Ottoman collection to go under the hammer

ISTANBUL

The 117x172 cm masterpiece named “Cariye/Odalisk” the largest work by İbrahim Çallı and estimated at 150,000 liras is the second highest priced work of this auction.

Beyaz Müzayede Auction House will organize an auction sale of a 20-year-old special collection of 918 Ottoman and imperial art works on May 10 and 11. The Beyaz Special Collection Auction and display of artwork will take place at the Zorlu Performing Arts Center.

The owner of the collection asked the auction house to set the starting price of each work of art and object quite below the minimum sales price, so that the final prices might be set according to demand during the auction days, thus hoping to achieve the sale of the complete collection composed of 918 valuable and rare works of art.

The most precious object of the auction is an incense burner adorned with jade, rubies and emeralds from the 16th century reign of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. This object has been put on sale for the price of 200,000 Turkish Liras.

Among the objects on sale, there will be many golden snuff boxes, coffee cup sheaths, cigarette cases and pocket watches, mostly enameled and adorned with numerous diamonds and other precious stones, specially designed for Ottoman Sultans and members of the imperial court.

Many very valuable objects reflecting Ottoman lifestyle, such as silver pen cases, ewers, candle holders, rice bowls, food plates, incense burners, rosewater sprinklers, decanters and inkpot sets bearing the seal of the Ottoman Sultan will be presented to art collectors, along with the sealed silver court objects, gold plated copper lanterns, plates, scepters, incense burners, rosewater sprinklers, Tophane ewers, milk jars, sugar pots and cups.

A rare 120-piece İznik collection is also part of the private collection on sale.  İznik China bowls, decanters, vases, mugs and plates from the 16th and 17th centuries are being auctioned at prices that will raise competition among the collectors.                    

A six-page “murakka” calligraphy and seven-day prayer collections of  Yakut İbn-I Abdü’l Musta’simi, who lived in the 13th century and is considered to be the greatest master of “hat” calligraphy art, may be the object of many collectors’ dreams. Qurans and prayer books of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries are also on sale at the auction. 

Masterpieces of the Ottoman and Republican-era art constitute another magnificent part of the auction: “Mist in the Bosphorus” by Şehzade Abdülmecit, “Oriental Istanbul Landscape” by Fabius Brest, “View of the Bosphorus from the House in Akaretler” by Fausto Zonaro, “Egyptian mother and child” by Halil Paşa, “Bosphorus” landscapes by Hoca Ali Rıza, “Beşiktaş Tobacco Warehouse” by Nazmi Ziya, “Mosque Interior” by Şevket Dağ, as well as a 28-piece collection by Avni Lifij.

The 117x172 cm masterpiece named “Cariye/Odalisk” the largest work by İbrahim Çallı and estimated at 150,000 liras is the second highest priced work of this auction.

Famous paintings by European Orientalists and fur bronze statues by Jean Leon Gérôme, one of the greatest masters of orientalist art, are also part of the collection on sale.

The artworks and objects on sale will be on display at the Zorlu Performing Arts Center Sky Lounge until May 9.