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Zsolnay Ceramics Auction Ends with a World Record Bid

MTI-Hungary Today 2024.11.14.
A Zsolnay Romanesque vase at the winter auction of the Virág Judit Gallery in December 2023.

A fruit bowl sold for a world-record HUF 28 million (EUR 68,600 / EUR 1=HUF 408) at the Zsolnay auction of the Virág Judit Gallery. The fourth Zsolnay auction held by the Virág Judit Gallery was a sell-out event in Budapest.

The event saw the auction of 66 museum-quality, high-value, and exceptionally beautiful ceramics, most of which came to Hungary from San Francisco, United States.

Not only the objects, but a lot of bids came from overseas. After 150 years, Zsolnay is still one of Hungary’s best-selling brands, with collectors paying fortunes for rare or exceptionally beautiful pieces,

the gallery told MTI.

Anna Kelen auctioneer’s hammer closed the auction at HUF 28 million, a world record price for one of the most anticipated lots. The fruit bowl is a Zsolnay masterpiece with an erotic touch, the Bacchanalia fruit bowl with faun and nymphs from 1910. The world record was set at last year’s auction, when a Zsolnay piece also fetched HUF 28 million.

Bidding closed at HUF 20 million for a piece with a mythological theme. The masterpiece, depicting women picking fruit, dazzles the eye with its deep blue and gold eosin glaze.

An Art Nouveau vase with a night panorama went for HUF 16 million, while a vase with a leopard motif was sold at HUF 15 million.

Among the lots were several rarities, including a Tulip Vase, for which its new owner paid HUF 13 million. A vase with tulip buds fetched HUF 8.5 million, a “frog” vase from the Venetian series from 1902, and a vase painted with lilies of the valley were worth HUF 8 million. Two ceramics sold for HUF 7.5 million, with the crystal vase starting at HUF 1 million.

Mihály Munkácsy's Painting Sold for a Record Sum at Auction
Mihály Munkácsy's Painting Sold for a Record Sum at Auction

The painting, Rendezvous by the Window, was painted in France and was acquired by a Hungarian art collection.Continue reading

Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Mohai Balázs


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