Single-Owner Ceramic Collection from the Factory of Marie Antoinette’s Sister to Make 500,000 Pounds at Bonhams

LONDON.- The fantastic Procida Mirabelli di Lauro collection of Italian porcelain is to be auctioned at Bonhams, New Bond Street on Tuesday 6th July. This Italian single-owner collection, the most comprehensive of its type to ever come on to the market, is expected to fetch £300,000-500,000. Among the highlights of the sale are four plates from the Servizio del’Oca made for King Ferdinand IV’s private use, estimated to sell for £5,000 – £8,000, a rare Doccia perfume bottle, circa 1745-50, [...]

Sotheby’s to Offer Treasures: Aristocratic Heirlooms for Sale

LONDON.- On Tuesday 6th July 2010, in the first ever sale of its type, Sotheby’s will bring together some 21 lots, the intrinsic quality and importance of which will be matched by extraordinary nature of their provenance. Ranging in date from the 16th to the 19th centuries, and emanating from all corners of Europe, the works in the sale span the entire range of the decorative arts, from porcelain to silver, snuff boxes to furniture, and textiles to objects of [...]

Woman Convicted in Case of Stolen Antoinette Watch

LOS ANGELES.- The widow of a notorious Israeli thief has been convicted of receiving stolen property from a 27-year-old heist that included more than 100 expensive timepieces and museum artifacts, including what’s been called “the Mona Lisa of the clock world.” Nili Shamrat, 64, of Tarzana, was convicted Feb. 23 and sentenced to five years’ probation and 300 hours of community service, state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced Tuesday. In 1983, 106 timepieces, paintings and artifacts were taken from the [...]