Inside Classic Week: top lots selected by our experts

From the Holy Grail of English watercolours to a once-in-a-lifetime pair of gold earrings, Christie’s specialists offer an exclusive look at the buzzworthy art and objects set to highlight New York’s Classic Week

classics week picks

A once-in-a-lifetime pair of gold earringsG. Max Bernheimer, Deputy Chairman, Ancient Art and Antiquities

‘What’s remarkable about these earrings is that there are only about three pairs of this type in existence today. They were made in Athens during the Late Geometric Period, between 750–725 BC. The quality of the granulation is what sets them apart. If you look closely, you can see intricate patterns formed by tiny balls of gold that have been soldered in place.

A pair of Attic gold earrings, Late Geometric Period, c. 750–725 B.C. Larger: 1 7⁄8 in (4.7 cm) long. Estimate: $10,000–15,000. Offered in Antiquities on 4 February at Christie’s in New York

‘We don’t see a lot of gold from this period. It’s not until Alexander the Great’s reign four centuries later when gold became more accessible to the Greek world. Even so, the jewellery technology of the period was amazing. You really need to go in with magnification to see how precise the granulation is. Each little drop was applied individually by hand. It’s incredible. And they did it all with the naked eye.

‘I had seen this exact pair in books, but I never dreamed that I would get to hold them in my hands, let alone catalogue and offer them at auction. This is why we become specialists, for these incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. Nobody’s ever going to have a pair of Greek Geometric gold earrings again. It’s just not going to happen.’

A rare painting from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Taylor Alessio, Head of Sale, Old Masters Paintings and Sculpture: Part II

‘This painting is incredibly fun, colourful — in every sense of the word — and rare. There are only about 60 known paintings that are fully attributed to Adriaen Brouwer, and even works attributed to his studio, like this one, are rare. To have a work that’s so closely connected to him is really a “wow” factor.

Studio of Adriaen Brouwer (1605/06–1638), Peasants carousing in a tavern. Oil on panel. 13 x 19½ in (33 x 49.5 cm). Estimate: $20,000–30,000. Offered in Old Master Paintings and Sculpture: Part II on 5 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘Brouwer was an iconic Flemish artist who painted the everyday life of the people. We have great insight into that here. It’s a view into a world that was completely different than the one Brouwer’s collectors would have occupied, showing people partaking in activities that many still love today — drinking, smoking, singing.

‘This painting, which will kick off Old Master Paintings and Sculpture: Part II, was acquired by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 1956 and is part of a grouping of 17 works coming directly from the museum that will be offered over the course of our Classic Week sales. In terms of Northern pictures, the MFA Boston grouping is very broad in scope. This picture is the party picture — it’s a fun moment to start the sale.’

The Holy Grail of English watercoloursRosie Jarvie, Specialist, British Drawings and Watercolours

‘Discovering a late watercolour by J.M.W. Turner is like the Holy Grail in our field. This piece came through Christie’s Estimate Request System with an attribution to John Ruskin, but when I saw the image online, I was very hopeful that it was by Turner. When the work arrived at Christie’s, we could see the artist’s characteristic handling of the watercolour more clearly. It could only be by Turner.

Joseph Mallord William Turner, R.A. (1775–1851), The approach to Venice or Venice from the lagoon, c. 1840. Watercolour, pen and red and brown ink. 8 11/16 x 12½ in (22.1 x 31.8 cm). Estimate: $300,000–500,000. Offered in Old Master Drawings on 4 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘Beyond the excitement of identifying a work that hadn’t been known for 100 years, the watercolour is a very beautiful late painting from Turner’s time in Venice. You can grasp the movement of water, the beautiful recession out into the lagoon and the feeling of the waves. His watercolours have great impressionistic freedom — they’re incredibly atmospheric. While it’s probably an apocryphal story, Turner famously strapped himself to the mast of a ship so he could experience the effects of a snowstorm — actually feel it. I think you get that experience here.

‘There are only a handful of these late Venetian watercolours in private hands. It’s a rare opportunity to purchase one of these timeless pieces. I’ve been in this field for 28 years, and to get something like this is just utterly wonderful — it really is a once-in-a-career discovery.’

