NEW YORK, NY.- In a packed sales room with spirited bidding from clients both in the room and participating over the phone, the auction of African and Oceanic Art from the Collection of Frieda and Milton Rosenthal surpassed pre-sale estimates, bringing $10,859,944 (est. $6,849,500/ 10,808,000). This offering represents the most important collection of African and Oceanic Art to be offered in forty years in New York and is the highest total for a single-owner sale of African and Oceanic Art in New York. Three works sold for over $1 million: the Senufo Primordial Couple, bringing $4 million; An East Sepik River, Sawos, Ancestral Malu board, which achieved $1,314,500; and a Kota reliquary guardian figure, which realized $1,058,500. The sale was 86.7% sold by lot with 70% of the sold lots achieving hammer prices at or above their estimates.

Jean Fritts, Worldwide Head of African and Oceanic Art, said “More than forty years after the landmark sale of The Helena Rubinstein Collection in New York, Sotheby’s again brought the market of African and Oceanic Art to a new level. The Rosenthal Collection is the highest total for a single-owner sale of African and Oceanic Art in New York. We are extremely pleased with the results, which exceeded the high estimate. It has been the greatest honor for Sotheby's to sell African and Oceanic art from the Collection of Frieda and Milton Rosenthal. The collection is one of the last great historic American Collections in the field. The strong participation witnessed today demonstrates, even amid challenging economic times, the continued enthusiasm of collectors who are dedicated to acquiring rare works of exceptional quality and provenance. It is interesting to note that 50% of the buyers of the top ten works were American, and 50% were European, underlying the global reach of this market.”

Heinrich Schweizer, Head of the African and Oceanic Department in New York, said, “Today’s results are exceptional given the current economic climate. The fierce competition across the sale indicates that important works in this category are still undervalued. This is further demonstrated by the many world records achieved today, which include the Senufo Primordial Couple, the Sawos, Ancestral Malu board, the Kota reliquary guardian figure, and the Easter Island Male Figure, all of which achieved records in their category. The Rosenthal Primordial Couple achieved an outstanding price of $4 million, within its estimate of $3/5 million, the highest estimate ever placed on a work of African art at auction.”

The centerpiece of the auction was Lot 63, a Magnificent and Highly Important Senufo Pair of Male and Female Ancestor Figures, Ivory Coast, also known as the Rosenthal Primordial Couple. The male and female ancestor figures were sought after by at least three bidders, two of which were in the room, before selling for $4,002,500 (est. $3/5 million) to a client on the phone. This is a world record for a Senufo sculpture at auction. The sculptures are unique to African history because they have survived intact as an original pair commissioned to celebrate the founding ancestors of a Senufo community. These iconic works were formerly in the collection of Vice President Nelson A. Rockefeller, a powerful promoter of African Art in the United States and have been exhibited and published extensively over the past forty-five years. Nelson Rockefeller had purchased the Primordial Couple at the Klejman Gallery in 1961, and the Rosenthals acquired them at Sotheby’s Parke-Bernet in May of 1967 at an auction to raise money for The Museum of Primitive Art, a private initiative of Nelson Rockefeller, which was subsequently transferred to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it forms the core of the Department for the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas.

There was enthusiastic bidding for a rare East Sepik River Sawos Ancestral Malu Board from New Guinea, which surpassed its high estimate, bringing $1,314,500 (Lot 64, est. $600/900,000), a record for a Sawos sculpture at auction. Carved with stone or shell tools in the pre-contact period, the abstract board is overlaid with layers of red ochre, black and white pigment. This openwork form panel has an anthropomorphic face at top, the body diffusing into leaf shapes which evoke faces of multiple ancestors. Another highlight of the sale was a Kota Reliquary Guardian Figure which sold to applause for $1,058,500 (Lot 55, est. $300/500,000), more than double its high estimate and a record for a Kota sculpture at auction. This sculpture, from the Sebé River region, belongs to a group of four figures which are believed to represent the archetypal quintessence of Kota statuary.

An Easter Island Male Figure, Moai kavakava, carved of wood with eyes inset with obsidian and bone brought $614,500 (Lot 94, est. $250/350,000), a record for an Easter Island sculpture at auction. This work depicts a figure standing on bent legs arched forward, with a large head pitched forward with an expressionistic face and inset eyes. A Rare Austral Islands Stool, carved with stone and shell tools in from one piece of wood in the pre-contact period, fetched $386,500 (Lot 114, est. $250/350,000), a record for an Austral Islands sculpture at auction. This elegant abstract carving, one of the best examples of its type, was sold at a record price at Sotheby’s London in the sale of the George Ortiz Collection, the world renowned collector of ancient and tribal arts, in June of 1978.