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Click here to subscribeWilliam Heinemann, London 1922. First Edition ' Poems ,' by Isaac Rosenberg - selected and edited by Gordon Bottomley with an introductory memoir by Laurence Binyon. 186pp. With original dustjacket. Handwritten dedication to frontis 'with all good wishes, Annie Wyzniak (?) 'Poet's Sister.' Rosenberg was born in Bristol in 1890. Killed in action during the First World War in April 1918.
A yellow metal turquoise and seed pearl belcher chain bracelet having a heart lock clasp and safety chain along with another belcher link chain bracelet with heart lock clasp and safety chain. The safety chains test as 18ct gold on the first chain and 9ct gold on the second. Individual weights 18.8 grams and 24.9 grams. Both chains measure 7 inches.
* JOHN DANIEL REVEL ROI RP (SCOTTISH 1884 - 1967), PORTRAIT OF A CHILD oil on canvas, signed 51cm x 42cm Framed Note: John D Revel was born in Dundee in 1884. He studied at Dundee School of Art, becoming an Art Pupil Teacher. After qualifying as a teacher he taught for two years in Shipley, Yorkshire before becoming the Principal Teacher of architecture in Preston, Lancashire. In 1906 he gained an open Scholarship to the RCA and in 1911 left the College with a degree in architecture, a degree in painting and the award of a Travelling Scholarship for painting. After a year abroad he was offered and took up the post of Headmaster at Chelsea School of Art. He also saw service in the First World War in Mesopotamia and India, becoming an official artist to the Expeditionary Force (water-colour paintings survive from this time). He specialised in portraiture and landscape. Revel was elected a member of the International Society of Painters, the Royal Portrait Society and the Royal Institute of Oil Painters. In 1925 he took up the post of Director at Glasgow School of Art. Under his directorship the Extension Building (now the Assembly Hall) was built and the School saw an upsurge in student and social events, notably the development of the Student Representative Council, the growth of the Glasgow School of Art Dramatic Club and the birth of the Kinecraft Society. Revel kept up the tradition of teacher/headmaster/director by occasionally taking the architect's drawing class. The degree course in Architecture produced its first graduates during his time as director, quite a few of whom were women. The artist has works in the collections of Glasgow and Dundee museums. Only three of Revel's paintings are recorded in UK auction records (Artnet) with the most recent being ''New Orleans Boy'', a 50 x 40cm oil on canvas, which was sold by McTear's for £1800 (hammer) as lot 1486 29th November 2012.
* WILLIAM SCOTT (SCOTTISH/IRISH 1912 - 1989), ODEON SUITE IV lithograph in colours on watermarked BFK Rives wove paper,. Signed W. Scott in pencil, dated 1966 and numbered 12 from the limited edition of 75. Image size approx 50.2cm x 63.8cm Mounted, framed and under glass. Label verso: Taylor Galleries, Six Dawson Street, Dublin. Note: Printed by Mathieu, Zurich and published by Editions Alecto, London. Referenced in Brian Balfour-Oatts, William Scott: A Survey of his Original Prints, Archeus Fine Art, London, 2005, no 22. William Scott produced The Odeon Suite, a series of six lithographs, in 1966. The series was named after the Odeon Café in Zurich, the artist travelling back and forth from London to Zurich while proofing the prints. Born in Greenock, Scotland, William Scott went to Belfast College of Art in 1928 and won a scholarship to the Royal Academy Schools in London in 1931. His first one-man show at the Hanover Gallery in London opened in June 1953 and included a number of, loosely, abstract paintings. That same year, an extended visit to North America resulted in friendships with New York based artists including Rothko and de Kooning. He was one of the first British artists to be aware of Abstract Expressionism. Throughout his prints the themes of still-life, landscape and the female nude recur, often exploring the space between abstraction and figuration.
Egypt, Early Dynastic Period, ca. 3100 to 2686 BCE. The Archaic or Early Dynastic Period of Egypt immediately follows the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt c. 3100 BC. It is generally taken to include the First and Second Dynasties, lasting from the Naqada III archaeological period until about 2686 BC, or the beginning of the Old Kingdom. Gorgeous large banded alabaster cylindircal jar with flat bottom and carved rope motif as a decorative band under the rim. Size: 5.75" W x 9.75" H (14.6 cm x 24.8 cm) Provenance: Ex-Private New York Collection, ex. John N. Winnie, Jr. collection, Georgia, 1980s-90s Condition: A large original piece has been reattached in one side with restoration over the breakline and a 3” area of restoration in the rim, with scattered areas of root marks and surface deposit, especially on the interior. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #117215
Russia, ca. 19th century CE. Beautifully painted in egg tempera and gold leaf, this wood Russian icon presents the Virgin Hodegetria ("She who shows the way"), the composition depicting the Mother of God holding the Christ child in one arm, as he makes a blessing gesture. On her shoulders and head, Mary wears a triple, star-shaped cross, which is an ancient Syrian symbol of her virginity - before, during, and following the birth. Size: 14.75" W x 18.75" H (37.5 cm x 47.6 cm)Since the artist only depicted her head and shoulders, the viewer is invited to gaze upon Christ with the subtle inclination of her visage, particularly given those expressive eyes. The Christ Child is characteristically depicted in a rigid, vertical pose - wearing regal vestments. Adoring diminutive angels peak at the pair from behind the Virgin's halo. The pair is 'framed' by a decorative border with scrolled and floral motifs. Gold leaf highlights accentuate various areas of the composition. This use of golden hues, the serene and regal countenance of Mary's face, as well as the pantomime-like gestures reference classic Byzantine splendor. According to the text accompanying this icon in the brochure for "Windows into Heaven" exhibition, "The example on the left, with its flattened features and stylized drapery, shows adherence to Byzantine painting norms." (p. 16)The pamphlet also discusses this icon as a fine example of the Mother of God of Kazan version of the Russian Theotokos. "Per tradition, the prototype of this icon came to Russia from Constantinople in the 1200s. It disappeared after the Tatars besieged the city of Kazan in 1438, and then was dug up in Kazan in 1579 by a girl named Matrona and her mother after the Virgin appeared repeatedly in the girl's dreams, telling her of the buried icon. The Kazan Mothr of God later became Russia's symbol of national unity. The icon accompanied soldiers freeing Moscow from the Poles in 1612, and traveled with the troops fighting Napoleon in 1812." (p. 15)Icons were some of the first religious artworks brought to Russia from Byzantium. These sacred pictures of the Greek Orthodox church reached a high point in the Byzantine era, however, the Russians brought their own style to the art of the icon. Icons were initially created for use in churches and processions. In time they became smaller and were used increasingly within households. To this day they remain an important form of visual culture in Russia's orthodox religious community.The existence of back slats demonstrate that this icon predates 1880/1890. A lovely example inspired by the icon of the Hodegetria that arrived in Constantinople from Jerusalem, where it was found in the 5th century by the sister-in-law of Emperor Theodosius II. According to Alfredo Tradigo's "Icons and Saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church" (2004), "Hidden from the Iconoclasts in a wall at the Hodegon Monastery, it was later carried to the city walls when Constantinople lay under siege and became, under the Palaiologan