The term ‘heavy metal’ took on a whole new meaning at a recent Pennsylvania auction in which four pieces of circa-1882 Tiffany silver hammered nearly a quarter-million dollars.
Offered consecutively, a pair of sterling candelabra sold for $111,600 against an estimate of $60,000-$80,000; followed by a pair of silver bowls that were bid to $134,000 – more than twice the high estimate of $60,000. All four pieces exhibited the impeccable artistry for which antique Tiffany silver is so renowned.
“We knew the silver was special and of fantastic quality. There was tremendous interest, both before and during the auction,” says Morphy Auctions CEO Dan Morphy. “Even when the bidding on each of the Tiffany lots reached $80,000, there were still four active players, and at $90,000, there were three.”
After the auction, Morphy reported receiving several calls from silver aficionados who told him the candlesticks had easily outperformed an identical single example that appeared in a high-profile auction last year. “Apparently one candelabrum exactly like those in our auction sold for around $20,000 at one of the big New York auction houses several months ago. They’re obviously much more desirable as a pair.”
Could it have been a matched pair?
Urban Art & Antiques 