A marble sculpture from the world’s first superstarCasey Rogers, International Specialist Head of 19th Century Sculpture & Works of Art

‘Sarah Bernhardt is celebrated as an absolute powerhouse of the stage. She was a diva — in the very best sense of the word and of which she was more than deserving. But what many don’t know is that she was more than a “triple threat”, if we think of her in same way we would a modern starlet. She was also a sculptor, painter, poet and essayist. She even designed furniture, her own costumes and was patron to a host of contemporary artists. In 2023 an exhibition the Petit Palais in Paris marked the 100th anniversary since her death. She continues to be part of our collective psyche — in a word, she was iconic. 

Sarah Bernhardt (1844–1923), Le Chant (Allegory of Song). Marble. 22¾ in (57.8 cm) high. Estimate: $80,000–120,000. Offered in Important Classic & Decorative Art on 7 February at Christie’s in New York

‘What attracted me immediately to this work was its authorship by a female artist — which was not without challenges and backlash at the time. She had very high-profile critics, including Auguste Rodin, but the great architect of the Paris Opera House, Charles Garnier, recognised that artistic force was not determined by gender.  Sarah was tapped — alongside her lover and teacher, Gustave Doré — to design a group for the Monte Carlo Opera. This wonderful marble study was almost certainly a preparatory maquette for the commission and one that’s been out of the spotlight since about 1950.

‘I’m struck by beauty and softness of this sculpture, which feels incongruous to how Bernhardt herself was perceived in her time. Known as the ‘Sacred Monster’, her most famous sculptural works often followed the ‘macabre’, such as her bat-winged self-portrait. I love how this moniker rubs up against and contradicts such a classical subject. She was a tour de force and put her mark on just about every art form, but Le Chant is still angelic and tender.’

A strikingly modern Old MasterJoshua Glazer, Specialist, Head of Private Sales Old Master Paintings

‘Cranach’s Hercules and Omphale is provocative and complex, with rich literary and political origins. In this topsy-turvy scenario, a powerful man is undone by his unbridled lust. Hercules, the legendary hero from antiquity, is shown not as the invincible champion performing unbelievable feats but rather as someone who has had the tables turned on him. Cranach’s main audience included some of Europe’s most wealthy and educated individuals, and this painting had a clear message for them: don’t allow yourself to get distracted.

Lucas Cranach I (1472–1553), Hercules and Omphale, 1532. Oil on panel, transferred to canvas. 32¾ x 48¼ in (83.3 x 122.3 cm). Estimate: $2,000,000–3,000,000. Offered in Old Masters on 5 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘At the time this painting was created, there was intense debate about the Power of Women and whether they were naturally inclined to deceive men. It’s a theme that runs through much of Cranach’s work. In addition to representations of Hercules and Omphale, he frequently depicted Samson and Delilah, Judith with the head of Holofernes and Salome with the head of John the Baptist — all images of powerful women triumphing over men. This was cause for great unease in the 16th century.

‘There’s so much to sink your teeth into with this painting. It deals with important issues pertaining to gender roles and relations, raising questions that remain significant today. Beyond that, it’s extraordinarily beautiful and strikes me as very modern.’

A rediscovered Spanish drawingGiada Damen, Specialist, Old Master Drawings

‘There aren’t many drawings on the market by Spanish artists, and it’s particularly rare to have one by Murillo, a major figure in Spanish Baroque Art. This drawing was long known through black-and-white photographs that date back to 1913, but no one knew where it was located. It’s exciting that it has finally reappeared.

Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682), Travelers on donkeys approaching a ruined city. Pen and brown ink, brown wash. 8⅜ x 5¼ in (21.4 x 13.5 cm). Estimate: $70,000–100,000. Offered in Old Master Drawings on 4 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘What’s also particularly special about this drawing is the signature at the bottom. Usually, drawings are not signed because they were used as preparatory studies. However, this line appears in different drawings by Murillo. Previously, scholars thought they were inscriptions made by later collectors. More recently, the scholarship has recognised them as the artist’s own hand.’

A kylix from the Rembrandt of ancient GreeceMaxwell Murphy, Associate Specialist, Ancient Art and Antiquities

‘This Attic red-figured kylix, or wine cup, is attributed to the Brygos Painter, one of the foremost vase painters of his generation. For antiquities specialists, this is like a Rembrandt. When you look at the details, you can really see how great he was as an artist, especially through his use of diluted glazes for the muscle lines and hare on the exterior. This was someone who was extremely detail-oriented, not only in the anatomical details but also in his ability to bring these scenes to life in a way that’s still relevant to the modern spectator.