dynasty (1261-1453), a major palladium protecting the capital. Copies made their way to Rome, the Near East, the Balkans, and Russia." (Tradigo, p. 169)Exhibited in "Windows Into Heaven: Russian Icons from the Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art" at the Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina (December 20, 2003 through February 22, 2004) which presented highlights of one of the world's great artistic traditions through an extraordinary group of sixty-five 18th and 19th century Russian icons on loan from the private collection of Lilly and Francis Robicsek. Also featured in an exhibition of the same name at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, North Carolina October 4, 2013 through March 5, 2014. Published in the catalogue accompanying the North Carolina Museum of History written and compiled by curator Jeanne Marie Warzeski.Icons (icon means "image" in Greek) are sacred objects within the Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition. Found in homes as well as churches, these painted images depict holy persons and saints as well as illustrate scenes from the Scriptures. Some icons are encased in precious metal covers (oklads) adorned with pearls and semi-precious stones or glass-fronted wooden cases (kiots). Icons are not worshiped, but are instead venerated for their ability to focus the power of an individual's prayer to God. As such they are truly "windows into heaven."The “Windows Into Heaven” exhibition profiled a magnificent chapter of Russian artistry, the embrace of the Russian Orthodox faith of religious icons during the Romanov centuries. The Russian religious faith was an offshoot of Byzantine Christianity, which in 1054 parted ways from Roman Catholicism. Icons were and continue to be religious images created for veneration. As a focus for prayers and meditation for believers, icons serve as “windows into heaven.” Provenance: Ex-Lilly and Francis Robicsek Collection of Religious Art, Charlotte, NC; exhibited at Mint Museum of Art "Windows Into Heaven", Charlotte, North Carolina (December 20, 2003 through February 22, 2004) and North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, North Carolina October 4, 2013 through March 5, 2014 Condition: Nice age to surface with craquelure, age cracks, and losses as shown. Back slats are intact. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #119594
Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, ca. 712 to 343 BCE. A wonderful cast bronze representation of a cat, sprawled on one side, one of her front paws crossed over the other in a pose recognizable to any cat fancier, gazing forward; at her side are her three nursing kittens. Comes with custom stand. Size: 2.2" L x 1.7" W x 1.3" H (5.6 cm x 4.3 cm x 3.3 cm); height on stand: 2.8" (7.1 cm)The felines are all realistically modeled and light incised details give the mother cat a beautiful, wavy coat. They are posed on a slightly curved bronze platform with raised edges. The piece was perhaps a cuff or applique. The ancient Egyptians, rather uniquely among the world's civilizations, had an obsession with cats, both tame and fierce, large and small. Cats were domesticated to help protect crops from pests in Cyprus or possibly Mesopotamia (it is difficult to interpret the archaeological record on this matter for a variety of reasons), but the Egyptian love of cats seems to have gone above and beyond that of their contemporaries. The cemetery at Hierakonpolis includes a cat skeleton in a pre-Dynastic tomb (ca. 3700 BCE) that had a broken left humerus and right femur that seem to have been set by a human and allowed to heal before that cat's ultimate death. The first illustration of a cat with a collar comes from a 5th Dynasty (ca. 2500 to 2350 BCE) Egyptian tomb at Saqqara. Cats were the most frequently mummified animal in Egypt and there were multiple feline goddesses, including the domesticated cat-form Bastet. Bronze statues like this one may have been direct offerings or appeals to Bastet; they appeal to the cat's fertility and tender motherly care, while her pose with ears up emphasizes her alertness and ability to protect her young.For a similar example see no. 93 in Mottahedeh, ed., "Out of Noah's Ark, Animals in Ancient Art from the Leo Mildenberg Collection"; see also "Divine Felines: Cats of Ancient Egypt", organized by Yekaterina Barbash, Associate Curator of Egyptian Art, Brooklyn Museum. Provenance: Ex- Private New York collection Condition: Piece is a fragment, as shown, but cat and kittens are all intact, with excellent remaining details and a smooth, dark patina over the surface. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120673
Egypt, Third Intermediate Period, Dynasties 21 through 25, ca. 1070 to 664 B.C. Egyptian blue-green faience amulet of the goddess Bastet, protector deity represented as a cat-headed goddess, holding a sistrum (a musical instrument like a rattle) and seated on a throne that is decorated with the depictions of a snake god (called Nehebkau). Open work between the legs and the throne, between arms and body, between head and sistrum and in the sistrum. Size: 2.125" H (5.4 cm)In ancient Egypt, the cat was associated with the Egyptian goddess Bastet, whose cult was centered on Bubastis on the Nile River Delta. Bastet gained recognition and importance when its rulers rose to power and formed the 22nd dynasty, a period also known as the Libyan Dynasty. Worshippers paid tribute to Bastet with ex-voto figures such as this example.Bastet was initially a lioness goddess associated with the solar god and channeled its destructive power. However, by the early first millennium BCE, she assumed a more domestic feline form and became understood as a goddess of fertility and a guardian of the home. Ever since, statuettes comprised of various materials have characterized her as a doting mother cat. Her cult expanded decisively when her town in Bubastis (derived from per Bastet or "house of Bastet"), became the royal residence of the kings of the 22nd Dynasty, during the 10th century BCE. The city hosted an annual festival honoring Bastet in celebration of the Nile flood waters, and she was honored throughout Egypt through the first millennium BCE. Provenance: Ex-private North Carolina estate. Condition: Suspension loop on reverse professionally and invisibly restored, else quite excellent. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120887
Rome, Imperial Period, ca. 2nd century CE. A superb bronze chariot fitting finely cast via the lost wax process, depicting Minerva (the Roman version of Athena), the goddess of wisdom, medicine, art, commerce, and military victory, here depicted in her warrior guise, donning a crested helmet and battle dress with a finely detailed aegis of Medusa, a goatskin shield with a fringe of snakes in relief. According to Greek mythology, when Perseus killed the gorgon Medusa, whose face turned men to stone, he gave Medusa's head to Athena who placed it on her aegis. Size: 3.875" W x 8.375" H (9.8 cm x 21.3 cm)Roman chariots were not used for warfare, but instead in special events like triumphal processions. As a result, elaborate finials like this became de rigueur, lending a unique look to each chariot, where they were mounted on posts above each wheel. Furthermore, featuring Minerva on one's chariot would have added immense symbolism associated with military victory. Regarded as the daughter of Jupiter, from whose head she purportedly was born, Minerva was initially worshipped in Rome as one of the Capitoline Triad along with Jupiter and Juno. At first she was revered as the goddess of handicrafts, poetry, and the arts in general. Over time, Minerva's stature grew within the Roman pantheon and she became the most important focus of the Quinquatrus festival, which previously had been the domain of Mars, whose amorous affections she famously refused. The five-day festival began on March 19th marking the beginning of the Roman army's campaign season. Minerva also became associated with the concept of victory, as illustrated by Pompey's dedication of a temple to her following his successful campaigns in the east. Similarly, Emperor Domitian claimed the goddess as his protectress and in the second half of the 1st century CE commissioned a temple to her in the Nerva Forum in Rome. Provenance: Ex-private Pasadena, CA collection, Ex- Los Angeles County collection acquired before 1990 Condition: Losses to one side of bust, peripheries of helmet, and helmet feathers. Abraded surface to one side of helmet. Gorgeous green and russet patina. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120990
