Boston – Bonhams Skinner will finish off the year with a strong slate of sales in December ranging from rare coins to European Design. The month will begin with Rare and Collectible Coins & Currency highlighted by a rare 1852 United States Assay Office $50 octagonal gold piece. Fire Fiend, a fireback, by Arthur Osborne will then be presented in The Salon Sale: Made In New England. The Fine Wine sale will feature a rare magnum bottle of 1990 Domaine de la Romanee Conti La Tache while a 750ml bottle of 35 Years Old Karuizawa Emerald Geisha will highlight the Rare Spirits sale. European Design and Décor will close out the month's sales and will feature the collections of Jonathan Friedman and James Lee Soffer.
Rare and Collectible Coins & Currency
November 26 – December 6
From November 26 – December 6, Bonhams Skinner will present Rare Coins and Collectible Currency highlighted by a rare 1852 United States Assay Office $50 octagonal gold piece, estimated at $25,000 – 30,000. The sale will also feature a broad selection of double eagles including a S.S. Central America-recovered coin from 1875, estimated at $2,500 – 3,000, and numerous other Liberty and St. Gaudens pieces. Additionally on offer is a fine selection of eagles, half eagles, quarter eagles, and other collectible gold coins. A selection of U.S. silver includes graded draped bust coins, Morgan and Peace dollars, quarters, and dimes. Error coins are well represented by a 1955 doubled die Lincoln, estimated at $1,200 – 1,800.
The Salon Sale: Made In New England
December 2 – 12
The Salon Sale: Made In New England sale from December 2 – 12 will feature a range of works crafted in the region including paintings, documents, furniture, and ceramics. A highlight of the sale is Fire Fiend (Boston, c. 1882) by American artist Arthur Osborne (1855–1942), estimated at $3,000 – 5,000. Often misattributed to the artist Elihu Vedder, the fire back on offer is the central panel of a tripartite which would have been flanked by two smaller panels bearing designs of sunflowers wreathed in flame. The sale will additionally present five journals of Cleopatra's Barge II by Francis B. Crowninshield (1869 – 1950), estimated at $3,000 – 5,000. An international yachtsman, Crowninshield's family at one time owned a yacht called Cleopatra's Barge which was the first oceangoing yacht in America. The books on offer in this sale are 5 journals full of anecdotes, drawings, and watercolors of the voyages made by the Crowninshield's sequel to that ship, Cleopatra's Barge II.
Fine Wines
December 2 – 12
A rare magnum bottle of 1990 Domaine de la Romanee Conti La Tache is a highlight of the Fine Wine sale from December 2 – 12. Estimated at $10,000 – 15,000, well stored vintages of La Tache such as this with impeccable provenance are hard to come by and it hails from the cellar of a private collector who owned hundreds of enviable bottles. Also of note are six bottles of 1990 Domaine Dujac Clos La Roche, estimated at $28,000 – 36,000. The bottles hail from one of the leading estates in the Cote de Nuits which has a miniscule production of only around 2,000 cases per year. The sale will also feature a selection of bottles from the famed producer Henri Jayer, arguably the most influential figure in modern Burgundy for his outspoken opposition to chemical use, refusal to filter his wines, and advocacy of low yields in the vineyards. These bottles were purchased directly from retail in the late 1980s and early 1990s and stored in a custom-built wine cellar by a well-known American collector. The collection is highlighted by four bottles of H. Jayer Vosne Romanee Beaumonts from 1986, estimated at $16,000 – 20,000.
Rare Spirits
December 3 – 13
From December 3 – 13, the Rare Spirits sale will feature two bottles from the famed Karuizawa distillery, one of the smallest distilleries in Japan. While production ceased in 2000 and the distillery was officially closed in 2011, the legend of Karuizawa lives on with collectors and bottles are a rare opportunity to own a piece of whiskey history. The first bottle, the Emerald Geisha 35 Years Old, is one of the oldest expressions from Karuizawa and is one bottling of a two-bottle series with this bottle being purchased directly from a European retailer. It is estimated at $25,000 – 35,000. The second bottle, the 31 Years Old 1981 Noh, is a single cask bottling by K&L liquors and was purchased as a three-bottle case directly from the retailer, with the consignor saving the original sales receipt. It is estimated at $10,000 – 15,000.
European Design and Decor
December 9 – 19
European Design and Décor will present more than 500 lots including two important collections from December 9 – 19. The first collection is over 150 items from Jonathan Z. Friedman, a collector of fine Dutch and English seventeenth- and eighteenth-century furniture, paintings, works on paper and decorative arts for the past four decades. Highlights include a 17th century Elizabethan-style marquetry inlaid oak court cupboard, estimated at $3,000 – 5,000, and an oak and fruitwood turner armchair, estimated at $1,000 – 2,000. Within the nearly 160 lots of silver, Bonhams Skinner is pleased to offer the second half of the James Lee Soffer Collection of fine Russian silver and enamel featuring a Russian .916 silver gilt and cloisonne enamel cigarette case, estimated at $4,000 – 6,000. Additional notable pieces of silver in the sale are a six-piece Tiffany & Co. 'Chrysanthemum' sterling silver coffee and tea service with a silverplated tray (New York, 1873-1891), estimated at $20,000 – 30,000, and twelve Tiffany & Co. sterling silver dinner plates (New York, 1907-47), estimated at $10,000 – 15,000.