Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-07-07


said Mr. Hyam. The renowned
Rovensky collection of Eng
fish and French furniture,
paintings, porcelains, silver
and tapestries brought to the
auction rooms the most i'm
portant sale Of its kind for
more than two decades. It
fetched the highest total for
an individual sale, 81 .265, 095,
for the fine and decorative
arts (and a comparable
amount for jewelry.) Prices
for individual items confirmed
again the fact that art prop
erty of highest quality and
rarity is in ever-increasing
demand.
The Harriet p. Schermer-
horn collection of fine and
decorative arts obtained the
second highest total for an
individual sale: $346,877.
other outstanding totals were
reached by the sale Of Old
Master paintings from private
and institutional owners, in
Guiding the New York Public
Library'S offerings, which
fetched 1921, 1885.
Painting Prices
The aforementioned sale
produced the most exciting
painting event Of the auction
year. The two Turner sunset
seascapes which had hung in
the New York Public Library
for As years. were the objects
of spirited competitive Eng
lish-American bidding. and
were won by representatives
of their homeland. Turner's
Scene on the French Coast"
was purchased for $4,000,
and "Staffa. Fingal's Cave,
of West Coast of Scotland"
for $4,000, the two highest
prices paid for single paint
ings during the season.
More than 1000 paintings
offered reached a total Of
$1,123,568. After the Turner's.
the following fetched the
highest: Boucher's compan-
ion oval paintings. Jupiter
and Calisto," and "Angelique
and Medor," $69, 900; Con-
stables valley Farm. Flat
ford" $4,000; Gainsbor-
ough's Woody Landscape"
$20.500; van RuySdael's "Riv-
erside Village With a Ferry.
boat" $l8, 900; a pair of dec
orative paintings by Hubert
Robert, $4,000; and Lille
de Cythere," by Vatican,
$17.500. Portraits by Nat
tier, Lawrence. Rembrandt,
Gainsborough and Joos van
Cleve ranged from $4,000
down to $1,000.
Other Glasses
French and English 18th
century furniture and objects
Of art formed two major
categories of sales, and
fetched high prices, as has
been the case during many
seasons. Three magnificent
Beauvais tapestries. designed
by Iean-Baptiste Oudry to
illustrate the comedies Of
Moliere. brought one Of the
seasons highest prices:
$82.500.
-Four Oriental art sales
crossed a total Of $3ll,132:
the outstanding collection
was the late Allen Mercher's
well-known K'ang Hsi porce-
lain, the finest to appear at
auction in many years.
Sixteen sales of autographs,
books, manuscripts and prints
brought $430.585. One item
was the original architectural
plan drawn by George WASH
ington for his house in "the
new Federal City OF WASH
ington" which went for So
800.
Fine Arts Field
Despite the fact that the
past season reached an all
time high record. it fell be-
low some earlier seasons for
sensational interest In the
fine arts field. specifically
painting, because no major
private collections Of old
master paintings were Of
fered. A comment Of Mr..
Hyam concerning the In
creasing scarcity Of literary
material available Tor public
auction applies equally to
fine arts collections.
He said: This has been
caused by the workings Of the
Federal gift tax provision,
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