No Slow Rounds At Christie's East September 11th (1991) Sale

by George O'Bannon

From Oriental Rug Review, Vol. 11/3

Although the Bush Administration cannot bring itself to declare that a recession has started, anyone who has traveled around the country in recent months cannot help but know that is the case. Without exception, dealers have been experiencing sharply slower business. One dealer candidly admitted that August's sales were only 30% of those for the same month in 1989.

Illustration 1, Lot 59, Chantae

Such being the case, we went to the first auction of the fall season with a degree of apprehension. Would the dealers be there? How much of their inventory had they sold over the summer? How would they gamble on their fall sales? Would collectors turn out for two very specialized lots of Baluch and Turkoman rugs? Were they feeling financially secure enough to provide good competition on the offered pieces? These were some of the negatives. On the positive side, Christie's was offering two strong collections. In April, 1989 they had sold J.P.J. Homer's collection of Turkoman rugs very successfully. In this sale they were offering his Baluch collection (57 lots). One of the attractions of the Homer sales is that the pieces are offered unreserved, a rare occurrence these days.

Keith Wayne, Christie's rug specialist, had also snared the Meyer-Muller Collection from Zurich. Essentially completed and documented in 1916, this famous collection contains about 180 rugs, the majority of which are in excellent condition. Because they are so numerous, the rugs will be auctioned over three sales. This was the first segment, and it was primarily Ersari Turkoman and Caucasian weavings. Many of these rugs are rare examples and could be expected to be sought by collectors. (On the downside Ersari rugs have not exactly led the Turkoman market and many of these seemed to be optimistically estimated.) Finally, the continually weakening dollar should encourage active participation by the European dealers and collectors. How would these countervailing forces affect this sale, we wondered?

Attendance at the preview was strong and, on auction night, the first floor gallery at Christie's East was packed to the rafters. It was an interested and ready-to-buy crowd and turned out to be the most animated Oriental rug auction we have ever attended in New York. At times during the presentation of the Homer lots it almost degenerated to the level of a good old country auction, down and dirty. But it was not only the Homer and Meyer-Muller lots which generated heat. Several of the various properties from ladies, gentlemen, and institutions provided some of the most spirited bidding on the floor. In short a good time was had by all -- consignors, bidders, and Christie's. All prices are hammer and do not include the 10% buyers premium.

The Warm Up, Lots 1-21

These lots covered a wide range from all weaving areas. Lot 1, Schurmann's Caucasian Rugs, only made a weak $260 (estimated $300-$400). Lot 7, Konya yastik, made $1,300 to the phone (estimated $600- $900). Lot 12, a rather ordinary Dragon sileh, sold for $11,000 (estimated $9,000-$12,000). Lot 20, Ferahan Sarouk, presented a medallion on an unpatterned ivory field; estimated at a very reasonable $6,000-$8,000, it was a steal at $4,800. Lot 21, Khamseh rug with a rare pattern and in excellent condition, also sold cheaply for $3,500 (estimated $5,000-$7,000). Of these lots five went unsold, and many were good buys -- not a strong start.

The Next Five Rounds The Homer Collection, Lots 22-78

Nothing lights the fire of a rug collector more than the prospect of a cheap buy, and the unreserved Homer lots presented that prospect. We say rug collector because, let's face it, there are not many dealers who are interested in Baluch rugs. These were collector lots, and dealers who wanted them would want them cheap. The most interesting aspect of the Homer lots was that they covered the gamut of Baluch weaving; they were not just Persian pieces or Afghan pieces. They were not only perfect pieces or worn pieces; they were both. All interests and markets were presented here.

They opened strong. Lot 22, Baluch gun cover, estimated $400-$600, sold for a surprising $750! Is this going to Afghanistan for presentation to a Mujjahadin hero? Gun cover? These are packing straps and nothing more, but collectors do love fantasy.

