SALE OF TREASURES

Taranaki Daily News, 19 September 1931, Page 14

SALE OF TREASURES

FAMILY HEIRLOOMS GO. RESULT OF DEPRESSION. Melbourne, Sept. 3. One of the largest and most valuable collections of furniture and objects of art ever sold by auction in Melbourne came under the hammer last week. It comprised the £30,000 collection of one of Victoria’s well-known families, which because b.f the industrial depression has been forced to sell its home. The collection was so big that the auctioneers rented the entire offices formerly occupied by the Taxation Department in Little Collins Street to display and sell the objects. The sale was anonymous, as the vendor’s name would not be disclosed. The name was known only to the general manager of the auctioneering firm. Some exceedingly valuable antiques were included in the collection. One of the most important offerings was a set of two cabinets and a library centre table. The cabinets were from the. collection of the Empress Eugenie and are exquisitely fashioned and finished with gold bronze mounts. They were sold to the vendor by Albert Amor, of London, for 1000 guineas. The price paid for the table was 380 guineas. One of the most beautiful lots was a Carrara-marble and gold bronze bust by A. Leonerd, for which 230 guineas was paid. Among.other antiques are a pair of old Parisian porcelain vases, dated 1750, after Bouchier, for which £4OO was paid; four 15-inch topaz amber temple figures, originally looted from a Chinese temple in Peking during the Boxer rebellion. They are Chi’ien Lung of the sixteenth century carving, and cost 185 guineas each. , Two old bracket clocks of intricate design, an old water clock, a Sheraton suite, • Chippendale piece, Boulle and Adams centre tables, and a vast quantity of old china, silver and rugs were included. In addition, there were a number of pictures by prominent Australian and European painters. Altogether there were 559 lots.