ULTIME STORIE D'ARTE ARCHIVio 2022-23

Another successful, exciting and diverse auction season has drawn to a close. The classic collecting fields which we have been offering for several decades, such as old master paintings, Swiss art, and modern and contemporary art enjoyed good results. We also were entrusted with several high-calibre private collections in 2023, among them the Legrain Collection, with exquisite sculptures and objects from Greco-Roman and Egyptian antiquity.

Our auctions continue to focus on fine art, jewellery, wristwatches, decorative arts and Asian art, which have been an integral part of our auction programme for many years. At the same time, new categories have been met with great interest, especially among collectors of traditional art. In our new ‘Out of This World’ auctions, for example, within the past year we sold fossils of two of the most iconic dinosaurs: a Tyrannosaurus rex and a young Triceratops.

On the following pages you will find some of the highlights of the past auction year; the images and results speak for themselves. Further information about our past and future auctions can be found on our website.

We would like to thank you for continuing to place your trust in us in 2023 and wish you confidence, happiness and good health for the New Year.

This charming small-format painting depicts a scene not often represented in art: Apollo and the Cumaean Sibyl. The Sibyls were women with a special gift for predicting the future, associated with various temples in the ancient world. The Cumaean Sibyl’s temple was that of Apollo, near Naples. Ovid, in his ‘Metamorphoses’, recounts how the god himself approached her, desiring to take her virginity, in exchange for which he would grant her any wish.

Show full story >>

After a pause of three years due to the pandemic, Koller's Asian Art department was able to once again exhibit highlights from the upcoming June auctions at the prestigious International Fine Arts Fair (IAF) in Hong Kong from 27 to 30 May 2023.

The fair was particularly well-visited this year, and large numbers of collectors were present at Koller's exhibition space during the preview as well as the fair's four-day run.

The excellent turnout and reactions from the public bode well for the June Asian Art auctions as well as for Koller's continued presence in East Asia.

The buyer of Trinity, the Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton sold for CHF 5.5 million ($6 million) at Koller Auctions in Zurich on 18 April, is The Phoebus Foundation, a non-profit art foundation. Phoebus has announced their intention to show Trinity to the public in their ‘Boerentoren’ cultural centre project in Antwerp, designed by Daniel Libeskind.

The Boerentoren (literally translated as ‘Farmer’s Tower’, a nickname that stuck) was the first skyscraper in Europe, completed in 1931. In 2021, the tower, originally constructed as an office building with apartments, was purchased by The Phoebus Foundation, which will turn it into a public space in a few years. The entire building will be dedicated to culture, with extensive space for temporary and long-term exhibitions, a sculpture garden and a panoramic viewpoint, as well as numerous culinary experiences. Daniel Libeskind is currently working on the final designs to convert what remains of the original art deco building into a truly unique architectural landmark. The addition of Trinity to the collection of The Phoebus Foundation will only add to the Boerentoren’s appeal.

Trinity already enchanted approximately 35 000 visitors during a three-week exhibition at the Tonhalle concert hall in Zurich, and has been featured in countless press articles, television and radio broadcasts and blogs worldwide.

Lot 1232 - Decorative Arts - Thursday, 21. September 2023, 10.00 Uhr

Such birdcage automatons were often created as a collaboration of various specialized watchmakers and automaton makers from Neuchâtel and the Jura. They are witnesses of great skill and enjoyed great popularity in the period between 1780 and 1840. Among the most important watchmaking dynasties are the Robert, Jaquet-Droz, Frédéric Leschot, Maillardet, Fochat and Bruguier families. Others, such as François Nicole and Charles-Frédéric Nardin, specialized in the making of music boxes. The luxury objects resulting from this collaboration were often sold to the European aristocracy as well as to China, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire through Geneva-based makers and sellers, such as Jean-François Bautte (1772-1837), who signed the clock on offer. The founding of Bautte & Moynier dates back to 1791, when case maker Jean-François Bautte joined forces with watchmaker Dauphin Moulinié. The company was expanded in 1804 when watchmaker Jean-Gabriel Moynier joined, and thereafter operated as Moulinié, Bautte & Moynier, fabrique d'horlogerie. The luxury company employed about 60 workers and produced watches as well as jewelry of the highest quality. Bautte became one of the most important watch dealers in Geneva. After the departure of Moulinié around 1824, the name was changed to Bautte & Moynier.