Pair of Chinese Export elephant-form tureens, covers and stands, Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period Courtesy of Sotheby s
Quarantines and lockdowns are downers. But nesting is human nature, and decorating is fun. Judging from last week’s Americana auctions in New York, there is lots of interest in the best American antiques from both longtime collectors and the new class of homeworkers.
Sotheby’s Important Americana Furniture and Folk Art sale on 21 January seemed low voltage until an ormolu-mounted, parcel gilt, rosewood and marble-top pier table from 1808-12, with a $30,000-$50,000 estimate, rocketed to $403,200. It is labeled and stamped by the French émigré maker Charles-Honore Lannuier, a famous enough name, but has never been published or sold in the open marketplace and is in pristine condition down to its original Carrara marble top. A sublime example of the New York Federal-era taste for French style and it seems that is still a winner.