Roman, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE, possibly earlier. A lovely strand of seventy one translucent glass beads, each with multiple Evil Eyes, the vast majority of a rounded form, but two cylindrical beads as well, the ensemble boasting beautiful blue and green hues with white Evil Eyes. Size: necklace measures 29" L (73.7 cm); most round beads measure ~ .5" in diameter (1.3 cm) and the cylindrical measure .5" L (1.3 cm)Imagery of the Evil Eye was first recorded by the Mesopotamian approximately 5,000 years ago in cuneiform on clay tablets. Some scholars believe that it may actually have originated as early as the Upper Paleolithic Age. Evil Eye iconography has been found in Jewish, Christian and Muslim cultures as well as Buddhist and Hindu societies; however, each culture ascribes a similar meaning to it. The evil eye is believed to be a curse cast by a malevolent glare that is typically directed at a person who is unsuspecting and unaware. Many cultures believe that the evil eye can bring about misfortune, injury, or bad luck. For this reason, talismans and beads like these traditionally have been created to protect the wearer against the evil eye given their powerful apotropaic properties against the evil eye. Provenance: Ex-Private Georgia Collection Condition: Most beads in excellent condition. A few with stable fissures. A few missing white eye details. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #119687
Egypt, Late Third Intermediate period, 25th Dynasty, ca. 646 to 525 BCE. A bronze cast figure of the feline goddess Bastet laying on a four post dais; each post of which was cast as a silhouette of the dwarf god Bes. An intriguing example, replete with layers of symbolic meaning as delineated below. Mounted on a wood pedestal. Size: 1.875" W x 2.25" H (4.8 cm x 5.7 cm); 4" H (10.2 cm) on standIn ancient Egypt, the cat was associated with the Egyptian goddess Bastet, whose cult was centered on Bubastis on the Nile River Delta. Bastet gained recognition and importance when its rulers rose to power and formed the 22nd dynasty, a period also known as the Libyan Dynasty. Worshippers paid tribute to Bastet with ex-voto figures such as this example.Bastet was initially a lioness goddess associated with the solar god and channeled its destructive power. However, by the early first millennium BCE, she assumed a more domestic feline form and became understood as a goddess of fertility and a guardian of the home. Ever since, statuettes comprised of various materials have characterized her as a doting mother cat. Her cult expanded decisively when her town in Bubastis (derived from per Bastet or "house of Bastet"), became the royal residence of the kings of the 22nd Dynasty, during the 10th century BCE. The city hosted an annual festival honoring Bastet in celebration of the Nile flood waters, and she was honored throughout Egypt through the first millennium BCE.The dwarf god Bes was understood as a protector of households, mothers, children, and childbirth. The repetition of his image would have been thought to give the piece more power than just a single image.br> Provenance: Ex-Private New York Collection; Ex-Long Island New York Collection. Condition: Heavily oxidized patina. Repairs and losses as shown. Feet of dais sit on stand, not attached. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120918
Egypt, Late Dynastic period, ca. 712 to 332 BCE. A pair of brightly painted cartonnages - plastered layers formed into panels to line the inside of a sarcophagus or used as mummy decoration. These particular examples are all from one coffin, and are clearly from a coffin that was for someone in the middle class. Custom mounted and framed. Size of chest piece: 6.7" W x 12" H (17 cm x 30.5 cm); height together: 22.75" (57.8 cm); size in frame: 14.5" W x 32" H (36.8 cm x 81.3 cm)These painted strips are made of gesso (a mixture of chalk, pigment, and gypsum) over wide linen strips. Using a plastered surface like this formed a more stable surface for painting. The paintings are brightly done, with traditional Egyptian funerary symbols, and contain no hieroglyphs. The wider of the two panels was probably laid over the chest area, symbolically forming necklaces with a twin serpent design. The other panel has profile sketches of four gods, including Horus, Anubis, and Sobek, with Sobek wearing the sun disk that signifies connection to Ra and pharaonic power. By the time of the Late Dynastic period, the elaborate funerary rituals and furniture of the Egyptian grave had become an industry, mass produced, and given to, for the first time, the non-elite. While on the one hand, this signaled a decline in these religious practices and a simplification of motifs and artwork, it also represented a democratization of death, opening up access to privileged religious and afterlife-ensuring rituals to many more members of the society. Provenance: Ex-Private European collection acquired before 1975 Condition: Both have been cut away from the sarcophagus, and have some rough edges; the smaller of the two has some losses to paint along the lower right border. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #118504
Ancient Near East, Ur III, ca. 2112 to 2004 BCE. A clay "biscuit" with cuneiform writing. Cuneiform script is one of the oldest known writing systems in the world, made using a reed as a stylus and scratching wedge-shaped marks onto clay tablets. Early cuneiform was pictographic, but in the 3rd millennium BCE it shifted to the more abstract form you see here. It is carved with clear text that records an administrative record of animals delivered from the city of Puzrish-Dagan (modern site of Drehem). Size: 1.15" W x 1.1" H (2.9 cm x 2.8 cm)Puzrish-Dagan was a cattleyard that provided animal offerings to temples throughout Sumer. Although it might be more romantic to imagine that these tablets discussed the doings of kings and gods, from a historical standpoint, it is much more interesting to learn about the daily transactions of humanity's first great urban center.Translation provided by consignor. Provenance: Ex-private New York collection; acquired at Estates Unlimited Auction, Cranston, RI June 6, 2008 Condition: Repaired from three pieces, readable, with deposits on one side. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120922
Ancient Near East, the Levant, Canaan, Middle Bronze Age, ca. 1200 BCE. A pear-shaped bronze palette of a hammered ovoid body with a thick, tubular handle that flares ever so slightly to a flattened terminus. Custom, museum-quality stand. Size: 6.875" L x 2.125" W (17.5 cm x 5.4 cm); 2.875" H (7.3 cm) on stand.This piece was collected by the California Museum of Ancient Art, founded in 1983 in Southern California to create the first museum collection focusing exclusively on the Ancient Near East. Representing the geographic regions of Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Levant from approximately 3500 BCE to 500 CE, the museum's mission is to share the stories of the peoples of the Ancient Near East and catalyze a better appreciation for the roots of Western Civilization. The goal is to bring these ancient peoples - from Sumer, Elam, Babylon, Assyria, Hittite Anatolia, Canaan, Philistia, Israel, Judah, and Egypt of the Pharaohs to the beginnings of Rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity - to life. Provenance: Ex- California Museum of Ancient Art, Ex Liebert collection Condition: Surface wear and losses to peripheries commensurate with age. Nice green and russet patina. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120955
