1. Orazio Gentileschi's young woman
A portrait of a young woman by Orazio Gentileschi (1563-1639) carries the highest estimate at Sotheby’s evening sale of ‘Master’ paintings in New York on January 25. The 16.5 x 14½in (42 x 37cm) oil on panel dates from the first half of the 1630s, when Gentileschi was working at the court of King Charles I of England. It is consigned from a private collection and has not appeared on the market since it was sold by London dealers Agnew's to an American collector in 1988.
2. Adam de Coster's candlelit portrait
This atmospheric portrait of a young woman holding a spindle is estimated at $1.5m-2m at Sotheby’s sale of ‘Master’ paintings in New York on January 25. The oil on canvas is by the Flemish painter Adam de Coster (1585/6-1643), a specialist in candlelit scenes and dramatic nocturnes. The picture last appeared at auction at Sotheby’s in 1992.
3. Horse and rider by Peter Paul Rubens
This study of a horse with a rider was previously attributed to a follower of Sir Anthony Van Dyck. However, following the recent removal of overpaint and later additions, it has now been re-ascribed to the great Flemish painter Sir Peter Paul Rubens. It is estimated at $1m-1.5m at Sotheby’s Old Master evening sale in New York.
4. The Madness of Sir Tristram by Edward Burne-Jones
‘The Madness of Sir Tristram’, a highly finished watercolour by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones will appear at Sotheby’s Old Master drawings auction on January 25. The subject relates to the story of Sir Tristram de Lyones, one of the books in Sir Thomas Malory’s epic about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, and the work here was executed over a ‘cartoon’ for a stained-glass window commissioned in 1862 by the industrialist Walter Dunlop.
5. Madonna and Child by 'Botticelli and Studio’
Catalogued as ‘Botticelli and Studio’, this Madonna and Child tondo with Saint John The Baptist and an Angel is estimated at $600,000-800,000 at Sotheby’s ‘Master’ paintings evening sale in New York on January 25. The tempera on panel is believed to have been painted in the last five years of Botticelli’s life.
6. Kitchen Still Life ‘attributed to Diego Velázquez’
A painting entitled ‘Kitchen Still Life’ which has been ‘attributed to Diego Rodríguez De Silva Y Velázquez’ will be offered at Sotheby’s ‘Master’ paintings evening sale in New York. It is estimated at $1.5m-2m. The oil on canvas was acquired by the vendor at an auction in France in 1999 for 575,000 FF. It has since been loaned to both the Metropolitan Museum of Art (as ‘Spanish School, 17th century’) and then Detroit Institute of Art (as ‘Attributed to Velázquez’).
7. Saint Veronica with her veil by El Greco
This painting ‘Saint Veronica Holding the Veil’ will be offered at Sotheby’s Master paintings evening sale in New York with an estimate of $400,000-600,000. The catalogue states it is “believed by a number of experts to be an autograph late work by El Greco”. The subject relates to Saint Veronica, who wiped the sweat and blood from Christ’s face with her veil on the road to Calvary, and then miraculously found the image of his face imprinted on the cloth.
8. Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo's head of a young man
Among the highlights at Christie’s Old Master drawings sale in New York on January 24 is this red and white chalk head of a young man by Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (1727-1804). Measuring 11.5 x 8in (29 x 20cm), it is estimated at $180,000-220,000.
9. Chalk study by Charles de la Fosse
One of the French works on paper appearing at Christie’s Old Master drawings sale on January 24 is this sheet of studies including two angels by Parisian artist Charles de la Fosse (1636-1716). Executed in red and black chalk, it is estimated at $30,000-40,000.
10. Four Seasons by Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Hans Bol
Christie’s dedicated sale of Old Master prints on January 25 will offer 220 lots which include a set of four engravings of the seasons by Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Hans Bol from c.1570. Offered as a single lot, the ‘Four Seasons' set is estimated at $30,000-50,000. Pictured here is ‘Summer’.
