Submitted by aarAdmin on Tue, 04/01/2025 - 00:00
A circa 1890 Carrara marble figure sculpture more than 1.6 metres tall (lot 809) rocked Melbourne-based Leski Auctions two-day Decorative arts, Collectables and Cameras sale March 29-30 when it was knocked down for $32,000 – more than five times its upper estimate.
The sculpture was by famed French sculptor and caricaturist Prosper d’Epinay who worked under the name Nemo.
Born on July 13, 1836 in Pamplemousses, Mauritius, d’Epinay completed his primary education in Port Louis before moving to France in 1851 to further his studies.
Six years later, he settled in Paris studying sculpture at the studios of French portrait sculptor Jean-Pierre Dantan (1800-1869) and also began drawing caricatures.
A scholarship enabled d’Epinay to enrol at Rome’s French Academy, where he studied Classical sculpture under Luigi Amici (1817-1897) – famous for Pope Gregory XVI’s tomb statue.
Now permanently in Rome, where he opened a studio on Via Sistina, d’Epinay’s first success came in 1864 in London where he presented a caricature of Napoleon III and British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston walking arm-in-arm – which ended up with several thousand copies being printed by an English publisher.
That same year, the Duc de Luynes commissioned him to create a statue of “Innocence” for the Chateau de Dampierre, followed by a bust of the Princess of Wales, Alexandra of Denmark.
D’Epinay’s most famous work is a polychrome statue of Joan of Arc, which he exhibited in 1902 at the Salon in Paris, before it was moved seven years later to Reims Cathedral on the occasion of her beatification.
Two works by Paris goldsmith Louis-Francois Tronquoy, born May 20, 1789, - one an 1871 solid 18-carat gold box (lot 258) and the other made circa 1847 (lot 259) – sold respectively for $21,000 and $10,500.
A Loran Speck (1943-2011) painting entitled Pomegranates, Grapes, Lemons & Hazelnuts (lot 1017) was another astounding result – going under the hammer for $9500 on a $800-$1200 catalogue estimate.
Born in Stockton, California, in early life Speck was a distinguished athlete, playing football for Oregon State University. His artistic talent was unknown until he enrolled in a science illustration class and discovered his ability for intricate detailing.
A self-described natural realist who from 1977 became part of the Carmel community, Speck believed his art work perfectly reflected his personality including his simplicity and love of quiet intimacy.
An antique English marine chronometer (lot 908) was among the top 10 results when it changed hands for $4200, while a circa 1930 fine Swiss art deco travelling timepiece (lot 913) sold for $3800.
A circa 1970 Hasselblad camera (lot 1191) more than doubled its catalogue estimate to return $3600 to the vendor, while an impressive pair of antique French exhibition vases (lot 726) fetched $3000.
Several of the silver items owned by University of Canberra professor and former Federal public servant Stephen Bartos performed well including two antique trefid spoons circa 1702 and 1726 (lot 3) at $1000 and a circa 1824 Georgian coffee pot by London’s Joseph Angell (lot 14) at $1100.