Near East, the Levant, Philistine, ca. 1200 to 1000 BCE. A ceramic frontally facing head of a lioness, nicely modeled and detailed, its visage presenting large eyes comprised of incised concentric circles, flared nostrils, an open mouth with protruding tongue, and pointed ears, emerging from the circular protome, with perforations on the upper end for attachment or suspension. Custom stand. Size: 4.375" W x 5.125" H (11.1 cm x 13 cm); 6.625" H (16.8 cm) on standThis piece was collected by the California Museum of Ancient Art which was founded in 1983 in Southern California to create the first museum collection focusing exclusively on the Ancient Near East. Representing the geographic regions of Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Levant from approximately 3500 BCE to 500 CE, the museum's mission is to share the stories of the peoples of the Ancient Near East and catalyze a better appreciation for the roots of Western Civilization. The goal is to bring these ancient peoples - from Sumer, Elam, Babylon, Assyria, Hittite Anatolia, Canaan, Philistia, Israel, Judah, and Egypt of the Pharaohs to the beginnings of Rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity - to life. Provenance: Ex-California Museum of Ancient Art, ex-David Liebert collection Condition: Expected surface wear with abraded areas and small losses as shown. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120953
Sumer, modern-day Iraq, ca. 4th to 3rd millennium BCE. An egg-shaped grey terracotta envelope, hollow on the interior, and stamped all over its surface with oval seals, some of which are still clear and have avian designs. Size: 1.45" W x 2" H (3.7 cm x 5.1 cm)As Sumerian agriculture grew, farmers and traders realized they needed a recording system to track the movement of animals and goods. This led to the development of the first known writing system, cuneiform. The writing style - at first pictographic but later more abstract - was used on square clay tablets mainly to record agricultural transactions. Small tokens were also used to represent units of goods. Hollow clay balls or ovoids like this one, called bulla (pl. bullae), were used as envelopes for holding tablets or tokens. They were sealed with geometric impressions that would need to be broken in order to access the contents within. Some were made with the same number of impressions as the records within, so that the seal would not need to be broken to count the records. Provenance: Ex-Private East Coast, USA Collection Condition: Repaired from around four large pieces, with a loss to the top of one side as shown. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #121014
Ancient Near East, Luristan or other part of northern Iran, ca. 10th to 9th century BCE. A magnificent and enormous bronze sword of the "double ear" pommel style, made by highly trained urban artisans, using the lost wax casting technique, for an elite member of a nomadic horse-riding clan. The blade was cast first, and then the handle was cast onto it - scans of similar swords have revealed tangs inside the handles. Comes with custom stand. Size: 2.2" W x 25.75" H (5.6 cm x 65.4 cm); height on stand: 26.8" (68.1 cm).This well-balanced weapon has a slender, square hilt, with raised decorative elements on each of the four sides joining to a pommel that divides into two finely decorated semi-circular "ears" at right angles to the blade. A rectangular guard carefully designed with crescent-shaped horns extends down to firmly grip the upper end of the prominent midrib that tapers regularly with almost straight cutting edges to a point. The "double ear" style of sword - with both bronze and iron blades - has been excavated from graves in southern Azerbaijan, the Talish and Dailaman regions of northwest Iran, and the urban sites of Geoy Tepe and Hasanlu, also in northwestern Iran. Another, with both bronze pommel and blade, was pulled from the Caspian Sea, where it may have been thrown as an offering. It seems that swords like this were not just made to be used in battle, but instead to show status or as votive weapons. There is a strong tradition in the ancient Near East of swords and other weapons being associated with the gods. For example, a rock carving dating to ca. 1300 BCE from this region shows a scene of the gods of the Underworld, including one who is holding a sword similar to this one. Similarly, a golden bowl excavated at Hasanlu (northwestern Iran) shows three swords of similar form to this one that are associated with three deities from the Hittite pantheon. Whatever its original function, this would have been a spectacular weapon to behold, with a deep, shining surface when polished. Whoever commissioned this sword must have been a high status individual, perhaps seeking to honor their gods by handling such a weapon. The British Museum holds an example of the "double ear" style that is similarly in size to this one (ME 124630). Provenance: Ex-Kavet Collection, Massachusetts, acquired 1979 at Harmer Rooke Gallery, NYC Condition: Small areas of loss and bending to edges of blade, especially on one side; dark patina over entire piece. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120292
Ancient Near East, Luristan or other part of northern Iran, ca. 10th to 9th century BCE. A magnificent, enormous bronze sword of the "double ear" pommel style, made using the lost wax casting technique by highly trained urban artisans for an elite member of a nomadic horse-riding clan. The blade was cast first, and then the handle was cast onto it - scans of similar swords have revealed tangs inside the handles. Comes with custom stand. Size: 4.75" W x 35.25" H (12.1 cm x 89.5 cm); height on stand: 36.75" (93.3 cm).This well-balanced weapon has a slender, square hilt, with raised decorative elements on each of the four sides joining to a pommel that divides into two finely decorated semi-circular "ears" at right angles to the blade. A rectangular guard carefully designed with crescent-shaped horns extends down to firmly grip the upper end of the prominent midrib that tapers regularly with almost straight cutting edges to a point. The "double ear" style of sword - with both bronze and iron blades - has been excavated from graves in southern Azerbaijan, the Talish and Dailaman regions of northwest Iran, and the urban sites of Geoy Tepe and Hasanlu, also in northwestern Iran. Another, with both bronze pommel and blade, was pulled from the Caspian Sea, where it may have been thrown as an offering. It seems that swords like this example were not just made to be used in battle, but instead to show status or as votive weapons. There is a strong tradition in the ancient Near East of swords and other weapons being associated with the gods. For example, there is a rock carving dating to ca. 1300 BCE from this region that shows a scene of the gods of the Underworld, including one who is holding a sword similar to this one. Similarly, a golden bowl excavated at Hasanlu (northwestern Iran) shows three swords of similar form to this one that are associated with three deities from the Hittite pantheon. Whatever its original function, this would have been a spectacular weapon to behold, with a deep, shining surface when polished. Whoever commissioned this sword must have been an elite individual of high status, perhaps seeking to honor the gods by handling such a weapon. The British Museum holds an example of the "double ear" style that is slightly smaller than this one (ME 124630). Provenance: Ex-Kavet Collection, Massachusets Condition: Light green patina and small areas of encrustation over surface. Shape is excellent with no losses. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120358
