Latest News Articles by Jonathan Franks
Schongauer shows a crozier
13 January 2025The vast majority of the 116 known engravings created by the German artist Martin Schongauer in the second half of the 15th century are depictions of religious scenes or portraits of biblical figures.
Meissen and more from the Pettey collection sits pretty at German auction
30 December 2024Top Meissen pieces amassed by US buyer attract interest worldwide but many will stay in Germany
Gaillard vase flies to over 20 times its guide
30 December 2024A bronze vase by the Parisian goldsmith Lucien Gaillard caused a stir at Dobiaschofsky (25% buyer’s premium) in Bern.
Diptych is auction record for Perugino
09 December 2024Pair of religious panels used as altar sell on low estimate but still result in auction record for the artist
Cham relics from Vietnam sold in Vienna via museum
09 December 2024Two rare artefacts from the ancient Cham people of Vietnam went way above the odds at Zacke (25% buyer’s premium) in Vienna in the auction of October 17-18.
Breguet made a timely intervention at German auction
09 December 2024The 200th auction at specialist clock and watch saleroom Klöter’s (23% buyer’s premium) in Grafenau contained almost 950 timekeepers from all eras.
Modern antiquity: Queen Nefertiti bust from 1930
09 December 2024At Van Ham (27% buyer’s premium) in Cologne on November 12, the auctioneers were overwhelmed with bids when an early 20th century plaster copy of an iconic ancient Egyptian bust came up for sale with a guide of €6000.
Vendor strikes gold with Sèvres plate at auction in Germany
09 December 2024Auction house Wendl (21% buyer’s premium) in Rudolstadt found fierce international interest for an early 19th century plate from the manufacture in Sèvres.
Unlocated Hans Coper mural rediscovered in German auction
27 November 2024Since 1985, when it was auctioned by Christie’s in London, the exact whereabouts of a major work by the German-born British ceramic artist Hans Coper (1920-81) has been unknown.
Bidders spot the hand of Lavinia Fontana in Cologne auction
19 November 2024Lot number four, estimated at €8000-10,000, achieved the most spectacular result at Van Ham’s (27% buyer’s premium) sale of paintings on November 14 in Cologne.
Trotain silver box sails in to Munich saleroom
18 November 2024Between 1923, when he opened his workshop and 1935, the year he dissolved his company, the French goldsmith Jean Trotain primarily produced vanity cases and cigarette boxes for many of the most prominent designers of the Art Deco era.
First die-cast Leica camera comes up
18 November 2024The first-ever Leica die-cast camera, dating to 1933-34 and created by the Oskar Barnack, the father of modern 35mm photography, appeared as a landmark lot in the sixth sale from Wetzlar Camera Auctions (21.01% buyer’s premium) - held in the hometown of the manufacturer.
Restituted Blechen mills flow finally to a saleroom
18 November 2024When he was 24, Carl Blechen abandoned his intended profession as a banker and devoted himself to painting.
From satire to satyr in Zurich
18 November 2024Old Master and Daumier artwork, bronze figure and Italian porcelain all on offer over three days
Electric train sparks bidding battle
18 November 2024Star of the show at Auktionhaus Heilbronn’s (21.7% buyer’s premium) latest sale of tinplate toys was a rare three-carriage Märklin train from the Rheinuferbahn, the line from Cologne and Bonn along the banks of the Rhine.
‘Mallet’ vase ready for hammer time
18 November 2024Among the attractions at Nagel’s auction of Asian art on December 9 in Stuttgart is a blue and white imperial vase from the Kangxi period (1662-1722).
Cunard sign shows bouyant market in Germany
11 November 2024A rare enamel advertising sign in almost perfect condition was the biggest eye-catcher at the recent dedicated sale held by specialist Pari (20% buyer’s premium) in the Bavarian city of Aschaffenburg.
The €60,000 Breguet with complications
11 November 2024An early pocket watch by Abraham Louis Breguet with the low serial number 104 was one of the highlights of a recent watch sale at Cortrie (21% buyer’s premium) in Hamburg.
Fierce foursome: drawings show talent and power of Tiepolo junior
04 November 2024Like his younger brother Lorenzo, Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (1727-1804) learnt his art in the studio of his father Giovanni Battista Tiepolo.
Small tower clock rose out of Augsburg
04 November 2024For many decades, from the middle of the 16th century, the south German city of Augsburg was, alongside Nuremberg, the leading clockmaking centre in Germany.