South African art, collectables and furniture go under the hammer

Bernardi Auctioneers are having their first SA art, collectables and furniture auction on Saturday, February 23 at Bernardi Place at 65 Thomson St, Colbyn, Pretoria at 10am.

Viewing will be from Wednesday, February 20 to Friday, February 22 from 10am to 5pm and on the morning of the auction.

The two-session auction is made up of 154 lots of select South African art, sculpture, collectables and furniture. Session one: Collectables come under the hammer at 10am featuring several lots of silver flatware, hollowware and table appointments.

Of particular note are 24 pieces of William IV Kings Pattern cutlery and a set of 4 Webb & Corbett crystal spirit decanters from a vintage Rolls Royce.

Nineteenth century Chinese porcelain follows, together with Spode and Royal Albert dinner and tea-wares – also sought after Linnware vases and a magnificent fruit bowl.

A selection of Italian Murano art glass including a clown, a Tutti-Frutti bowl, an Archimede Seguso fish and Futura portrait frames are bound to pique the collectors’ interest.

Furniture and embellishments conclude the first session with a Georgian travelling canteen, a William IV card table, assorted Victorian chairs and a sofa table.

The star lot is a Scottish Victorian cast iron garden table with 4 matching chairs and an umbrella stand, manufactured by Falkirk Iron Works – the company synonymous with the famous SA three-legged braai potjiepot.

Session two: Art and Sculpture will commence at 11.30am with 87 selected lots – the highlights being Rorke’s Drift pottery pieces, Walter Battiss’s watercolour Syringa tree, early oils by Adriaan Boshoff, an evocative Peter Clarke linocut The Visitor, WH Coetzer’s Chelsea Evening dated 1930, Zakkie Eloff wildlife studies, Otto Klar pastels and oils, iconic JH Pierneef Bosveld watercolour and pencil studies, a moody Florence Zerffi View of the Winelands oil and striking Ulrich Schwanecke watercolours. – Citizen reporter