Pre-Columbian, Ecuador, Chorrera, ca. 1000 to 500 BCE. An impressive redware whistling stirrup vessel depicting a coatimundi, nicely delineated with round eyes, a pointy snout, small cup-shaped ears, limbs, and curvy tail, perched atop the shoulders of a rounded body. The Chorrera culture is known for its ceramic traditions, particularly animal and plant effigy forms, such as this coatimundi.The raccoon-like coatimundi (or coati) was easily tamed and its funny antics made it a great pet among the ancients of the Americas. Size: 7.75" in diameter x 8.5" H (19.7 cm x 21.6 cm)Pre-Columbian whistles and whistling vessels were first created in ancient Ecuador and spread to Peru, their northern neighbor, were they were created as early as 1000 BCE and continued to be created throughout history. A finely handbuilt and burnished redware sculptural work from this early Ecuadoran culture, impressive for both its function and form as well as its whistling mechanism! Provenance: Ex-John Smith Collection, Roswell, GA Condition: Stable crack runs from right foot to base. Near invisible nick to rim. Normal surface wear. Pierced hole above head presumably for even flow of liquid and whistling. Possible repaired probe hole on side of vessel body. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #119680
Magna Graecia, South Italy, Tarantum, ca. 5th c. BCE. A mold-made ornamental element for the roof of a temple presenting a relief of a female face with almond-shaped eyes beneath arched brows, a prominent nose, and heart-shaped lips, this striking visage magically emerging from an acanthus leaf. Her flowing tresses suggest that this figure may represent a Maenad (Bacchante) - literally the "raving ones", these purportedly wild women accompanied Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry. Custom stand. Size: 6.5" W x 9.25" H (16.5 cm x 23.5 cm); 11.5" H (29.2 cm) on standRoof tiles that ran along the eaves of ancient Greek and Etruscan buildings often ended in upright, painted, mold-made terracotta members called antefixes which usually took the form of either human or mythological heads. These antefixes had three functions. First, they concealed the termini of convex tiles and thus protected them from bad weather. In addition, they were part of the architectural decoration. Finally, these visages were believed to possess an apotropaic role, fending off evil and bad luck from temples.Note: a Roman terracotta antefix that depicts an acanthus leaf only (no human or mythological face) sold for $4,000 at Christie's New York (4 June 2015, Sale 3748, lot 82). Keep in mind that our example was created in the Greek colony of Tarentum several centuries earlier and features an attractive female visage as well as an acanthus leaf. Provenance: Ex-private New York collection, ex-private Connecticut collection Condition: Ample white pigment remains and earth deposits on the surface. Expected wear commensurate with age. Repaired from 3 to 5 pieces. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120907
Pre-Columbian, Colombia, between Magdalena & Cesar, Chimila, ca. 1000 to 1500 CE. A hand-built terracotta burial urn with an egg-shaped body characteristic of the Chimila style. The lid/head presents an abstract visage with slit eyes and mouth, applied ears and nose, and pierced marks arranged in linear patterns perhaps representing tattoos. Arms fashioned from long fillets of clay detailed with knobby elbows and five-fingered hands, as well as a five-stranded necklace of long, incised coils, adorn the body. Size: 10.5" W x 15.75"H (26.7 cm x 40 cm)In the valley of the River Magdalena, ancient rituals related to the preparation of the body of the deceased for its journey to the afterlife involved the practice of secondary burials in urns like this example. According to the curatorial department of the Museo del Oro Banco de la Republica, "There are two different stages in the secondary burial funerary custom: first of all a primary burial takes place, where the corpse is buried for a certain period of time established in the ritual, and then after this, it is exhumed for burial once more in an urn, possibly amidst a great collective ceremony. Urns have been found in well tombs with side chamber, with certain local and regional variations. The chambers contain between three and seventy urns, each holding charred bone remains, large fractured bones, and fragments of skull. Each is accompanied by pots, bowls and goblets, most of which were made exclusively for the dead person, for they show no signs of having been used. Spindle whorls, rollers and axes have also been found." Scholars argue that the custom of creating burial urns is related to the association of bones with the afterlife. According to Armand Labbe's "Colombia Before Columbus," "There is a widespread belief among many Indians of both Middle and South America that bones are a form of seed, from which new life will spring. Recall the Mexican allegory of the personification of the dual lifeforce, Quetzalcoatl, descending to the underworld to retrieve the bones of mankind to resurrect them to a new life." Labbe continues, "Within the Colombian context, the act of placing bones in cylindrical, phalliform urns, and placing these in the womb-like shaft-and-chamber tomb within the Earth Mother, seems to be an enactment of such beliefs." (Labbe, "Colombia Before Columbus: The People, Culture, and Ceramic Art of Prehispanic Colombia." (1986) Provenance: Ex-private Smith collection, Atlanta, GA Condition: Base repaired from multiple pieces. Lid intact. Expected surface wear commensurate with age. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120766
Back at auction due to non-paying bidderAfrica, Nigeria, Edo, Court of Benin, ca. mid 19th to early 20th century CE. An impressive bronze cast "choker" head depicting an Oba (king of Benin) wearing a netlike coral cap with aliform flaps and a high coral beaded choker. The elaborate coral choker and aliform coral headdress are significant royal court attributes that identify this as the head of an Oba. Size: 7" in diameter x 13.75" H (17.8 cm x 34.9 cm)The opening at the top of the head was created for elephant teeth or a sculpted elephant tusk carved to depict the many accomplishments of the king. The visage is nicely rendered with thick-lidded open eyes, six decorative scars above them, a straight nose, slightly parted lips, and a row of circular motifs across the cheeks. A piece like this would have been commissioned by a newly enthroned oba to stand on an altar and commemorate a previous oba, most likely his father. The oba of Benin rules via divine right and serves as the being through which his deified royal ancestors protect and invigorate the kingdom. In Benin, the head is a prominent symbol representing an individual's ability to progress successfully through life and develop himself so that he may one day be a revered and helpful ancestor. The sculptural representation of of Benin rulers with aliform head ornamentation like we see in this example was first introduced by Oba Osemwede (1816-46).Similar examples may be found in the British Museum, published in Leon Underwood's "Bronzes of West Africa" - figure 31 - (London, 1949) and William B. FAGG: Bildwerke aus Nigeria, München 1963, S. 45; the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Ethnologisches Museum published in Felix von LUSCHAN: Die Altertümer von Benin, Band 1-3, Berlin 1919, Tafel 59; The Perls Collection in The Metropolitain Museum of Art, New York published in Kate EZRA: Royal Art of Benin. The Perls Collection in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 1992, S. 36; and several other museum collections. Provenance: Ex-Sarkisian collection, Denver, CO acquired before 1960 Condition: Minor losses to ring surrounding top central opening and several casting flaws to netted cap. One small abraded area to lower plaited rim. Expected surface wear with areas of white wax remains from cire perdue (lost wax) casting process. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #117704
