Hotel Chandelier To Light Up Next Fairfield Auction Sale

Fairfield Auction will offer its most diverse offering of the year on Sunday, September 21. With more than 400 lots culled from local estates, the sale includes fine examples of American, English and Continental furniture, paintings, Russian and Asian art, clocks, silver, bronzes and more.

Highlighting the sale is a large gilt bronze gas chandelier originating from The Grand Union Hotel of Saratoga Springs, N.Y. In its day, the 800-room Grand Union was the largest and most opulent hotel in the world, but by 1953 it had lost its luster and the building was slated for demolition. The offered chandelier was purchased at that time from the hotel.

Also from the Victorian era is a very large Nicole Freres ten-bell interchangeable music box with 19-inch cylinders. Among the four additional music boxes selling is another interchangeable box and a station house music box with four dancing figures.

Also of interest to devotees of the Belle Epoch is an unusual etched and layered glass window by Tiffany Studios. Originally from the estate of Veronica Forgett, the window was purchased and removed from the home of Joseph Briggs, head of the mosaic and tile departments and the final manager of Tiffany Studios until his death in 1938. The window features a landscape scene with winding road, cottages, stone walls and flamingos with light to deep sunset hues.

Clocks are led by a George III mahogany bracket clock and a large Rococo Revival Herchede tall clock with tubular chimes. A Federal banjo clock with original stencil decoration, a period French Empire mantel clock with a large bronze figure of Apollo, an ornate Lenzkirch tall clock with bronze mounts and George III oak tall clock will also be featured.

A large selection of fine art includes an interesting group of Margaret Bourke-White photographs originally from the RCA files.

Sculpture highlights include a 39-inch bronze by Alexander Phimister Proctor, “Stalking Panther,” and a large cast of “Nymphe de Diane” by Eugene-Antoine Aizelin cast by the Barbedienne foundry.

Paintings include works by American artists John J. Enneking, Jules Pages, Fletcher Benton, and Charles Green Shaw.

English and European artists include Pierre Delage, Jules Guerin, Jules Weiss, Constance Troyon, John E. Aitken, Casimir Van Den Daele, Theodore Jens, Julian Jos, Vaslov Vytlacil, H.J. Boddington, Copley Fielding, James Stark, Thomas Seymour, Antal Peczely, Filippo Inoni and Carl A. Richter.

Prints include works by Marc Chagall, George Braque, Jacques Villon, Bertha Lum, Elizabeth Colwell, Carl Moser, John Lennon and Marguerite Kirmse. Of particular note are a pair of die-cut lithographs by Alphonse Mucha, “Tete Byzantine,” circa 1900. A group of vintage travel posters will also cross the block.

A selection of Americana includes several untouched original objects. An unusual Federal girandole mirror, probably from Albany, N.Y., features a carved eagle crest, swagging chains with tassels and a flat mirror plate. Found in a “time capsule” estate in Weston was a whirligig of a caricatured black man wearing a hat and suit and tie. A Rhode Island cherry highboy features old surface and hardware, and an 18th Century needlework pictures a basket of flowers with two birds.

Fine silver is dominated by items from an old French family estate. French silver offerings from the 19th Century include a 143-piece flatware set, a pair of shell-form serving dishes, a pair of silver mounted claret jugs, a rococo cruet set and many fine serving pieces. Also being sold are a George III salver by Richard Rugg of London, a pair of serving spoons by Samuel Burt of Boston, flatware sets including Wallace Rosepoint, Gorham English Tipped and Towle’s Contour.

Fairfield Auction is at 53 Church Hill Road. For more information, visit FairfieldAuction.com or call 364-1555.