ICONIC STATUE SELLS FOR £120,500 IN SECOND SALE AT SUMMERS PLACE AUCTIONS
A lifesize figure of a girl in a hammock intricately produced from a single piece of marble and discovered in a garden in South Wales, where it had been for the past fifty years sold for £120,500 in the second sale of Garden Statuary, Architectural Items and Decorative Fossils at Summers Place Auctions (In association with Sotheby’s), at Billingshurst, West Sussex on Tuesday, October 21, 2008.The stunningly iconic sculpture by Antonio Frilli, dated from the late 19th century and sold on the telephone to a private collector from the USA. It was estimated at £50,000-80,000.
The second highest price in the sale was paid for a life-size carved stone figure of Hercules, dating from the late 17th century and originating from the Low Countries that sold for £42,500 against an estimate of £40,000-60,000. A collector in the UK bought this.
Two pieces by John Cheere, considered as the leading producer of lead statuary in the mid 18th century sold well. A lead shepherd boy fetched £28,100; while an extremely rare lead figure of Punch sold for £24,500. Both pieces were estimated at £20,000-30,000.
The Ironwork section of the sale was another area that attracted significant interest and saw some strong bidding, both in the room and on the telephone. An extremely rare Coalbrookdale cast iron bridge, circa 1870 sold for £24,500, against an estimate of £10,000-15,000, to a UK collector, while a rare wrought iron bridge dating from 1840 realised £21,500 (estimate: £8,000-12,000).
James Rylands, Auctioneer of the sale, said: “Our core business of traditional antique Garden Statuary performed strongly and there was certainly an element of buyers wanting to invest in solid assets in the face of the current economic uncertainty, with very active buyers from the UK; Europe and the USA, reflecting the international nature of our business.”
The sale ran in tandem with a sealed bid auction, which fetched £250,875. A giant stainless steel infinity curve by Chen Wenqin (b. 1979) sold for £12,250 against an estimate of £6,000-8,000 and was purchased by a German Collector [Lot 577].
The next sale will be held on May 19, 2009.
For further information on the auctions
Please visit www.summersplaceauctions.com or Call 01403 331331.