Europe, United Kingdom, 1767 CE (7th year of the reign of George III). A land indenture, written in an ornate hand on vellum, describing the sale of land in the County of York (Yorkshire) between two master mariners: Abel Chapman and John Wilkinson. Chapman paid eighty-seven pounds to Wilkinson, quite a sum in those days. The land was near Appleton (Appleton-le-Moors), in the parish of Whitby. The indenture was signed and sealed in red wax by both; on the back, records of it having been received and registered have been written by others. Size: 24.6" W x 18.25" H (62.5 cm x 46.4 cm)On the back is a stamp of King George III from the Stamp Act of 1765, indicating that the duty had been paid on the transaction. The Arago project at the Smithsonian describes this stamp: "The embossed revenue stamp could be impressed upon ordinary paper; however, it was not possible to impress the stamp on vellum. Instead, for documents prepared on vellum, the revenue stamp was impressed upon either beige or dark blue paper, which had been glued and stapled to the vellum. The back of the staple was covered with a cypher bearing the Coat of Arms of George III, probably to prevent reuse of the embossed stamp. These cyphers are thought to be the inspiration for the first adhesive postage stamps." Provenance: Ex-Hagar Collection Condition: Ink is slightly faded but entirely legible; fold marks and slight wear to edges of paper. Seals and revenue stamp are in nice condition. All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back. A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids. We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience. #120759
A to Z collection of 'foreign' countries in 30 volumes, many countries represented, sometimes from first issues but strength in Western Europe from late 1960s to early 1990s with good mint run-throughs of France, West Germany , Italy and Spain, other useful areas incl Portugal and Turkey, earlier issues generally used, condition mixed but later issues fine and usually u/m (Thousands)
A to Z collection in 17 volumes from QV to 1970s with a few colonies present to late 1990s, earlier issues generally used but good selection of mint (hinged) sets from early QEII ( a few KGVI) issues from early 1970s usually u/m, better items incl Niger Coast 1892 to 1s, Northern Rhodesia 1963 to 20s, Nyasaland 1951 postage dues, Palestine 1927-45 90m used, Qatar 1957-60 type II surchs and 1961 to 10r, Rhodesia & Nyasaland 1959-62 to £1, NZ 1960 to £1, Seychelles 1954 to 10r, St Helena 1922-37 3d with 'torn flag', Sarawak 1955-57 to $5, Sierra Leone 1956 to £1, Tristan da Cunha 1960 and 1961 Marine Life sets, Malta 1938-44 5s with semaphore flaw (used), 1956-58 to £1, Ascension 1935 Jubilee used, Ascension 1956 to 10s, BAT 1969 £1 HMS Endurance (a few missing perfs),1971 to 50p on 10s, 1994 Ships to £5, Br Guiana 1954-63 to $5, BVI 1956 to $4.80, Australia 1963-65 Navigators to £1, HK 1904-07 MCA $2 used, 1963-72 $10 and $20 u/m, India 1854 ½a and 1a, Fiji 1954-56 to £1, Cyprus 1881 crown CC 2pi blue unused without gum, 1886 ½ on ½pi, crown CA , both 6mm and 8mm spacings, part o.g., 1955-60 to £1, 1960-62 Republic opt to £1, Falkland Is 1960-66 Birds to £1, 1968 Plants to £1, 1972 to 25p, 1989 Ships to £5, cond mixed in places and most first QEII sets mounted with hinges that may have cause slight grease marks (Few Thousands)
1870 October 1 pre-printed "British Asylum for Deaf & Dumb females" circular, franked with 1870 ½d rose-red plate 1 (lettered NT) neatly tied by two London cds's for the first day of issue (OC.1.1870), addressed locally within London with a third cds on reverse for the same day, partly torn away at lower right, but a scarce item
Collection in one album, KGVI used incl 1948 RSW £1 blue in lower left corner marginal block of four, 1939-48 set with every issue in blocks from four to eighteen (some with listed minor varieties), also some interesting fdc`s , Air mail and Ship covers, Postal Stationary incl 1946 June 11 Peace set in a commercial fdc, 1948 April 26 first day cover franked with Royal Silver Wedding set, Registered label at bottom, 1948 July 29 first day cover franked with Olympic Games set, Registered label at top left, 1951 May 3 'Festival' (set of six to £1 brown) first day cover on 6½d registered envelope, generally good condition
Small group of covers from different territories incl Air Mail, one Zeppelin, First Flight, GB 'Registered', Transpacific and Transatlantic, also a photo of 'Amy Mollison' with a signature on piece apparently genuine and the 'Bridging The Atlantic', 'The Aero Field' Handbook No.7., mixed condition (Scores)
British Asia: Useful unused/used ex-dealer's stock on cards incl Ceylon 1857 imperf 1s 9d green, unused, Malaya Straits 1898 $5 overprinted 'SPECIMEN' (2), 1902 $5 overprinted 'SPECIMEN', 1922 MBE $1 script used, Malaya Jap Occ, Trengganu 1938 $5 green and red/yellow unused, Johore 1904 $100 green and red fiscally used, HK KGVI odds to $10, 1891 Jubilee 2c used with first day cds and Brunei 1922 MBE to $1 used (cancels not guaranteed), cond mixed in places (Few Scores)
General all world accumulation in envelopes and stock books (3) mostly lower vale material noted but incl France Air stamps unused, Spain early thirties complete sets unused, Hungary 1951 'First Hungarian Postage Stamp miniature sheets set of three unused, Newfoundland 1933 Air set unused, cond varies (Thousands)
Follower of Rosalba Carriera A young woman winding thread Inscribed on a label verso Ancestor of Pat Hutton (née Nadin) first wife of Guy Edward Scrase-Dickins, Father of Jane Lemon 63 x 52.5cm; 25 x 20½in General condition report Some surface dust and dirt, a few areas of light bloom, would be enhanced by a light clean
John Corbet Anderson (1827-1907) Edgar Willsher Lithograph published by F. Lillywhite & Wisden, London, 1857, unframed 41.5 x 29.5cm; 16¼ x 11½in (sheet size) Edgar ~Ned~ Willsher was an English cricketer who is credited with changing the style of British bowling from roundarm to overarm. Willsher played cricket for Kent between 1850 and 1875 and took over 1300 first-class wickets, despite only having one lung. General condition report A little foxing in sky and upper margin a few scuffs, a little grubby in margins
λ George Chinnery (1774-1852) Portrait miniature of Maria Graham, half length, wearing a green jacket Oval, in a gold frame 86 x 68mm Painted c.1795 This portrait of Maria Graham would have been painted by George Chinnery in Bombay. She married her first husband, Captain Robert Graham, RN in Bombay and travelled with him to Chile in 1821. However he died of fever en route and shunning the British community Graham lived among the Chilean people. She published her ~Journal of a residence in Chile~ in 1822 and other books about her stay earning the gratitude of Chileans for her invaluable social document. Her second husband was the painter Augustus Wall Calcott (1779-1844) whom she married in 1827. With her literary background and his wide circle of artistic connections they became a key part of the cultural scene in London. General condition report Good condition
Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf Wedding Edition, being the type given when a member of the armed forces got married, blue leather bound spine with gilt tooled details. Dedication page has the original owners names erased but signature of the Der Oberburgermeister Dr Wilhelm Brindlinger? Remains. Accompanied by an interesting copy of Mein Kampf published by the NSDAP in English with ink stampings for Stalag XVIII A. Decorated red leatherette front and back covers with My Struggle Adolf Hitler. (2 items) Stalag XVIII-A was a German Prisoner of War camp located south of the town of Wolfsberg in the Southern Austrian state of Carinthia. The camp first held prisoners from the invasion of Poland and the French campaign of 1940. The first British prisoners to arrive were in 1941, these were men captured in Greece and Crete. It is possible that the book was given to British POW’s to make them find favour with the Third Reich and possibly join the British Free-Korps, as this unit was made up of former British POW’s.
