Hermitage Fine Art’s auctions
on 25-26 February 2021

Hermitage Fine Art is pleased to present the first auction of 2021. The next sales will take place in two weeks and will be featuring Russian Art & History (February 25th) and Fine Art, Design Objects, Jewellery and Manuscripts (February 26th). The participants can place their bids on the telephone or using one of the six online platforms we partner with.
The Decorative Objects section will feature some European silver collections, as well as vases, lamps and Lalique crystal pieces, a signed Cartier clock, a unique bespoke music snow globe by Tiffany & Co (lot 622). and much more.
The extensive Fine Jewellery section will star a pair of diamond and Burmese sapphire earrings with Gübelin certificates (lot 665), thai Ruby and diamond rings with the Swiss certificates SSEF, diamond and gold earrings signed Van Cleef and Arpels (lot 669), high jewellery diamond, emerald and gold leopard brooch signed Fred (lot 658), female Bvlgari and Piaget watches, and a Hermes silk scarf, and other ruby, emerald, and sapphire magnificent pieces from some Monegasque collections. The gentlemen will appreciate a selection of diamond and platinum 6-piece cufflinks and studs set, gold and lapis lazuli cufflinks by Cartier, as well as one exotic “snaky” creation with white and black diamonds (lot 659), white gold and palladium by Jack du Rose.
Manuscripts collectors will find a remarkable choice of lots signed by illustrious political and historical figures, famous composers, writers and acclaimed actors. Some names are Franz Krüger, Richard Wagner, Mohammed Ali, Albrecht von Wallenstein, Gioacchino Rossini, Jean Jacques Russeau, Jean Cocteau, Marquis de Sade, Max Born, Carl Gustav Jung, Winston Churchill, Charles Darwin. Peculiar enough, the section will also feature a couple of iconic two-dollar bills signed by Andy Warhol (1928-1987).
Two 2-meter-long paintings of the Imperial Russian Navy - the Polar Star and a battleship from the collection of the legendary French pilot Roland de la Poype, hero of the Soviet Union (lots 19-20), represent the great maritime power of the Russian Empire at the turn or the 19th and 20th centuries.
The Russian Paintings’ section comprises further artworks from the XIX-XX century, Soviet art, Russian modern art – such as drawings by Vadim Sidur (lots 88-89), abstract paintings by Juri Gobanov, a member of non-conformist exhibitions in 1970s (91), lubok, wit and Russian heritage in paintings by Tatyana Nazarenko (92, 93, 94), and Vladimir Lyubarov (95, 96, 97).
The Russian Collection will also include a monumental early XX century mahogany and bronze souvenir table decorated with medallions after V.V. Vereshchagin (1842-1904) and Peter Heinrich Von Hess (1792-1871), featuring scenes of the Napoleonic campaign of 1812. This table has likely been made in the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Patriotic War 1812 (lot 14); an outstanding empire style bronze and malachite mantel clock from the Imperial Lapidary factory of Peterhof, early XIX century (lot 159); a collection of Russian icons from XVIII and XIX centuries; a silver gilt Imperial presentation kovsh from 1744; a collection of Russian silver from early XVIII to XX century including signed pieces by Fabergé, one of which, according to the present owner, was owned by Afred Nobel.
The book collection of the Russian sale is notable for its variety of subjects and periods covered, including a large section of publications devoted to the history of Russia, books on the history of the Romanov dynasty, books on art, science and much more.
Collections of works by the classics of Russian literature are represented by the names of F.M. Dostoevsky, M. Lermontov, M.Y. Saltykov-Shchedrin, while an important first edition of “Brain Reflexes" by I.M. Sechenov (1866) is considered one of the most important works on psychology, physiology and medicine. Moreover, the auction will present the unique museum-level item - lot 258 - a notebook of K.D. Balmont's handwritten poems. A fine full leather binding contains over 50 pages, written in the poet's neat handwriting. The collection dates from 1930-1931 and comes from the famous Sergei Lifar collection.
In the age of the internet and digital technology, it is easy to quickly find information on any branch of knowledge - all one has to do is to type into a search engine. But when there is no rush, it is nice to pick up a weighty volume of pre-revolutionary encyclopedia with beautiful pictures and appreciate the colossal work of figures of science of the past. Lot 208: The Big Encyclopedia: A dictionary of general information on all fields of knowledge; edited by S.N. Yuzhakov in 22 volumes.
Also in line with tradition, the auction's collection includes a selection of photographs from different eras: from family photographs of Emperor Alexander II (lot 200), rare photos of Taganrog (lot 275), to avant-garde works by Rodchenko and Klutsis (lots 269-271); along with postcards by Solomko (lot 230), chromolithographed series "Russian Types" (lot 230) and much more.