Christie’s partners with Galerie Steinitz on Blockchain-recorded sales

by Arthur · September 5, 2022

Christie’s auction house has partnered with renowned French antique dealer of 18th and 19th century furniture and sculpture, Benjamin Steinitz, in a first for classical art: all 58 lots offered in the live auction. Provenance revealed: Galerie Steinitz September 21 in London will be registered and secured on the Blockchain through Artory, a world leader in art technology and blockchain-secured registration of physical artworks and collectibles.

Provenance revealed: Galerie Steinitz presents a remarkable opportunity for collectors to acquire a wide range of objects celebrating exceptional provenances – from the collections of 18^th– French royalty and aristocracy from the century, to the treasures of the 19th^thcentury’s industrial and financial titans, to parts that were part of the private worlds of the 20th^th20th century fashion designers, including Yves Saint Laurent, Hubert de Givenchy and Karl Lagerfeld. Estimated to realize in the region of £3.5 million, works from these historic collections will be on public view at Christie’s headquarters in London from 12 to 20 September.

Each of the lots will include secure, encrypted certification of the sale for the successful bidder, providing a permanent digital record of the artwork information.

This ground-breaking initiative aims to advance the decorative arts trade into a sophisticated new realm. The project synergizes Steinitz’s passion for uncovering and recording the provenance of works of art with the technology of blockchain, recognizing the importance of sharing the history of a work of art as a way of celebrating history – a legacy that Benjamin inherited and continues from his parents.

This initiative also demonstrates Christie’s commitment to Web3 and is a new step in its partnership with Artory after Christie’s became the first auction house to use blockchain technology to document provenance and art data from the sale of The Barney A. Ebsworth Collection of 20^th Century American Art in 2018.

Benjamin Steinitz said: “After the initial visual and emotional impact of discovering a work of art, revealing its history through its subsequent ownership is equally important, and a fundamental part of the work of art itself. We are very proud to see examples of our recent finds on display in some of the most prestigious museums, including the Louvre, Paris and the Museum of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco.

Together with Christie’s, our shared expertise and ‘savoir-faire’ has enabled us to present a superb selection of rare and important works of art, where their discovered provenance makes for fascinating reading and learning. We are very pleased to add this valuable data to the ‘Blockchain’ – a first in the history of decorative arts – through Christie’s collaboration with Artory; to create an eternal link between the artwork, its authenticity and its provenance. I hope people will enjoy discovering these works and their extraordinary history as much as I have.”

Christie’s Chief Executive, Guillaume Cerutti, said: “We are delighted to embark with Benjamin Steinitz, an antiquities dealer we respect and admire, on this innovative auction journey, celebrating our shared passion for the decorative arts, as well as securing tantalizing early provenances, including some recent discoveries, on the blockchain.”

Highlights

18th century

Highlights include Narcissus Contemplating His Image in Water, Paris School, recorded in the famous collection of Louis-Antoine Crozat (1699-1770), Baron de Thiers – son of the financier Antoine Crozat who was considered the ‘richest man in France.’ It is an exceptional 18th century marble sculpture of the subject with a beautiful patina (estimate £100,000-150,000). An Imperial Vienna porcelain breakfast dish – which would have been used for coffee and hot chocolate – brought by Marie-Antoinette from Vienna and given to her Lady in Waiting Louise-Henriette-Charlotte-Philippine, Duchesse de Duras, née de Noailles (1745-1832), who served as ‘dame du palais’ until the Revolution; it remained in the Noailles family until acquired by Galerie Steinitz (estimate: £40,000-60,000).

*Narcissus Contemplating His Image in the Water, Christie’s Images LTD. 2022*

19th century

Recorded in the famous collections of two financiers – that of Pierre-Paul-Louis Randon de Boisset (1708-1776) and then in the Rothschild family of Baron Edouard de Rothschild (1868-1949): a superb pair of Louis XVI ormolu-mounted jasper , bloodstone, green porphyry and red marble cups attributed to the Italian silversmith and bronze maker Luigi Valadier, approximately 1770 (estimate: £120,000-180,000). Also a pair of striking blue and white Ming porcelain vases mounted with finely chased Louis XV mounts in gilt bronze, (Est: £40,000-60,000, illustrated on the right), originally in the collection of Jules Porgès (1839-1921) who played a central role in the rise of the diamond and gold mining industry in South Africa.

A Pair of Italian Ormolu Mounted Jasper, Bloodstone,
green porphyry and red marble cups, Christie’s Images LTD. 2022

The 20th century

A set of eighteen gilt-wood chairs from Karl Lagerfeld’s Paris dining room (estimate: £25,000-40,000); an exuberant giltwood chandelier from the Paris home of Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé, which was acquired by Yves Saint-Laurent from the collection of Bernard Steinitz (1933-2012), Benjamin’s father (estimate: £60,000-80,000); and two charming late 17th-century Dutch polychrome painted ‘dummy boards’ from Hubert de Givenchy’s country house Manoir du Jonchet (estimate: £8,000-12,000).