Signed Letter by Field Marshall Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount (1833-1913), the letter is complete with the original addressed envelope. Letter is on War Office headed paper and is as follows, “Sir, I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter on the 21st. Inst. and to request that you will express to the council of the National Physical Recreation Society my very great regret that the pressure of my official duties prevents me from accepting the honour of their invitation to preside on the occasion of their Fete on the 15 April. Yours faithfully Wolsey”. Accompanied by Signed Letter by General Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough (1870-1963), the hand written letter dated 1945, “My dear Prime Warden, Thank you very much for your letter. I have no wish to go any further in the matter, and I sure your summing up of the question is the correct answer. Yrs Sincerely Hubert Gough”. Letter remains in good condition. Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough was a veteran officer, who served in the Tirah Expedition 1897, Boer War and the First World War. He was the commanding officer of the British 5th Army 1916-1918. (2 items)
Archive of Documents and Personal Correspondence of Major John A F Ennals Intelligence Corps, 1st Secretary General of the World Federation of United Nations Associations, the archive includes a number of letters written to him and by him in both an official and personal capacity. The documents relate to pre war activity detailing the troubles in the Baltic states and a typed account written by Ennals on the Russian Occupation of Bessarabia and the treatment of the Jewish people by the Soviets. Other documents include a typed letter from the Spanish Medical Aid Committee thanking him for the offer to drive ambulances through France into Spain during the Spanish Civil War, other documents relate to his time serving in Yugoslavia pre war, documents relating to him running as Labour candidate for Walsall. Also amongst the archive is a typed account of his service during WW2 which states he was I Geneva when war broke out, he returned to the UK and become a ARP Ambulance driver in Walsall. He goes on to state, “in April 1940 I was sent through Paris and Trieste to the university town of Jassy on the borders of Rumania and Soviet Union. I happened to be visiting the province of Bukovina when the Russians entered Bessarabia and Bukovina a few weeks later and I remained on Soviet territory for three weeks before returning to give the only first-hand report on the conditions in Soviet Occupied territory available to the West, since I was the only western observer of the occupation.” He goes on to state that he was then sent to Yugoslavia where he became a correspondent for the Daily Herald. “During the winter 1940-41, I visited Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey and returned to Belgrade in time to witness the coup d’etat which overthrew the pro-Axis Yugoslav government in March 1941, the murderous bombing of Belgrade ten days later and the invasion of Yugoslavia by Germany and Italy. I started the war in Yugoslavia as a War Correspondent but finished it as a member of the British Military Mission, on behalf of which I arranged with Allied GHQ in Cairo to fly out the Government and the King of Yugoslavia. A few days later I was captured on the Dalmatian coast by the Italians and was held prisoner in Albania and Italy, where I acted as camp interpreter and edited the camp magazine, until I was exchanged and sent to Madrid where I was engaged in Military duties concerned with the escape route from France to Gibraltar”. Ennals arrived back in the UK and worked at the Foreign Office, his responsibilities were to work with the Royal Yugoslavian Government and also radio contact with the HQ of General Mihailovitch and Marshal Tito. He later was released from this service and served with the British Army in North Africa and Italy, later being dropped by parachute into German occupied Yugoslavia where he was appointed the Allied Liaison Officer with the Yugoslavian Partisans. Document continues with details of his post war service with the United Nations. A very interesting archive of documents to a very important member of the United Nations from its initial creation.
Original Ticket for the Trial of Warren Hastings 1793, the card ticket with printed shield to centre and “FOR THE TRIAL OF WARREN HASTINGS Esq – Permit the Bearer to Pafs and Repafs – NOT TRANSFERABLE”. Inked to the card is “Sesion 1793 Page of Presence to the Prince of Wales” and then signed. Inked text to the reverse of the card. Warren Hastings (1732-1818) was a English statesman and the first governor of the presidency of Fort William (Bengal) / Governor General of India 1772-1785. He was accused of corruption and impeached in 1787 but after a long trial he was acquitted in 1795. In 1814 he was made Pivy Counsellor.
WW2 Top Secret Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (S.H.A.E.F) Air Defence Division Document of German V1 & V2 Rocket Interest, the printed document dated 19 October 1944, covers the minutes of a conference regarding the intelligence reports and counter measures connected to the V1 and V2 attacks held on 17th October 1944. Document has “TOP SECRET” red stamps to the top of the first page. Three double sided printed pages.
Memorial Cards for German Soldiers Killed in Action During WWII, much personal details and in most cases a photograph, one killed in Russia during the first week of Barbarossa, another for an Officer in early 1944 in Russia, seven in all, together with a series of photographs believed to show aircraft and views during the Berlin airlift (8 photographs)
Signature of Great War Victoria Cross Winner, Canadian Royal Flying Corps Ace William Avery “Billy” Bishop, signed publication page with image of Bishop in Royal Flying Corps uniform. Signature has faded but still clear. Air Marshal William Avery “Billy” Bishop VC, CB, DSO & Bar, MC, DFC, ED, was the top scoring Canadian flying ace of WW1 with 72 victories. During WW2 he was responsible for setting up and promoting the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. His award of the Victoria Cross was published in the London Gazette on 11th August 1917, the citation was as follows, “For most conspicuous bravery, determination, and skill. Captain Bishop, who had been sent out to work independently, flew first of all to an enemy aerodrome; finding no machines about, he flew on to another aerodrome about three miles southeast, which was at least 12 miles the other side of the line. Seven machines, some with their engines running, were on the ground. He attacked these from about fifty feet, and a mechanic, who was starting one of the engines, was seen to fall. One of the machines got off the ground, but at a height of 60 feet, Captain Bishop fired 15 rounds into it at very close range, and it crashed to the ground. A second machine got off the ground, into which he fired 30 rounds at 150 yards range, and it fell into a tree. Two more machines then rose from the aerodrome. One of these he engaged at a height of 1,000 feet, emptying the rest of his drum of ammunition. This machine crashed 300 yards from the aerodrome, after which Captain Bishop emptied a whole drum into the fourth hostile machine, and then flew back to his station. Four hostile scouts were about 1,250 feet above him for about a mile of his return journey, but they would not attack. His machine was very badly shot about by machine gun fire from the ground”.
Grouping of Mostly Photographs of India Interest, including an interesting cabinet photograph of a grouping of Indian women in traditional dress with a European lady standing behind holding a small infant. Reverse of the image has inked key identifying the subjects and date “4/88”; photograph by Bourne & Shepherd titled “The Princes First Tiger” showing Edward VII with a group of men standing and kneeling behind a tiger which they have hunted; Large photograph in card mount of the Memorial Well Cawnpore Bengal East India with annotation below; Large photograph in card mount of “Tea Party Given by K Seetharama RAO, Proprietor Modern Café and Platform Conductor M & S M Railway; various loose images taken in India in the early 1900’s and a modern album with original and re-printed images taken in India.
Large Format Studio Photograph of Maharaja Sir Sumer Singh KBE of Jodhpur and His Younger Brother Maharaja Umaid Singh, the image shows them wearing traditional dress. Identified in ink to the bottom of the image. Housed in photographers card outer frame. Measures 28 x 35 ½ cm. Maharaja Sir Sumer Singh KBE of Jodhpur was born on 14th January 1898 and was the eldest son of Maharaja Sir Sardar Singh. In March 1911 at the age of 13 he succeeded to the Jodhpur gadi upon the death of his father and served as a Page of Honour to George V at the Delhi Durbar that year. At the outbreak of the First World War he volunteered for front line service and commanded the Jodhpur Imperial Service Lancers on the Western Front. For his service during WW1 he was awarded the K.B.E. He died on the 3rd October 1918. His younger brother succeeded him as the Maharaja of Jodhpur from 1918 until his death in 1947.
