Silver, prized for its beauty and malleability, is one of the first metals discovered and used by humans. Silver objects dating ca. 4000 BC have been found in Greece and Anatolia (modern Turkey). Rago Auctions, Great Estates sale on Saturday, October 21 features a study in silver from some of the world’s most respected makers, including Tiffany & Co., Gorham, Buccellati and Georg Jensen. Explore the history and significance of some of these lots below. Lot 1037, Set of Gorham Martele Silver Plates (15); Estimate $30,000 - $50,000 The Gorham Manufacturing Company introduced Martele silver to great acclaim at the 1900 Paris Exhibition. Gorham’s Martele silver is hand-wrought in limited quantities, contains a higher standard of silver than sterling and often features extensive chased decoration - making it both costly and rare. These 15 Martel...Read More

Demonic possession. It can happen to anyone or anything - this unfortunate occurrence does have the tendency to befall objects and persons more easily this time of year. Perhaps, the concentrated acknowledgment of the dead is to blame. With thousands of Witches, Wiccans, Druids, and other Pagans gathering for Samhain painted skeletons parading on Dia de los Muertos and the conjuring of Americas similarly timed folk holiday known as All Hallows Eve, its no wonder why spirits come knocking.   While chilling winds begin to crawl toward winter's solstice, Rago Auctions prepares to host an unusual and fitting sale for the haunting season. Their Curiouser & Curiouser auction on October 22nd will feature objects curated by Marion Harris that lay latent with intrigue and shadowy pasts; outsider art, folk art, sideshow-related items, scientific and ...Read More

This season’s Asian Art market has gotten off to a great start! September saw an astonishing number of Asian Art pieces offered through Bidsquare with many exceptional results. It comes as no surprise that the majority of the Asian Art top sellers originate from China, thus showcasing the insatiable demand for top quality artworks from this region. The Chinese items still trending include traditional and 20th Century painting, classical furniture, mark and period porcelain, jade carvings, and bronzes. Skinner had their Asian Works of Art auction on September 15th. Their sale featured over 500 lots from China, Japan, the Himalayan Region, and India, with solid results across the board.  Lot 429, Kingfisher Feather Headdress and Four Hairpins, China, 19th Century; Sold for $110,700 Their highest-selling item was lot 429, A Kingfisher Feather ...Read More

As deciduous tree leaves gradually intensify and fade to perform their seasonal vanishing act, a warm display of color is revealed and provides autumnal bakers with an earthy template to reorganize their spice rack around - its about to be not-so-lazy-susan time!   Can you picture yourself happily clapping clouds of flour around a classic country kitchen? Then you'll want to thumb through Bidsquare's catalogs in search of antiques that have equipped dedicated flour fluffers for decades.    Here are some recommended ingredients when adding a savory dash of Americana, 20th Century Design and collectible antiques to your kitchen: Lot 2669, Jason Wein; Cleveland Art, Cluster Conveyor Light, Cleveland, OH, 2013; Sold for $687.50 Reminiscent of crab cages or deep frying trays, these reclaimed and patinated fixtures offer perfectly on theme lumino...Read More

Seven auctions - one weekend. Only a tightly run ship like Rago Auctions could victoriously steer their way through a deluge of items such as this! The entirety of 20th Century Design was represented from September 22nd-24th and Bidsquare bidders certainly took notice of the rare and important opportunities that this presented. Participants coming through the online platform spanned from America to Australia and they clicked, clicked and clicked again!  Bidsquare raked in $614,900.00 in online sales and over $3.7 million of total bids placed. The following selections are just some of the extraordinary results from Bidsquares weekend wins at Rago: Lot 1566, Lino Tagliapietra, Hama Hama vessel, Blown, inciso, and battuto glass, Murano, Italy, 1997; Sold for $21,760 Glass has always performed steadily on Bidsquare and the Modern Ceramics + Gla...Read More

On September 23, 2017, Rago will offer for sale the early 20th century design collection of Richard and Peggy Danziger. Richard Danziger, a prominent New York City attorney, began amassing his exceptional collection of early 20th-century furnishing and design in the 1980s. With the passion and instincts that make for a top-tier collector, he developed his eye in the galleries of the most knowledgeable taste-makers in the field. The Danziger Collection showcases both the beauty and utility of early 20th-century design, with rare pieces from Stickley, Rohlfs, Dirk van Erp, Tiffany Studios, and more. Having lived with these works for over three decades, the Danzigers are ready to see their collection move on to the homes of others who appreciate their aesthetics and history. The following pieces, selected by David Rago, represent just a sampli...Read More

When light is the inspiration for a living room the slightest cast shadow can define dramatic corners like a theater of white space. Recessed walls perform minimalistic movement for shelved objects that rest in their purposeful positions. Bright furnishings open complex monologues - there are no small roles here. With several modern design sales coming up at Rago this month, we called upon renowned NYC based interior designer and mid-century modern specialist, Amy Lau of Amy Lau Design to hear how she perfectly cast objects in her East Hampton Retreat project.  "A harmonious living space is as beneficial to our health as good food and exercise," Lau explains, "In creating spirited and meaningful environments, I draw upon the inherent beauty of natural materials and landscapes. I spend time getting to know the surroundings so I can understan...Read More

There is a common joke artists like to tell ( to each other or themselves )  to combat criticism. The deeper you are in the ground the higher your work will sell for, "I'll be famous when I die! You'll see!" It is true for some, of course, not for all. This melodrama provides a powerful pang of irony for museum tours looking for an interesting plot twist. The artist who fetched millions at auction had drowned their sorrows, struggling for, and in some cases, never knowing artistic recognition; Vincent Van Gough, Paul Cezanne, Édouard Manet and Paul Gaugin to name a few. Even more fascinating are the Outsider artists, whom might not have even asked for secular success, that grow more and more popular as the decades roll on.  Bill Traylor with his drawings, Courtesy Alabama State Council on the Arts, Photo-Horance Perry, 1946 On September 10t...Read More

With another successful September NYC Asia Week almost over, the Asian Art world will set their sights towards the regional auction houses. There is now a great indication for the Asian Art categories that will be trending over the next couple of months. Despite the market still being focused on Chinese items – including mark and period porcelain, jade carvings, furniture and paintings – collectors and lovers of Asian Art should also pay close attention to Himalayan Buddhist sculpture and Japanese Meiji Period decorative works.  Many of these types of artworks will be offered as part of Leslie Hindman Auctioneers Two-Day auction of Asian Works of Art on September 25th and September 26th. While many regional auction houses have recently been more conservative with the number of Asian Art objects offered for sale, Leslie Hindman Auctioneers w...Read More

Among the highlights in Skinner’s September 27 Fine Prints & Photographs auction are three flower studies by Robert Mapplethorpe whose extensive and provocative body of work has established him as one of the most important artists of the 20th-century. Lot 128, Robert Mapplethorpe, Flowers, Gelatin silver print mounted to thin board, 1984; Estimate $15,000 - $25,000 Mapplethorpe was born in 1946 in Floral Park, Queens. He studied drawing, painting, and sculpture at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and began using a Polaroid camera in 1970 to produce photographs that could be incorporated into mixed-media collages and assemblage constructions including magazine imagery and found objects. In 1975 he acquired a Hasselblad medium-format camera, which he used to make portraits of friends and acquaintances, as well as socialites and celebrities like Jo...Read More