DEDHAM, MASS.- In addition to fine art, Grogan and Company’s May 20th auction will include a large collection of European decorative works of art and an impressive selection of Fine Oriental Rugs and Carpets. The auction, which will begin at 12 noon on Sunday, May 20th, will be comprised of over 600 lots of American and European Paintings, Prints and Sculpture of the 18th, 19th and 20th century, Old Master Drawings, American and Continental Furniture, Decorative Works of Art, Jewelry, Silver and Oriental Rugs and Carpets.

The fine art includes two provocative Black and White Photographs by New York artist and AIDS activist Robert Mapplethorpe include Ron Simms and Cock, and are estimated at $3,000-5,000 and $8,000-12,000 respectively. The featured, Josef Alber’s Homage to the Square, ‘Late Sound’, a 40 x 40 inch oil on masonite created in 1964 is estimated at $200,000-400,000 and Milton Avery’s Bird in Bay, a 22 x 28 inch oil on canvas is estimated at $50,000-10,000. An important work by Robert Koehler, At the Café, which was exhibited at the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893, has a presale estimate of $10,000-20,000 and a rare view of Baltimore Harbor by Italian artist Nicolino Calyo is estimated at $10,000-15,000.

Decorative Arts highlights include a fine Pair of Yellow Ground Ormolu Mounted “Sevres” Porcelain Vases, with figural reserves from a Newport, Rhode Island Lady, estimated at $10,000-15,000; a rare Cartier Miniature Enamel Travel Clock or “Pendulette de Voyage”, estimated at $3,000-5,000; and a Rare Chelsea Keramic Fish Platter, stamped Robertson & Sons, is estimated at $2,000-4,000. Hugh Robertson, one of the foremost American potters of the 19th century, established Dedham Pottery after Chelsea Keramic Art Studio closed in 1889. Native American offerings include a Navajo Wedge Weave Sash, possibly Bayeta, late 19th century, estimated at $4,000-6,000 and a Polychrome bird form decorated Pottery Storage Jar, is estimated at $3,000-5,000. A sparkling collection of fashionable Judith Leiber animal form handbags, from a Maine estate, have estimates ranging from $300 to $700.

The Chinese offerings are highlighted by a rare Qing dynasty Black Kesi Imperial Dragon Suit of Parade Armor expected to fetch $8,000-10,000 and a Pair of Chinese Blue and White Meiping Dragon Vases with a presale estimate of $2,000-4,000. In addition there are Chinese jades, ivories and cloisonné wares.

Property from the Estate of Lawrence Maguire, a Wellesley, Massachusetts Collector, includes a large collection of Old Master Drawings, including works in the manner of Guercino, Guido Reni, Hubert Robert and Nicolo Bambino, as well as Russian icons and fine European decorative works of art. Highlights from the estate include a pair of 40 inch Louis XVI Style Patinated and Bronze Figural Candelabra, estimated at $5,000-8,000, and a 19th century French Bronze and Marble Figural Mantle Clock, bearing a $5,000-7,000 estimate. An Empire Carved Giltwood Firescreen with a pre-sale estimate of $2,000-4,000, may have been part of a suite of furniture ordered by President James Monroe in 1817. The fifty three piece suite of furniture was commissioned from Parisian cabinetmaker, Pierre-Antoine Bellangé, after a fire in the White House destroyed the Elliptical Drawing Room (now the blue Room) and included two firescreens. In 1860, the Blue Room was renovated and each piece of the entire Bellangé suite was auctioned off individually to fund the project, however, in 1960, one of the pieces was discovered in White House storage, sparking Jacqueline Kennedy’s white house tour and her effort to return the Blue Room to it’s Monroe period splendor. Today several original, as well as, reproduction pieces from this suite have been reunited in the White House Blue Room.

American furniture highlights a Rare and Unusual American Carved Figured Mahogany Patriotic Center Table, circa 1840, with eagle carving and inlaid star top. Estimated at $10,000-20,000, experts have surmised that the exquisitely crafted table was possibly made for a prominent New England family with strong political connections. A circa 1820 Federal Carved Mahogany Fall Front Secretary, attributed to William Hook of Salem, Massachusetts, has an estimate of $5,000-10,000 and bears a plaque stating it was the property of Joseph Peabody (1757-1844), a merchant and ship owner who dominated trade between Massachusetts and the Far East in the early 19th century.

The auction will conclude with over 100 exceptional Rugs and Carpets from various owners and collectors. A Rare West Anatolian Village Rug from the late 17th century is expected to bring $10,000-20,000, while a Yellow Ground Kuba Long Rug has a presale estimate of $8,000-12,000. A circa 1825 Chinese Dragon Rug on an unusual apricot field with floating dragons is estimated at $2,000-4,000, and one of two 19th century French Aubusson Carpet’s is estimated at $8,000-12,000.

The auction will take place at Grogan and Company’s Dedham Gallery located at 22 Harris Street, Dedham, Massachusetts. The exhibition is open to the public and begins Thursday, May 17th. Hours: Thursday, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m – 6 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 12 noon.