Great War Photograph Album Grouping of Royal Navy and German East Africa Interest, consisting of three snap shot photograph albums compiled by an officer. The first album consists of 48 black and white images of various ships including HMS Styx, Lingi River, deck of the German ship Konigsberg, Mikindani after bombardment, men of HMS Pratler, Tanga after bombardment, various German and British ships, monuments, natives, captured trench at Sudi Bay, etc. Most of the images have inked annotations below. Second album consists of 24 black and white images, starting with images taken in Durban, German and British positions at Sudi Bay, natives of Zanzibar, views of semi sunk ships. The final page has image of captured German Askari’s on board HMS Stynx. Images all have inked annotations below. The third album has a mixture of wartime and family images, good large format clear images in this album including captured German guns,HMS Hyacinth Zanzibar, Royal Navy barracks Football Team Zanzibar 1917-18, Crew of HMS Challenger African Coast 1917, African natives, civilian post WW1 images in Eastbourne and Ireland. All with annotations. (3 albums, 127 images total)
J D Carrick Great War Aviation Watercolours, fine un-framed piece on card showing a dog fight between British and German aircraft over the western front. Signed in black to the corner J.D.CARRICK 57. Accompanied by another un-signed example again showing a dog fight between British and German aircraft over the western front. Both remain in good condition. (2 items) Known as Doug Carrick, this artist was one of the most prolific artists covering the First World War with many of his paintings being featured in books.
Grouping of Photograph Albums Covering the Service of Major General William Scott Cole CB CBE in India and Burma, consisting of seven albums of original snap shot and official photographs taken during his time of service. The first album covers his time at the Royal Military Academy with interesting larger format images of recruits training, gun drills, bridging courses, parades etc. Many of the images have annotations next to them detailing the subject matter. Some interesting civilian life images at the back of the first album. The second album in the group covers his period of service in India from 1924-1927 starting with his voyage from the UK going through Port Said and Aden before arriving in Bangalore. The images consist of native troops, construction, local architecture, natives, family life, animals etc. All pages are annotated describing the subject matter. Good clear images of the Tag Mahal and Agra Fort etc. Third and fourth album in the grouping covers his service in India from 1930-1934 and are of similar nature to the previous album with again good clear shots with annotations, interesting Hunt scene images with Tigers etc. Fifth album in the grouping is the start of his service on the North West Frontier and Burma, this album has some very detailed panorama shots, bases, parades, column marching, armoured cars, etc. Album ends with images taken in the Burmese jungle with good images of scouts and Burmese nationals etc. Sixth album again covers his service in Burma from 1934 – 1936 with good quality images of Burmese people, village life, scenery, bridge construction, mules, Burmese palaces, etc. As with the other albums all pages are annotated describing the subject matter in the photograph. Last album in the grouping covers his last period in Burma and ends with shots taken in England. As with the other albums, this example has very good clear images all nicely annotated below. A wonderful photographic record of this officers service in India and Burma in the early 1930’s period. (large quantity of images, viewing recommended).
Wingate Expeditions, Highly Important Original Photograph Album (probably semi-official) containing numerous good sized tipped-in photographs of Wingate's Expeditions, his first in September 1942 & also his more ambitious second. The photographs are outstanding and fully captioned on the facing page, showing troops, equipment, named Officers, wounded, supplies, including the famous Mules, Aircraft, including a number of Wingate and Wavell, some 136 images all in very nice condition in large landscape laced album.
WW2 German Photograph Album of 9th Battery Artillery Regiment 4 Dresden, the album consists of snap shot photographs compiled by the original owner during WW2 and all housed into a period photograph album with metal German helmet mounted to the cover. The first image in the album is a large group shot of members of the regiment with the regiment details inked to the bottom. Album has shots of training pre-war before moving into the early stages of the war. Many good clear images of troops in uniform, cars, resting in barracks / bunkers, officers etc. Many of the photographs are loose. (100 images)
Interesting Scrap & Photographic Album Relating to Major P Ineson WRAC Commanding Officer of the Kenya Womens Service Corps (WSC), the album consists of various photographs, newspaper cuttings, invitation cards etc, all relating to Patricia Ineson’s service whilst being the commanding officer of the newly formed regiment in the Kenyan armed forces in the 1970’s. Many good black and white images of parades and the Kenyan leader President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta. All housed in a leather bound album. Women were first recruited into the Kenya Defence Forces in 1971 with the formation of the Women Service Corps (WSC), the unit was created to replace the former Womens Royal Army Corps (WRAC) which was a remnant of the old colonial government. The units role was to support the fighting units with clerical, logistics and communication service. The WSC was made up of six officers and 150 service women with Major Patricia Ineson being made the Commanding Officer until replaced by Kenyan Phyllis Ikua.
Historic Original Photograph Album Belonging to Eva Braun and Retrieved from Her Room in the "Fuhrer Bunker" Berlin in April 1945, The original "owner", Photographer Edward "Dixie" Dean and one of Fleet Street's top Photographers obtained the album personally in Hitler's Bunker from a Russian Soldier whom he watched take it from Eva Braun's bedroom drawer shortly after Hitler and Eva's suicide. Edward along with Richard Dimbleby and Rex North were among the first journalist to visit the Chancellery and Bunker and included in this lot is a typed account of his hair raising trip through Russian lines to Berlin, his experiences in the Bunker and later at Buchenwald. Also a list of "War Souvenirs from Hitlers Chancellery" has Eva Bruan Photographic album noted at the top and is signed by Dean and dated August 11th 1945. The next item in securing provenance is a fascinating article in the Daily Mirror of July 16 1945 which features the Album with photographs of some of its images, including a double page clearly from the Album, under the heading "Eva Braun Treasured Photos of a handsome S.S.Man" with the sensational claim that Hitler's mistress may have had a secret love affair with one of his personal bodyguard! As to the Album its cloth binding is in the form of a stylised swastika in grey and red with the image repeated in miniature on the rear and neatly laced. It measures 330 x 230 mm. The images of which there are 73, in various sizes and all very clear, include a number of Adolf Hitler. Among them is one of him sitting on the Berghof veranda looking intently at a document, while another shows him in almost a "Chaplainesque" stance making a salute as he walks towards the camera down the Berghof path and others show him with crowds outside the Berghof. In addition there are a number of images of Himmler in uniform with other SS men, and both Goebbels and Goering. Others show Hitler's guard detachment both on duty and in relaxed pose at the Berghof and the Reichs Chancellery. Others show a torch-lit meeting and one of Hitler's cars and plane etc. Most images are captioned and almost all can be removed from their corner clips, revealing descriptions and in some instances dates on the reverse (in most cases early to mid 1930's). In summary a unique Photograph Album with a clear and unambiguous provenance that takes it back to Eva Braun's ownership in the Bunker in 1945 through to the present day with all the appropriate and essential documentation. An opportunity to acquire a powerful visual statement from the seat of Nazi power that belonged to the "first lady" of the Third Reich and without question was with her at the last stages of the war in the Fuhrer Bunker in Berlin, 1945.In 1983, Dean decided to sell his treasured war souvenir and entered it into an auction held by Warwickshire based Auctioneers Warwick & Warwick, it then was purchased again, almost immediately, by one of the bidders who "was unable to get through by phone at the time to increase (his) bid" This owner a Mr R.A.Palmer retained the item for over 30 years, he intended to open a Military museum with this and other items of significance that he had purchased, sadly this never happened and the album along with other items were found after his death, it was purchased by the current vendor directly from Palmer’s family. Very few significant artefacts liberated from the Fuhrer Bunker in 1945 exist today in the open market, especially with such concrete provenance dating all the way back to the time of liberation.
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