
While it is this sophisticated mix of European and Asian decorative arts at Duke Farms that illustrate Doris Duke's exceptional eye—there are more traditional objects in the sale as well. The Queen Anne (wyvern) giltwood and gilt-metal chandelier is one of the most celebrated of these objects.
Circa 1710, it is based on the well-known designs of Daniel Marot, which were published in the Hague in 1703 and 1713. Marot, a Huguenot who left France for Holland after the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, eventually settled in England and was employed by King William III, his work greatly influencing English Baroque design.
It is not clear whether the wyvern—a fantastical dragon-like beast surmounting the chandelier—refers to the coat of arms of the commissioning family, or is simply a whimsical decorative element.
Among the most sophisticated of the 19th-century pieces in the sale is the pair of gilt-mounted rosewood side cabinets, which were supplied to Windsor Castle by Morel and Seddon on 2 July 1828.
Nicholas Morel had been appointed to furnish King George IV's apartments at Windsor in 1826—and he was joined in this enormous and lavish project by his new partner George Seddon III a year later in 1827.
With their fine materials and craftsmanship, these cabinets are perfect examples of the King's well-known and voracious appetite for luxury. Besides the objects mentioned above, Duke Farms is filled with dozens of additional 17th-, 18th-and 19th-century English and Continental pieces, with furniture by Saunier, Jacob Frères and Gillow among others.
While most of Duke Farms evokes an earlier atmosphere, it also has its share of 20th-century sophistication. In particular, the 'Hollywood Wing' contains some of the more astonishing architectural and decorative surprises at Duke Farms.
Added in the 1930s, it includes a Style Moderne movie theater, shooting gallery, tennis court (which now houses Doris Duke's partially constructed Thai village) and swimming pool. More than seventy objects from this wing of the house will be included in the sale.
Her homes in Los Angeles and New York reflect her life as an international celebrity for much of the 20th century. Perched high above Beverly Hills, Falcon Lair, which formerly belonged to Rudolf Valentino, was the center of Doris Duke's West Coast social life.
At Falcon Lair, she entertained and was entertained by studio moguls and movie stars. Both Falcon Lair and the New York Apartment were filled with painted Italian Baroque and Neoclassical furniture, scagliola table tops, mother-of-pearl covered pieces, collections of shells and minerals and other colorful and often delightfully fanciful decorative objects—all of which provided a more lighthearted atmosphere than at Duke Farms.
Doris Duke's friend, the Los Angeles artist, decorator and impresario Tony Duquette, not only supplied decorating advice but also a great many whimsical additions such as lamps, pieces of sculpture, and architectural elements—some of which are also included in the sale.
As with the Badminton mirror and Windsor cabinets, provenance plays an important part in the appreciation of these objects, as pieces from Doris Duke's houses come from such celebrated and varied 20th-century collections as those of Lord Acton, William Randolph Hearst, Eva Stotesbury and Imelda Marcos.
Also included in the decorative arts sections of the sale are Chinese, Japanese and Southeast Asian porcelain, lacquer, bronzes and furniture, Antiquities, carpets, European and Chinese export porcelain, English and Irish glass, the contents of the silver vaults (primarily English and American silver), books from the Library, Old Master paintings and British sporting pictures.
William Russell, Christie's European Furniture & Sculpture Department, New York
Also read:
Doris Duke: An American Original >
Western treasures, Eastern inspiration >
The Extraordinary Private Cellar of Doris Duke >
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