Lots 23-50 were the ones which gave the country auction feel to this sale. The prices were all over the place. Some pieces were literally given away and others brought way too much. In several cases on lots estimated in the $400- $600 range Mr. Wayne had to drop to opening bids as low as $50 to get an offer. The bidding then progressed in $10 increments back up to the original bid range. This took time. Sophisticates interested in more esoteric weavings were noted to breath deep sighs of impatience; Baluch collectors, on the other hand, seemed to love it. These lots were the least distinguished of the collection and the ones with condition problems. However, several lots such as 48, Timuri Carpet, estimated $3,000-5,000, with a main border not known to us, sold for only $2,400. This is cheap floorcovering. Lot 50, Timuri saddlebag, had great color and age and was picked up for $160 (estimated $300-$400). However, the punches began to fall more heavily for lots 51-78. These were the rarest pieces and those in best condition. Lot 52, Dokhtar-i-Ghazi prayer rug with cypress trees in the spandrels and mihrab, was the object of intense bidding between several collectors. Halting at $2,000, Jim Burns picked it up for the next bid of $2,200 (estimated $1,500-$2,000). (The only similar piece known to us sold from the Koelz estate at Christie's in April for $2,000.) Lots 53-56 were four balisht or sack faces in very good condition; they sold for $300 to $600.

A small saddlebag or chantae face, lot 59, only 1'5"x1'3", finely knotted and thin, produced one of the most spirited bidding duels (estimated $500- $700). Having dropped to a starting bid of $150, this piece proceeded slowly with many bidders in the action. It eventually narrowed down to a duel between New York collector Mark Feldman and dealer Louise Woodhead. When it appeared that Mark had the final bid, Wayne remarked that this was only about $140 per square inch and brought the gavel down for $1,400. A camel ground rug, lot 61 (see =ft.2ORR =ft.1X/6), made $2,400 (estimated $1,200-$1,800).

Lots 65-70 were a group of bagfaces, three of which were the archaic medallion type. Of these, lots 66 and 70 were the bestimated Lot 66 (estimated $900-$1,200) was of the mina khani type and made $1,800. Lot 70 was one of the best of the Homer lots. It had a cane design we had not seen before and was in excellent condition; it made a reasonable but not outrageous $3,200 (estimated $1,500-$2,000).

The other outstanding rug was lot 74. It had Turkoman kurbage guls and Tekke four-star border guls on the field. There were two reds, one of which was surely cochineal. The browns were corroded to perfection, low but not worn, so as to set off all elements in high relief. Estimated at $3,000-$4,000 it went to the famous Boucher collection for $8,500, which surely must be a world record for a Baluch rug of this type and size.

With the Homer lots finished, the mood became more serious.

Illustration 2, Lot 85, two Chinese mats

Lots 79-95, Not Exactly a Breather

These lots contained a few of the best pieces in this sale and deservedly brought some of the best prices. Lot 82, Chodor torba, (estimated $3,000-$4,000) was quite possibly the most attractive weaving of this Turkoman clan we have seen in a long time. The ever astute Lee Beshar picked it up for $2,800. Lot 85, two Chinese mats (estimated $250-$350), and lot 86, group of various rug fragments (estimated $900-$1,200), provided a lot of competition. The two very small Chinese mats, 1'2"x1'1" each, were much older than the circa 1900 date. The bidding started at $200 and Bausback, Woodhead, Barbara Sedlin and a phone bidder quickly took it to $1,000. The ladies took it higher and Sedlin won them for $1,400. The fragments were sought by a different group of bidders -- one hopes those who teach a course on Oriental rugs somewhere -- and were knocked down for a surprising $4,500. Dealers, there is gold in them thar scraps!

Illustration 3, Lot 94, Chinese rug with eight horses

One of the major lots of the evening was 94, Chinese rug with the Eight Horses design. This was the oldest rug of this type we have seen. One of the brown colors was corroded indicating a date much earlier than the catalog date of "last quarter of the 19th c." The horses were each disported in different positions and one had a beautiful Mongolian saddle rug on its back. In previewing the show, we thought to ourselves for the $2,000-$3,000 estimate we might even buy this rug. After fierce floor and phone bidding, it went to a European dealer for $27,000.

