By Richard Brewster, on 31-Jul-2019

Gibson’s Auctions is marking its first anniversary in business with a two-day sale entitled The Winter Auction Series, which over three sessions from 1pm Monday August 5 and 11am Tuesday August 6 will offer a comprehensive 789-lot range of jewellery, antique furniture, porcelain, sculptures, clocks, art and other collectables.

To be held at 885-889 High Street Armadale, jewellery will be auctioned on the Monday and features items with estimates ranging from several hundreds of dollars to many thousands – well within the reach of most auction goers.

Among the porcelain on offer at Gibson’s Auctions first anniversary sale in Melbourne, is a large pair of 1870s Belleek first period gilded porcelain urns estimated at $2,000-3,000.

Among the porcelain on offer at Gibson’s Auctions first anniversary sale in Melbourne, is a large pair of 1870s Belleek first period gilded porcelain urns estimated at $2,000-3,000.

Typical is a pair of emerald and diamond drop earrings (lot 15) with a catalogue estimate of $2400-$2800.

Another attraction are three gold curb link chains (lot 44) estimated at $7000-$9000 while an unusual kyanite, onyx and diamond ring (lot 53) is bound to attract plenty of attention.

Also worth a look are two pairs of Spanish colonial style gold earrings (lot 151) and (lot 152) for those buyers looking for something more exotic to wear.

Tuesday contains two sessions featuring furniture and collectables such as a fine 19th century French Louis XVI style gilt bronze and marquetry centre table.

Several of the art works, including The Story of Painting 2001 (Lot 251 ), are by Queensland-based contemporary Australian artist Ken Gailer whose artistic style has always depicted a magnetic and opposing tension and reckoning with the traditions of realism and abstraction.

Winning his first Australian art award in 1978, Gailer has collected numerous accolades during his painting career.

While his early works paid tribute to the Renaissance masters, a love of pop art also strongly influenced his works.

With more than 30 solo shows and group exhibitions, Gailer’s works form part of corporate and private collections in Australia, England, the United States and Singapore.

Among the porcelain on offer at the auction, a large pair of 1870s Belleek first period gilded porcelain urns (Lot 258 ) is bound to turn heads.

One of the unusual auction highlights is a limited edition Grand Orrery (Lot 415 ) featuring a circular brass plate engraved with the Zodiac signs, months of the year and the four seasons – surmounted by brass sun and geared arms supporting the planets and moons of Earth’s solar system.

Lot 416 is an unusual flintlock key pistol, while lot 419 is a circa 1895 Ernst Plank Gauge III Vulkan passenger set live steam European outline locomotive.

Established in 1866, Ernst Plank & Company began as a toy repair shop in Nuremberg, Germany.

At one time the second largest manufacturer of magic lanterns and named after its founder, the company also made steam engines, die cast metal planes, boats, cars, steamboats and sewing machines produced from pressed tin plate.

Often ornate in design, the toys were notable for their quality and more finely finished than those produced by other manufacturers at the time.

Among the many porcelain items on offer is a Japanese sake cup (Lot 482 ) by Aoki Mokubei (1767-1833).

Born into the Kiya family of restaurateurs, he adopted the surname Aoki only after he became a painter. Mokubei, one of the many artist’s names he created, dates from the time he became deaf from the noise of his ceramic kilns.

 

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About The Author

Richard Brewster has been writing about the antiques and art auction industry for almost 20 years, first in a regular weekly column for Fairfax's The Age newspaper and also in more recent times for his own website Australian Auction Review. With 45 years experience as a journalist and public relations consultant, in 1990 Richard established his own business Brewster & Associates in Melbourne, handling a wide range of clients in the building, financial, antiques and art auction industries.