Christie’s will offer Global Treasury: The Life and Collection of Selim & Mary Zilkha on 6 February 2025 at Rockefeller Center in New York. The ensemble of rare works spans the Renaissance to the 19th century, linked by fine craftsmanship and notable provenances. Assembled as a modern Kunstkammer, an encyclopedic collection in the grand princely tradition, the group is singular among American collections.
Among the highlights is the Nero-Augustus Aldobrandini tazza, Netherlandish, 1587 to 1599, estimated at $2,000,000 to $3,000,000. A large South German silver-gilt nautilus cup, marked by Hans I Clauss of Nuremberg, circa 1630, carries an estimate of $700,000 to $1,000,000.
The sale also includes the only known complete set of 17th-century silver playing cards, signed Michael Frömmer, Augsburg, 1616, estimated at $500,000 to $800,000, and a Japanese lacquer commode by Joseph Baumhauer, estimated at $400,000 to $600,000.
Further lots include a pair of royal German silver-gilt ewers and sideboard dishes, marked by Conrad Hölling of Hannover-Neustadt, circa 1700 to 1724, estimated at $800,000 to $1,200,000, and a German parcel-gilt silver, enamel and gem-set ostrich-form cup and cover, marked by Andreas I Wickert, Augsburg, 1651 to 1654, estimated at $500,000 to $800,000.
(Press Release)
