Lot 180
  • 180

Augustus III: A Set of Five Royal German Silver Candlesticks, Christian Heinrich Ingermann, Dresden, mid 18th century

Estimate
200,000 - 300,000 USD
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Description

  • marked on undersides and engraved with large monograms AR3 and numbered 61, 63, 64, 68, and 69
  • Silver
  • height 9in.
  • 22.8cm
of heavy weight, the domed bases chased in relief with foliage and flat-chased between with rococo scrollwork, matching sprirally-fluted stems and campana sconces

Provenance

Augustus III (1696-1763), Elector of Saxony and King of Poland
Christie's, New York, 18 October 1994, lot 47, Property of a New England collector

Condition

No. 64 slightly out of vertical, overall good condition, details still crisp
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

The cypher is that of Augustus II (1696-1763), Elector of Saxony and Augustus III, King of Poland, who in 1733 succeeded his father, Augustus the Strong.

The present lot is a portion of a large set recorded by Rosenberg in the Dresden Hofsilberkammer.  They are probably from a set of "neu-faconnirte franzoisische Tafel- und Giraldonen-Leuchter", commissioned from Ingermann in 1745 (see F. O'Bryn, Die Hof-Silberkammer und die Hof-Kellerei zu Dresden, Dresden, 1880, p. 130).

A group of six, numbered 29 to 34, was sold Sotheby's, Geneva, on 12 May 1983, lot 80.  Additionally, a pair, both numbered 38, were sold Christie's, Geneva, 17 May 1994, lot 126, and another pair, numbered 55 and 56 were sold in these rooms on 12 April 1994, lot 159.

Both Augustus III and his father Augustus the Strong were great patron of Dresden artists, although Augustus the Strong patronized Augsburg silversmiths almost exclusively.  In 1719 Augustus the Strong wrote to his son "Princes win immortality through great building as well as great victories."  Likewise, Augustus III's legacy may be the works he commissioned and collected as is known that he was not a particularly gifted politician.