Christies Auction

[Ed]

For those of you who didn't see or participate in the sale. Selling and prices seemed to be mixed. Woodblocks, screens, various art work sold well with many lots selling under the estimates. One lot, a beautiful pair of six panel screens portraying groups of cranes sold for $95K.

 

Swords and fittings were mixed as well. Many swords did not sell, mostly the mid to high end items. The majority on lower end items sold at mostly reasonable prices. There were a couple of the higher end swords sold, but others did not. The Tokubetsu Juyo Bitchu Katana Nanbokucho period, attributed to the Aoe school sold but for the low end of the estimate at a mere 100K. The Juyo Bizen Tachi in Ito-Maki Tachi Mounts Kamakura period, signed Kunimune with and estimated price of $100-120K, went unsold. The high bid on it only reaching $75K. The only sword which sold at well over the estimated price was a Juyo Hizen Katana in Koshirae, signed Hizen ju Harima (no) kami Fujiwara Tadakuni (Shodai). The estimate was $50-60K and it sold at $75K Neither of the Kiyomaro's sold. The one with the hagire did receive bids up to $32K, but failed to reach the low estimate of $35K.

 

Tsuba prices went anywhere from fair to incredibly freaking nuts!! Several so-so tsuba with estimates at $800-$2k sold for $5K (??). The highest price for a tsuba was seen on a tokubetsu papered, Edo period (19th century), signed Yoshu Matsuyama ju Ochi Michitsura with an estimate of $2.5-3K. This tsuba sold for $75K, add the seller's fees of 25% and that totals $91,000!!! Now I am no tsuba expert, so I would like to know, is this some spectacular maker that I have never heard of ?? Granted it was a nice tsuba, but jeez! I suppose each to his own, but I think it became a bidding contest between two guys who both had deep pockets. Mano a Mano. Again, if one of you tsuba pro's can enlighten me, please do.

 

Personally, I was waiting on the last tsuba offered and expected it to go for much higher. Had I known what I would get it for, I would have bid on several others. I was happy to get it and a mitokorimono for prices which I can live with even after adding the sellers fees. :D

 

Sooo, did any of you guys score the piece of your dreams ?? (Quiet Milt, I am referring to the auction). If so, lets hear about it.

[Bungo]

" One lot, a beautiful pair of six panel screens portraying groups of cranes sold for $95K. "

 

people paid for this for the frame OR the paintings ?

 

I have been collecting paintings ( full, not trimmed ) cut out from the panel screen for years now. They are same as scroll except mounted onto screen.

 

Since it is hard to sell full size screen ( shipping fee kills you ) and most Japanese homes are too small to accommodate these giants, they remove the paintings and sell them piecemeal..... 6 to a screen and I sure did not pay even 950

 

p.s. examples of the paintings I am yapping about.........

http://www.esnips.com/web/sujikabutosPh ... e=53#files

 

 

milt the ronin

[Ed]

These were full screens.

Sorry I forgot to include the estimate in my original post, this was an example of items selling well below the estimate.

 

These were exquisite works of art by the famous Maruyama Okyo which were estimated at $300-400K. They have been exhibited around the world, and published in multiple books.

Maruyama Okyo (1733-1795)

Cranes

Each signed and dated An'ei kinoe-uma moshu (seventh month, 1774) sha Okyo, each sealed Okyo no in

Pair of six-panel screens; ink, color and gold leaf on paper

61 5/8 x 137¼in. (156.5 x 349.6cm.) (2)

Provenance Konoe Family

Duke Konoe Fumimaro (1891-1945), Tokyo

Baron Mitsui Takaharu (1900-1983), Tokyo

[Brian]

Thanks for the summary Ed, much appreciated.

 

I can't get my head around that tsuba. $3K estimate going for $75K?!

Anyone got a pic of this one?

Wow..that must be some maker there. You can pay for half a really nice house here with that. And it is tough getting that price for some Juyo level swords!

Very interesting. Hope none of the buyers missed that increase in buyers fees that Curran spoke about.

 

Brian

[Ed]

Brian,

I don't have the catalog or I would scan a photo of the tsuba. If someone else has the catalog it was lot #353.

If there is an explanation Pete, or Curran will educate us.

[myochin]

Hello,

 

Here is a picture of the tsuba you mention.

I was surprised to see that the Higo koshirae (lot 327) went unsold AGAIN (it was also offered by Christie's in London last May. Can anyone comment on the possible reason why ?

