Paris, 27 November 2012
On 4 December 2012, the auction house Artcurial will put on sale a collection of Lubia and Ernesto Wolf, at the Hôtel Marcel Dassault, Paris. Later, on 12 December 2012, a part concerning tribal art will be auctioned off.
The press release reminds that even if Ernesto Wolf is mainly known for his magnificent collection of Byzantine and Medieval cups, which he donated to the Landesmuseum Wüttemberg in Stuttgart, he was also a passionate collector of Modern Art, as well as of ancient books and Primitive Art. The auction is devoted then to his neglected facet. With his wife he purchased exceptional works, and that is how the collection is presented, as an assembly which “unveils a true cabinet of curiosities, which is witnessing a eclecticism of choice and the erudition of the collectors”.
The collection of Lubia and Ernesto Wolf consists of a number of illustrated books, from a precious manuscript Livre d’Heures by Master Falstoff and Robert Boyvin, estimated between 50,000 and 60,000 euros through Ars Moriendi by Nikolaus Goetz dated from 1479, estimated 300,000-500,000 euros, to works by Picasso, Chagall or Matisse. As for Modern Art, we can recall Georges Rouault with Clown de profil, estimated between 300,000 and 400,000 euros, or Tête by Max Ernst, valued between 80,000 and 120,000 euros.
Personnage debout, a marble statue from the 3rd millenium B.C. is one of the representative pieces of Islamic art and ancient Orient. Its price is estimated between 45,000 and 65,000 euros. As for the Medieval Art, Artcurial will be proud to offer the precious Gémellion - small bowl that was used for hand washing – in polychrome enamel, dated at the 13th century, while “African Art will be represented by the remarkable collection of spoons from almost every corner of the continent.”