DALLAS, TX.- Joseph and Sonia Zobel found their first Vienna bronze, a gift from an older relative who had brought it from her native Austria, over five decades ago, and it was love at first sight.

It is hard not to love these exquisite little bronzes, modeled and cast to the highest standards of Viennese craftsmanship honed by centuries of tradition, and beautifully painted in a subtle, naturalistic palette which brings them to life. The high point of production was from about 1895 until World War I, when production was interrupted by world events.

This short window of time at the end of a magnificent era became the Zobels’ hunting ground at a time, before the eBay tsunami, when precious little antiques could still be found in precious little antique shops, flea markets and the odd garage sale.

Joseph and Sonia did it right. Buying with discrimination, choosing only the best in condition, rarity and form, and keeping as many as their budget allowed. The rest they sold and traded over many years, setting up at regional antique shows where every aficionado knew, if you wanted a great Vienna bronze, see Joe Zobel, who had the stock and had literally ‘wrote the book’ on the subject.

Heritage Auctions will offer the Zobel Collection of Antique Vienna Bronzes in entirety, over 250 in all, representing every genre from the American West to the Arab World, India and the Far East. Selections from this collection will be offered over a series of auctions; Heritage’s February 25 Art of the West Showcase Auction includes a selection of 16 magnificent examples.

Highlights from the Zobel Collection in this auction include, but are not limited to:

• Carl Kauba Warrior Chief with Rifle (estimate: $4,000-6,000)

• Austrian School Figure of an Indian (estimate: $4,000-6,000)

• Austrian School Under the Tree, lamp (estimate: $1,500-2,500)

• Carl Kauba Mounted Brave with a Rifle (estimate: $1,500-2,500)

• Carl Kauba Chief, Standing with Rifle (estimate: $1,000-2,000)

• Franz Xaver Bergman Mounted Brave Drawing Bow and Arrow (estimate: $1,000-2,000)

The next installment of the Zobel Collection will be offered in Heritage’s Fine Furniture & Decorative Art Signature® Auction June 17, in which highlights will include:

• A Franz Bergman Cold Painted Erotic Bronze Geisha Figure, late 19th-early 20th century (estimate: $4,000-6,000)

• A Franz Bergman Tiger Hunt Cold Painted Bronze Figure, late 19th-early 20th century (estimate: $3,000-5,000)

• A Franz Bergman Arctic Fisherman Cold Painted Bronze Figure, late 19th-early 20th century (estimate: $2,000-4,000)

• A Cold Painted Vienna Bronze Egyptian Pharaoh Figure, late 19th-early 20th century (estimate: $1,200-1,600)