Europe

A week before Fonsie Mealy’s William Butler Yeats sale, the auctioneers’ neighbours, kith and rivals Mealy’s (20% buyer’s premium) had a couple of eyecatchers in its November 8 sale at Castlecomer.

The impact of the controversial 2016 cultural heritage bill has moved up the political agenda in Germany in the wake of the country’s recent elections.

After a two-year wait, lots from the defunct manuscript investment scheme Aristophil will be resold at the Drouot in Paris next month.

A sale devoted to pieces by French designers and held in the French capital proved to be a winning formula for Sotheby’s (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) latest auction in this category on October 31.

A newly discovered, hitherto unpublished painting by the French master Sebastien Bourdon is coming up for auction in Marseille at Maison R&C on November 16.

This collection of late Qing dynasty Chinese hair ornaments fashioned as bats, flowers and foliage and set with kingfisher feathers, coral, jade and pearls is part of a group of 30 lots from the collection of Evelyn Williams Medows Norie (1862-1915) which is on offer at Bruun Rasmussen on November 29.

Dating from 1812, this pair of terrestrial and celestial library globes of 12in (31cm) diameter was made by the well-known London firm of John & William Cary.

Artcurial’s (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) auction focus on Charlotte Perriand, the celebrated 20th century French designer and a current hot ticket in the design market, took the form of a select sale of just 20 lots chosen to showcase her strengths and versatility.

Among recent highlights at the Drouot in Paris, Beaussant- Lefèvre’s (21.53% buyer’s premium inc VAT) classic sale of Old Masters, furniture and works of art on October 18 produced a substantial €265,000 (£240,910) for a modestly estimated bronze of the goddess Diana.

Masters of Design are very much in the spotlight in Paris at the moment. A week after Artcurial’s Charlotte Perriand sortie on October 31, Sotheby’s Paris (25/20/12.5% buyer’s premium) was mounting its traditional autumn sale devoted to major works from the Art Nouveau, Art Deco, post-war and modern design periods.

TEFAF Maastricht has added ‘TEFAF Tribal’ as a new category to its 2018 edition in a move that points to the ongoing strength of the tribal art market.

The Louvre museum in Paris is hoping to raise more than £8m to buy a jewel-encrusted Book of Hours.