NEW YORK, NY.- Hot on the heels of its record-breaking sale of the Grimani tables last December, Sotheby’s London will present a selection of 460 fascinating royal and aristocratic heirlooms in its “Of Royal and Noble Descent” auction on 19 January 2016. This year’s exciting group of Old Master paintings and sculpture, furniture, decorative arts and vertu is spearheaded by works of arts that formerly adorned the Palazzo Sacchetti - the famous Renaissance palace in the heart of Rome whose spectacular interiors feature in Paolo Sorrentino’s multi-award winning film The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza). The sale is further distinguished by property from the collections of important European dynasties and institutions, such as the R.C. Diocese of Haarlem-Amsterdam, formerly at the Bishop’s Palace, personal gifts given to Chancellor Bismarck and a collection of medals and military decorations from Count Robin de La Lanne Mirrlees, a friend of Ian Fleming’s who inspired Sir Hilary Bray, Bt in ‘Her Majesty’s Secret Service’.

Discussing the forthcoming sale, João Magalhães, Sotheby’s Specialist in Continental Furniture, said: “Ever since their inception two years ago, our Of Royal & Noble Descent sales have captured the imagination of collectors. This year’s selection includes fascinating items from distinguished German, English, Dutch, Portuguese and Italian aristocratic families. Having survived through inheritance, many of these treasures have never been seen by the general public and their appearance at auction offers a unique opportunity for discerning collectors to acquire them.”

Works of Art from Palazzo Sacchetti, Rome Sold to benefit the Giulio and Giovanna Sacchetti Foundation
Taking centre stage this winter are 164 lots from Palazzo Sacchetti, home to the Sacchetti family, one of the oldest and most influential Italian dynasties whose history is closely linked to Rome’s political and artistic life. The interiors of the palace are among the most spectacular of the city and this is reflected in the furniture and works of art to be offered in January. The proceeds of the sale will benefit the Giulio and Giovanna Sacchetti Foundation.

Giovanna Sacchetti: “The Giulio and Giovanna Sacchetti Foundation was established on 19th July 2013 with the purpose of protecting, preserving, promoting and enhancing historical, cultural and artistic heritage with emphasis on to the city of Rome and to promote research and scientific development with particular focus on degenerative diseases of the Autonomic Nervous system. The proceeds of this sale will be donated to these benevolent causes”.

Highlights include:

• After models by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680) and his workshop, Rome, late 17th - early 18th century Bronze sculptures of Saint Catherine and Saint Agnes Est. £8,000-12,000 / €11,400-17,000
These beautiful figures from the Palazzo Sacchetti Sacchetti are among a handful of small bronzes that have been associated with the master sculptor of the Roman Baroque, Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The two saints, Agnes and Catherine, appear to have been cast after models designed for the figurative scheme of the colonnade framing Saint Peter’s Square, where monumental versions in stone survive today. It is thought that the Colonnade figures were modelled by Bernini’s assistants after the master’s designs, and the statues of both Catherine and Agnes have been attributed to Lazzaro Morelli, one of Bernini’s gifted pupils.

PROPERTY OF A PRINCELY FAMILY FROM THE KINGDOM OF THE TWO SICILIES
The top lot of the January sale is an unprecedented group of pieces from the famous Farnese Service. Produced circa 1784-88 by the Neapolitan ‘Real Fabbrica Ferdinandea”, the service was the first to be produced at the factory featuring landscape decoration of neo-classical type. Very few of his pieces seem to survive in private collections, and with the infrequency of pieces appearing at auction, the Farnese service has acquired an air of mystery. It is extremely rare that such a group of pieces should come to auction together; only a handful of pieces have appeared at auction in recent years (est. £100,000-150,000 / €142,000-213,000).

PROPERTY OF THE PRINCELY HOUSE OF BISMARCK
The sale will also feature an eclectic group of objects celebrating German Chancellor and father of German unification Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898). This fascinating ensemble comes from the Bismarck Museum which was established in the Bismarck family estate in Schönhausen, currently in Saxony-Anhalt, in 1891 to serve as memorial to the great Prussian statesman. The collection comprised an assortment of personal memorabilia – mostly gifts from all corners of the Germany Empire. Following the end of World War II, Schönhausen fell in the Soviet occupied zone and consequently the Bismarck estate and museum collection was confiscated by the communist regime in 1945, and Schönhausen demolished. After the reunification, a Bismarck museum was re-established on the estate in 1998 and the pieces to be offered are the result of the restitution process “Ausgleichleistungsgesetz” (Compensation Act) having been returned to their rightful owners, the Bismarck family.

• A large scale German gilt-bronze mounted sculptural drinking horn probably Berlin, late 19th century Est. £4,000-6,000 / €5,700-8,500 This vessel was a personal gift of the German Emperor Wilhelm I to Bismarck

• A monumental German ship’s model of the ‘Reichspostdampfer’ Prinz Regent Luitpold, late 19th century 125cm. high, 330cm. wide, 70cm. deep. Est. £15,000-25,000 / €21,300-35,500
The ‘Reichspostdampfer’ Prinzregent Luitpold, together with her sister ship the Prinz Heinrich, was one of the two steam driven two propeller ships built in 1893 by F. Schichau in Gdansk for the North German Lloyd (NDL). The ship was named after the Prince Regent Luitpold of Bavaria. The single chimney ships were especially prepared for trips to the tropics and proved themselves worthy of such long journey.

PROPERTY OF THE COUNTS DE LA LANNE-MIRRLEES
Another highlight in the sale is a collection of medals and military decorations from the collections of Major General William H. B. “Reay” Mirrlees C.B., D.S.O., M.C. (1892- 1964) and his stepson Count Robin de la Lanne-Mirrlees (1925-2012). Count Mirrlees served in the Royal Artillery in India but is largely remembered as the man who was an inspiration for the creation of James Bond’s nom de plume Sir Hilary Bray, Bt and for many elements of 007’s character, including the Bond family motto: “The World is Not Enough” (est. £2,500-4,000 / €3,550-5,700).