Agnolo Bronzino, Portrait Of A Young Man With A Book, via Christie’s
The auction calendar kicks off with its first major sales of 2015 this week, as collectors of Renaissance and Classic works flock to New York City for Sotheby’s and Christie’s Old Masters week sales. With a group of sales lined up for each auction house in the coming days, and a number of impressive works available, the auctions should mark a strong start to the auction season.
Giovanni Antonio Canal (Canaletto), The Piazza San Marco: The Northeast Corner, And The Piazzetta: Looking East, With The Ducal Palace, via Christie’s
Leading the sales are a pair of lead auctions, beginning with Christie’s January 28th sale of Old Masters paintings, and a select sale of Renaissance works later in the day.  The Old Masters sale is topped by an extremely rare Caravaggio, billed as the earliest known work by the Italian master.  The work, featuring a young boy carving into a fruit, is estimated at $3,000,000 – $5,000,000.  Other highlights include a Canaletto diptych of the Piazza San Marco and the Piazzetta, estimated at $3,000,000 – $5,000,000.  The Renaissance sale is boasting the Bronzino work Portrait of a Young Man with a Book, estimated to sell for $8,000,000 to $12,000,000, leading the sales for the day.
Michelangelo Merisi Da Caravaggio, Boy Peeling A Fruit, via Christie’s
Canaletto, London, A View Of The Old Horse Guards And Banqueting Hall, Whitehall Seen From St. James’ Park, Via Sotheby’s
The following day, Sotheby’s will try its hand at both Old Masters and Renaissance works, opening a 93 lot sale of Old Masters works in the morning, led by its own Canaletto landscape of London’s St. James Park, estimated at $4,000,000 to $6,000,000 as well as a florid depiction of Noah’s Ark by Brueghel the Elder, which commands the estimate of $3,500,000 to $4,500,000.  The afternoon’s Renaissance sale is somewhat staid by comparison, with a $800,000 to $1,200,000 Girolamo Macchietti leading the sale.
Jan Brueghel The Elder, Paradise Landscape With The Animals Entering Noah’s Ark, via Sotheby’s
As the winter season turns towards February, this set of auctions should set the tone for the following weeks of Impressionist, Modern and Contemporary sales.  Stay connected with Art Observed for news and updates for the sale via our Twitter and Instagram.
Girolamo Macchietti, The Bacchanal Of The Andrians, via Sotheby’s
— D. Creahan
Read more:
Christie’s Old Masters Sale [Christie’s]
Christie’s Renaissance Sale [Christie’s]
Sotheby’s Old Masters Sale [Sotheby’s]
Sotheby’s Renaissance Sale [Sotheby’s]
“Old Masters Week at Christie’s New York features rare painting by Caravaggio” [Art Daily]
