ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND INDIAN WORLDS INCLUDING RUGS AND CARPETS
Pictured left to right: A rare and impressive silk Safavid 'Polonaise' carpet probably Isfahan, Central Persia, early 17th century, £1,000,000 – 2,000,000 I US$1,300,000-2,600,000. A rare pair of ‘Bevelled’ Sasanian Silver Bottles, Iran, 6th or 7th century, £200,000- 300,000 I US$270,000–390,000
LONDON – Christie’s announces Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds including Rugs and Carpets, a live auction at Christie’s headquarters in London, on 24 October. The auction offers a curated selection of carpets, ceramics, manuscripts, textiles, works on paper and metalwork from across the Islamic world, with objects spanning over a thousand years of history. The sale is led by a previously unrecorded rare silk Safavid Polonaise carpet, probably Isfahan, central Persia, early 17th century (estimate £1,000,000 – 2,000,000 I US$1,300,000-2,600,000) and a pair of ‘bevelled’ Sasanian Silver Bottles, Iran, 6th or 7th century, decorated in a style that foreshadows the early Islamic ornament seen in Samarra (estimate £200,000-300,000 I US$270,000–390,000). The bottles are extremely rare to market and all the more remarkable for their survival as a pair.
ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND INDIAN WORLDS HIGHLIGHTS
(Illustrated below left), one of two watercolours offered in this sale from the famous Impey album compiled by Sir Elijah (1732-1809) and Lady Mary Impey (1749-1818), a Lineated Barbet (psilopogon zeylanicus) on a juniper tree, Calcutta, India, dated 1778 by master artist Zayn al-Din (estimate £120,000-180,000 | US$160,000-240,000). The album represents the pinnacle of company school painting, with the two folios on offer by the talented artist involved from the album’s inception.
(Illustrated centre), a Reversible five-strand diamond-set pearl necklace, North Indian, late 19th Century (estimate £40,000-60,000 I US$53,000-78,000). The necklace is from an outstanding collection of 18 pieces of fine Indian jewellery in the auction, and the first collection of Indian jewellery of this type offered since 2019. Estimates range from £300-60,000 I US$400–78,000.
(Illustrated below right), an important Florentine portrait of Süleyman the Magnificent (R. 1520 – 1566), Circle of Cristofano dell' Altissimo, Florence, Italy, circa 1600 (estimate £200,000-300,000 | US$270,000- 390,000). Süleyman the Magnificent was the tenth and longest-reigning Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. This portrait is closely related to a group commissioned by Cosimo I de' Medici for the Uffizi after which this was made. It is through dell’ Altissimo's version of the portrait that the present image of Süleyman became widely distributed across Europe and informed the European image of one of the most well-known Ottoman Sultans in history.
Sara Plumbly, Head of Department, Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds comments, ‘We are delighted to present the current sale which brings together highlights from across the region. It is particularly exciting to be able to bring to the market the Collection of Paul Loewi, the stockbroker of the famous bibliophile Chester Beatty. He collected with the same fine-tuned eye of his friend, and the star of that group, a Safavid Khamsa of Nizami, is a particularly fine example of the production of luxury manuscripts in the early 16th century. It has been published and exhibited numerous times over the course of the 20th century.’
RUGS AND CARPETS HIGHLIGHTS
The selection of over 100 rugs and carpets offered this season is notably led by a rare, large format Silk Safavid Polonaise carpet (illustrated on page 1), (estimate £1,000,000-2,000,000 I US$1,300,000- 2,600,000). This exciting new discovery was woven in Persia during the reign of Shah Abbas the Great (1588-1629) and has remained preserved in remarkable condition in a Japanese private collection until very recently. In recent years Christie’s has achieved the four highest prices for Safavid ‘Polonaise’ rugs offered at auction.
Following the success of the April 2024 sale, Sultans of Silk: The George Farrow Collection Part II continues to highlight the fine silk rugs of the Koum Kapi ‘master weavers’ of Istanbul. The collection emphasises the work of the master weaver Hagop Kapoudjian, and includes four signed silks, seven attributable rugs and several of his personal hand-drawn cartoons. Two of the highest prices achieved for Koum Kapi rugs ever sold at auction were achieved in the first part of the Farrow Collection at Christie’s London in April 2024. (Illustrated below left), Sultans of Silk: The George Farrow Collection, a Silk Koum Kapi Rug, Istanbul, Turkey, circa 1920. (Estimate £20,000-30,000 I US$27,000-39,000).
The sale also includes, ‘A London Collection’, the culmination of over four decades of collecting by a distinguished private gentleman, which features many of the iconic examples of carpet design that we associate with the rugs of the Caucasus and Anatolia. (Illustrated below centre) A Silk and Metal-Thread Chinese Palace Carpet Qing Dynasty, probably Beijing, late 19th century, woven for the Palace of Tranquil Longevity (estimate £40,000-60,000 | US$53,000-78,000). According to their inscriptions, the so-called 'Palace' carpets were woven for various imperial buildings within the dynastic capital of the Qing emperors in Beijing. (Illustrated below right), An Agra Rug, North India, circa 1890, of 'sickle-leaf' design. (Estimate £12,000-16,000 | US$16,000-21,000).
Louise Broadhurst, International Head of Rugs and Carpets comments, ‘It is a privilege to offer the monumental silk Safavid ‘Polonaise’ carpet on the international auction market for the first time. Recently discovered in Japan it has likely remained preserved there for centuries and we are honoured to show it for the first time in the West’.
A ‘Highlights Exhibition’ of works from the forthcoming ‘Art of the Islamic and Indian Worlds including Rugs and Carpets’ sale live in London on the 24 October is taking place at Christie’s, DIFC, Dubai from 27 September 6 October. The exhibition is free to attend and open to the public.
Christie’s would like to thank Emirates NBD, Signature by Priority Banking for their sponsorship of the Highlights Exhibition in Dubai.
The sale exhibition will take place at Christie’s in London from 19 - 23 October.
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