Dream On

Since landing my dream career in January, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind. My first rotation with the Furniture department is coming to an end and I have to admit I’ve been feeling somewhat sentimental! It’s been a huge learning curve culminating in the amazing Exceptional Sale we curated last Thursday 7th July. My next stop is learning about Russian art, again, learning something entirely new and I hope I enjoy it just as much as Furniture. Looking at walnut and mahogany will never be the same again …

filed under: art, career, furniture, Christie's,

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July 7th is coming! ⇒

A glimpse of our upcoming sale on July 7th and what has been the love of my life for the past few months.

filed under: Christie's, auction, art, furniture, decorative arts, exceptional sale,

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18TH CENTURY MAHOGANY BUREAU TABLE ACHIEVES A STUNNING $5.7 MILLION AT CHRISTIE’S NEW YORK MASTERFULLY CARVED TABLE BY NEWPORT’S MOST CELEBRATED CABINETMAKER SETS A NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE FORM New York – An 18th century mahogany bureau table carved by Newport’s most celebrated cabinetmaker sold for a stunning $5.7 million at Christie’s New York on Friday, January 21, placing it among the highest auction prices ever realized for an item of American furniture. Offered at $700,000-900,000, the table was pursued by multiple bidders, who rapidly drove the price to the $3 million dollar threshold. From there on two dedicated bidders in the saleroom battled back and forth for the handsomely carved table before a hushed audience of clients and onlookers, until auctioneer John Hays dropped the gavel at $5 million. With premium, the final price realized was $5,682,500. The table, known as the Catherine Goddard Chippendale Block-and-Shell Carved and Figured Mahogany Bureau Table, is attributed to the Newport, Rhode Island cabinetmaker John Goddard (1724-1785). Masterfully designed and crafted, the table is an outstanding example of the celebrated Newport style of block-and-shell carving. Goddard was widely recognized as one of early America’s most talented cabinet-makers and his creations were sought-after by the port city’s most well-to-do merchants. A handwritten label in the top drawer of the table indicates that Goddard made the knee-hole bureau circa 1765 expressly for his daughter, Catherine Goddard, and may have given it to her as a wedding present. The table remained within his daughter’s family through several generations of descendants until it was sold by the cabinetmaker’s great-great granddaughter Mary Briggs (Weaver) Case in the early 1900s. The table last sold at auction in January 2005 for $940,000. “This desk bears all the unique characteristics and quality of construction that make Newport furniture of this era so highly prized among collectors. The quality of the mahogany in particular is stunning in this piece and shows that Goddard had his pick of the wood coming into the port during that era,” said Hays, deputy chairman of Christie’s Americas and lead specialist in American Furniture. “We are honored to have established such a strong price today for this table, which represents a new world auction record for the knee-hole desk form.”

18TH CENTURY MAHOGANY BUREAU TABLE ACHIEVES A STUNNING $5.7 MILLION AT CHRISTIE’S NEW YORK

MASTERFULLY CARVED TABLE BY NEWPORT’S MOST CELEBRATED CABINETMAKER SETS A NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE FORM

New York – An 18th century mahogany bureau table carved by Newport’s most celebrated cabinetmaker sold for a stunning $5.7 million at Christie’s New York on Friday, January 21, placing it among the highest auction prices ever realized for an item of American furniture. Offered at $700,000-900,000, the table was pursued by multiple bidders, who rapidly drove the price to the $3 million dollar threshold. From there on two dedicated bidders in the saleroom battled back and forth for the handsomely carved table before a hushed audience of clients and onlookers, until auctioneer John Hays dropped the gavel at $5 million. With premium, the final price realized was $5,682,500.

The table, known as the Catherine Goddard Chippendale Block-and-Shell Carved and Figured Mahogany Bureau Table, is attributed to the Newport, Rhode Island cabinetmaker John Goddard (1724-1785). Masterfully designed and crafted, the table is an outstanding example of the celebrated Newport style of block-and-shell carving. Goddard was widely recognized as one of early America’s most talented cabinet-makers and his creations were sought-after by the port city’s most well-to-do merchants.

A handwritten label in the top drawer of the table indicates that Goddard made the knee-hole bureau circa 1765 expressly for his daughter, Catherine Goddard, and may have given it to her as a wedding present. The table remained within his daughter’s family through several generations of descendants until it was sold by the cabinetmaker’s great-great granddaughter Mary Briggs (Weaver) Case in the early 1900s. The table last sold at auction in January 2005 for $940,000.

“This desk bears all the unique characteristics and quality of construction that make Newport furniture of this era so highly prized among collectors. The quality of the mahogany in particular is stunning in this piece and shows that Goddard had his pick of the wood coming into the port during that era,” said Hays, deputy chairman of Christie’s Americas and lead specialist in American Furniture. “We are honored to have established such a strong price today for this table, which represents a new world auction record for the knee-hole desk form.”

filed under: Christie's, furniture, bureau, mahogany, source: christies.com

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