The Power Rounds, Meyer-Muller Lots 96-129

Because of the American embargo against Iranian rugs and the paperwork involved in clearing U.S. Customs, there were no Persian lots in this sale. They will be offered in the second and third auctions of this collection. The strength in this group were the Turkoman and East Turkestan lots. Although records on Ersari rugs are difficult to resurrect, we feel sure that the record for Ersari ensis was broken several times in this sale. All were in excellent condition. Lot 99, Ersari ensi, was the first Turkoman lot (estimated $4,000-$6,000); it sold on the floor for $9,000, surely a record. Lot 27 (estimated $6,000-$8,000) sold to Bausback for $9,500. Lot 123 with a rare design and incredibly fine wool went to Marvin Amstey for $12,000. Several of the pieces illustrated in Schurmann's =ft.2Central Asian Rugs =ft.1also did exceptionally well. Lot 105, Kepse gul Yomud main carpet (estimated $10,000-$15,000), sold on the phone for $17,000. The Bernheimer representative bought lot 110, Cloudband and 2/1/2 Medallion Beshir, for $15,000 (estimated $10,000-$15,000). The Chodor main carpet went to a New York dealer for $5,500 (estimated $6,000-$9,000). The rare boteh Beshir, lot 122, sold on the phone for $17,000. And perhaps the best buy of the evening, Lot 118, Beshir allover pattern with beautifully mottled green and blue ground, went to Jim Burns for $7,000. The only Baluch rug, Lot 126, a large Timuri carpet 6'11"x9'10", sold for a very reasonable $6,000 (estimated $5,000- $7,000). In our estimation the overall design concept of this rug is the finest we have ever seen in this type.

The rug which was the crowd favorite was Lot 128, Yarkand. Wrapped around the catalog cover and in many Christie's ads, this was was in "as new condition." The copper-red field was luminous and the majestic main trefoil border in red and green was powerful. Although the estimate was "0n Request," floor talk had this piece selling easily over $100,000. The bidding quickly turned into a phone war, with those on the floor clearly out of the action. It finally went for $130,000, purportedly to Halevim of Milan.

Illustration 5, Lot 123, Ersari ensi

The Warm Down, Lots 130-173

The balance of the sale consisted of the decorative Persian and European rugs. If there was a weakness in the sale, it showed up in this group. Particularly surprising were the Heriz area rugs; of 12 lots offered, seven failed to sell. If there was any sharp competition, it was for the European rugs. Lot 143, Aubusson Carpet, 16'3"x12'2", estimated $15,000- $25,000, for for $50,000. Lot 150, 12'x9' Arts and Crafts carpet circa 1930s with an open red field and simple floral border, estimated $5,000-$7,000, made $9,500. A beautiful condition Bessarabian kilim carpet, Lot 170, with a dark brown field and off-white oval medallion surrounded by flowers, made $20,000 (estimated $20,000-$30,000).

A Winner for Christie's Fall Opener

Despite the negative conditions in the market, the presence of two large groups of specific type of rugs brought out the buyers and sustained the other lots as well. The total value of the lots sold was $1,054,000 and 81% of lots sold. Several records were set: the Yarkand for East Turkestan rugs, Ersari ensis, and small Baluch rugs. It would appear that overall the prices on the Ersari pieces in general were 25%-30% higher than what is normal. However, the range of prices on the other lots tends to reinforce the general concensus that top quality, rare pieces will bring top prices and middle quality goods remain weak and bring middling prices. The Europeans did not have a field day but had good competition from American dealers and collectors, which indicates continued strength in the U.S. and that the cheap dollar is not necessarily giving the Europeans an advantage. One aspect of this auction caused some consternation during the sale and discussion after. In several instances after gaveling a lot sold, auctioneer Wayne noticed parties still interested in bidding and reopened the bidding. Dealers subjected to this action objected from the floor but were ignored. We asked Wayne about this later, and he said that the room was so full and wide that he found it impossible to see all potential bids even with his spotters. He felt he had no alternative but to reopen the bidding.

The dealers, on the other hand, expressed their belief that a major aspect anchoring the legitimacy of the auction process is that, when the hammer falls, it stays down. If another bidder didn't get his hand up soon enough or was not seen, such is the name of the game. And gaming is an aspect of the auction process.

Some people were under the impression that legally an auctioneer is bound to stick with a sale once the hammer falls, but in checking with Christie's public relations department, we were assured that such is not the case. In any event, this was about the only kidney punch in this entire auction.