 

Paul.

[Curran]

Uhmm...

 

What the hell? You sure it went for $75k?

 

I was there on Saturday. I went over the items. I was thinking of bidding on a ko-akasaka w/ Toku Hozon papers, but did not. Another favorite was the Octopus tsuba. I looked up the maker and thought the estimate was a bit high.

 

My wife and I saw it in hand. The copper had been discolored on the back. A little on the shiny side.

 

I showed several of the Higo tsuba to my wife and let her get a good whiff. They'd obviously been repatinated.

 

You sure about it going for $75k ? I've seen stranger things happen. An $8000 NBTHK Hozon papered in mint condition not going for $2000, and then the opposite- a kodogu set I could buy privately for $3500 ends up selling for $21,000. But $3k to $75k is a bit of a jump that I don't understand. Maybe Peter can explain it.

 

Curran

[Pete Klein]

Looks to me like a bunch of suckers.

[Ed]

Curran,

Yes, I am sure. See the following link to the "auction results" page , scroll down to lot 353. There it is in B/W, $91,000 (Total including fees).

 

I knew it was nothing more than bidding frenzy, my gut told me so. However, as I am nowhere as experienced as you and Pete, I wanted to stay open minded, in hopes for an educational experience.

 

Thanks Pete, very eloquently stated. :lol:

I agree.

 

http://www.christies.com/auction/results/results_lotlist.asp?saleno=NYC1876&page=3

 

In regards to the Koshirae (#327). It as well is one of those which go unexplained. I suppose it is simply that no one wants to spend that much on a Higo koshirae. There is another Juyo Higo Koshirae on one of the commercial sites at around the same price. It has been up a few weeks and has not sold either. While you and I may appreciate the subtle beauty of such a koshirae, much as did the Samurai, the buying masses seem to want flash for the cash. Many of todays new "collectors" are buyers, not collectors. (see above tsuba discussion).

[Curran]

Dear Ed,

 

Thank you for the link. I looked over the results vs. my own notes. Many of the high results were on tsuba that my wife found visually appealing with no regard to their schools of origin. Suddenly some Shoami tsuba seem worth $30,000.

 

That is the pattern I percieve in the results. Some people seem to have money to burn and have found an interest in fittings. Perhaps Peter said it better.

 

The Tokubetsu Hozon Ko-Akasaka went for about what I was prepared to bid on it, and some other items went for about right to slighthly higher values, but others like the Octopus tsuba, a Saotome, etc.- that is just a bit surprising. Maybe Christies has gotten into the money laundering business? But the 25% commission is one heck of a drawback.

 

Curran

(finance professional / reluctant professional gambler)

[Brian]

What boggles my mind is that if you put that tsuba on eBay and covered the mei, I doubt it would have reached even close to the original estimate of $3K.

Some would have even called it flashy Chinese work.

I guess that is going to be the benchmark now, and sales of similar tsuba are going to be referencing it for years to come. Just means the tsuba guys get to pay more for their next pieces based on one sale.

 

Brian

[Bungo]

I guess that is going to be the benchmark now, and sales of similar tsuba are going to be referencing it for years to come. Just means the tsuba guys get to pay more for their next pieces based on one sale.

 

Brian

 

I just raise the price on my tai fish tsuba by 330000.00 UNITED STATES DOLLARS ( three hundred thirty thousand )per pound.

 

milt the Nigerian ronin

[Bungo]

Looks to me like a bunch of suckers.

 

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/20/busin ... xMq0NUYEKA

 

 

European " suckers" ? 50 % off everything .

Our USD is fast turning into funny money.

 

milt the ronin

[nagamaki - Franco]

I just raise the price on my tai fish tsuba by 330000.00 UNITED STATES DOLLARS ( three hundred thirty thousand )per pound.

 

milt the Nigerian ronin

 

That's right better double that $33000.00 Milt, the dollar = 1 Canadian dollar now, in a few more years it will be almost worthless.

[rkg]

Hey guys,

 

On the crazy high tsuba, you'd have to look at the winning bidder and the seond high one - rumor has it that there are a couple of crazy(rich) tsuba collectors out of Europe that tend to bid up stuff to stupid prices, usually when one finds the other is interested in/is bidding on a particular piece...

 

rkg

[Darcy]

Pretty sad all told. Stunned that the Kunimune did not get more than $75k. I thought it would go for at least double.

 

Nobody has any money.