An Attic red-figured kylix attributed to the Brygos Painter, c. 490–480 B.C. 11 3⁄8 in. (28.8 cm.) diameter, excluding handles. Estimate: $700,000–900,000. Offered in Antiquities on 4 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘The cup encapsulates so much about elite male society in Classical Athens. Around the exterior of the bowl, you have scenes from the palestra. On one side you have two pankratists, who were like mixed martial arts wrestlers, and then on the other side there is a courtship scene. What I especially love is the cup’s self-referential nature. It was a vessel used to drink wine, but in the tondo there’s somebody who has drunk too much.

‘We don’t know much about the Brygos Painter. We don’t know when he was born, when he died, or what his actual name was, but his artistic personality shines through his entire corpus, and this work is a key example of that. It’s one of the best pieces of pottery that we’ve offered in over three decades.’

A freeze frame of Italian BaroqueJennifer Wright, Head of Department, Old Master Paintings

‘Preti’s The Liberation of Saint Peter embodies the best of what Italian Baroque has to offer. It’s incredibly dramatic but also earthy. I love the bearded figure of Saint Peter in the foreground, with his wrinkly forehead and craggy beard. There’s this dynamic sense of movement from him and the angel behind him. The way Preti chose to capture this moment is completely cinematic, a freeze frame of these two figures in motion.

Mattia Preti (1613–1699), The Liberation of Saint Peter. Oil on canvas, 57⅛ x 77½ in (180 x 232½ x 9½ cm). Estimate: $1,500,000–2,000,000. Offered in Old Masters on 5 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York

‘The Baroque era is characterised by heightened theatricality and realism that was inspired by artists like Caravaggio. Preti was a great proponent of that with his combination of movement, grittiness and dramatic lighting. Even though it was painted in the 1640s, for me, this painting is incredibly modern. It has incredible visual storytelling. I think it’s going to stop people in their tracks.’

A Fabergé flower from the Russian imperial familyMargo Oganesian, Head of Fabergé and Russian Works of Art

‘Most people know Fabergé’s magnificent Easter eggs, but the house also produced a wide variety of decorative and practical objects: photograph frames, clocks, cigarette cases and more. Fabergé flower studies are some of the firm’s most intricate and interesting creations. The level of craftsmanship and detail is astonishing. 

‘This is the only Fabergé bearberry study known to exist. While it appears extremely fragile, it’s crafted from quite sturdy hardstone. The techniques Fabergé used to create these objets d'art are fascinating. Each element was made by a different craftsman, from the finely carved nephrite leaves and gold stem to the enamelled flowers set with sparkling rose-cut diamonds. The rock-crystal vase was also expertly carved in a trompe l’oeil technique, creating the illusion that it’s filled with water. Imagine a table adorned with 20 of these floral studies — it would be spectacular.

‘There aren’t many flowers left with imperial provenance, but we can trace the inventory number of this bearberry study to Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna through the imperial ledger books. Maria was the daughter of Emperor Alexander II and was married to the second son of Queen Victoria, the Duke of Edinburgh. While Maria didn’t live in Russia, we know through the ledgers that she purchased this study in 1913 during a trip to St. Petersburg.’

The pinnacle of Italianate Dutch paintingOliver Rordorf, Specialist, Old Master Paintings

‘Jan Both was one of the greatest Dutch Italianate landscape painters of the 17th century, a genre that blended the romanticized beauty of the Italian countryside with the meticulous realism characteristic of Dutch painting, creating idyllic scenes suffused with golden light and atmospheric depth. The present work represents the pinnacle of the genre.

Jan Both (c. 1618–1652), An Italianate landscape with bandits leading prisoners. Oil on canvas. 65 x 85¾ in (165 x 217.8 cm). Estimate: $1,000,000-1,500,000. Offered in Old Masters on 5 February 2025 at Christie’s in New York. Property from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

This painting comes from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and belongs to a group of eight unusually large-scale pictures painted in the final years of his life — six of which are in museum collections. The magic of Italianate landscapes often lies in the glazes used to create the luminous sky tones, thick dynamic clouds, and rich textures. While they are often lost over time, this painting has been impeccably well preserved. It’s as good as it gets.

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