Join Us on a Journey to Russia and Asia!

Imperial Art Objects from Danish Families

At 3 pm we look to Russia, where you can get a taste of history and the strong Danish-Russian relations of the past. One of the highlights is a pendant in the shape of an Easter egg from the acclaimed Fabergé workmaster August Holmström. The pendant originally belonged to the Grand Duchess Anastasia Mikhailovna of Russia and was later passed on to her daughter, Queen Alexandrine of Denmark.

We remain in royal circles with a photograph of Tsaritsa Maria Feodorovna by the photographer Alfred Pasetti, who took it in connection with the Tsaritsa's son, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia's wedding in 1894. Despite her grief concerning the recent loss of her husband, Tsar Alexander III of Russia, the Tsaritsa surprised everyone with her youthful beauty. The story goes that several of the guests at the wedding confused her with the bride. This copy of the photograph is dated 1911 and comes from descendants of the actress Johanne Luise Heiberg.

The tradition of visual art in Russia is strong, and at this auction, we also have a work by the artist Vladimir Donatovich Orlovsky, who has portrayed the rural life on a Russian farm. The work was acquired in 1910 by Jens Sophus Møller-Holst, who served as Danish consul in Riga, and the painting has since then been in the family's ownership.

Religious Figures and an Outdoor Luncheon

We begin the day even further east at 2 pm, with two religious figures from China. One is of gilt bronze and represents Buddha Shakyamuni, a figure of great importance in the traditional Buddhist faith. He was a philosopher and spiritual advisor who lived in India in the sixth century BC and is considered the founder of Buddhism. In the offered figure he is depicted in the characteristic meditation position on his lotus throne with his legs crossed at the ankles, the soles of his feet pointing upwards and his back completely stretched. He wears a headdress that symbolizes the highest form of enlightenment and transcendent wisdom within Buddhism. The figure is from the Qianlong period in 1736–1795. This is also the case with another religious soapstone figure in the shape of one of the 18 Luohans. They are often depicted in Buddhist art and represent Buddha's closest disciple.

The auction also features the finest decorative art from China, including two greenish "Yongzheng celadon" saucer dishes with faintly incised floral and lingzhi decoration from 1723-1735, not to mention a pair of colourful porcelain vases depicting a festive luncheon near a riverbank, where there is room for both a nap under a tree and storytelling from the party’s elder. The vases were acquired in China in 1950 by the present owner's father, who worked for the East Asiatic Company.