Hamburg (kk) - Ketterer Kunst is meeting the interest in this field mounting worldwide by holding an auction of works by Old Masters and Art of the 19th century at Meßberg 1 in Hamburg on October 28, 2006. The two fully illustrated catalogues with works ranging from Rembrandt to Menzel will contain roughly 500 works carrying estimates of € 150 to
€ 150,000.

Leading off the devision of OLD MASTERS is Harmensz. Rembrandt von Rijns etching “Christus heilt die Kranken” [Christ healing the sick]. Carrying an estimate of € 30,000- 35,000, the work dates from 1649 and is also known as the “Hundred Guilder sheet”. It is regarded as one of the most important works in Rembrandt’s œuvre. It was one of his most popular works already during his life time.

Another highlight is Albrecht Dürer’s “Die Marter der Zehntausend” [“The Ten Thousand Martyrs on Mount Ararat”]. Here the master chose a motif that was extremely popular in the late Middle Ages, one which he also used for a panel painting commissioned by the Elector Frederick the Wise. Carrying an estimate of € 20,000-25,000, the Dürer woodcut is notable for the attention lavished on varying anatomical details in the figures to enliven the overall composition.

The round Crispijn de Passe copperplate engraving “Die zwölf Monate” [“The Twelve Months”] is carrying an estimate of € 12,000- 14,000. This complete cycle of the twelve months of the year, each allotted its sign of the Zodiac, depicts seasonal scenes from peasant and court life.

In addition to the oil painting “Equestrain on a Bridge …” [“Reiter auf einer Brücke …”] by a follower of Aelbert Jacobsz. Cuyp (estimate: € 5,000-7,000), two washed pencil drawings (c. 1750) by Johann Wolfgang Baumgartner represent further highlights. Both the Baumgartner “Parkszene mit Nischenbrunnen” [“Park Scene with Alcove Fountain”] and his “Hafenansicht mit Palast” [“Harbour View with Palace”] carry estimates of € 9,000-12,000.

The division of ART OF THE 19TH CENTURY, in fact the entire auction, will be led off by Adolph von Menzel’s 1869 “Chorgestühl im Dom zu Mainz” [“Chancel Pews in Mainz Cathedral”]. In it the artist has gone far beyond detailing a church interior. He has adroitly used the play of light to plunge the scene in painterly light and shade, thus lending it a sophisticated dramatic quality.

The celebrated Philipp Otto Runge cycle of four copperplate engravings is one of the great masterpieces of Romantic period prints to go under the hammer. It is the extraordinary quality of the renowned “Die Vier Tageszeiten (Die Zeiten)” [“The Four Times of The Day (The Seasons)”] cycle that made it exert a lasting influence on artists such as Karl Friedrich Schinkel and Moritz von Schwind. It carries an estimate of € 28,000-35,000.

In a rather more moderate bracket (estimate: € 15,000-20,000) is the Klavdiy Vasilievich Lebedev “Porträt eines Jungen mit blondem Haar” [“Portrait of a Youth with Fair Hair”]. This Russian oil painting exemplifies the strong influence exerted by West European and especially German art on Russian art up to about 1900 and is a prime example of work from the early heyday of Russian painting that would culminate in the cosmopolitan avantgarde of the 1920s.

An 1820 Johann Georg von Dillis painting, “Waldweg am Fluß” [“Forest Track along the River”], carrying an estimate of € 10,000-15,000 is bound to make for excitement in the auction room. It anticipates by several decades the breakthrough to open-air painting. Typical of the work of Henrick Jacobsz. Dubbels, which hangs in the Stockholm National Museum and the Budapest National Museum as well as other institutions, is the decorative treatment of the waves, which catches the eye in an oil painting attributed to him, “Segelboote in frischem Wind vor Amsterdam” [“Sailing Vessels in a Stiff Breeze off Amsterdam”]. Carrying an estimate of € 9,000-11,000, this work by the Dutch artist leads off in the MARINE ART section.

Other notable works in the same section are the Johannes Holst “Schraubendampfer ‘Falkenstein’ auf hoher See” [“The Steamship ‘Falkenstein’ on the High Seas”] (estimate: € 2,500-3,000), a matching pair of paintings by Girolamo Gianni (estimate: € 2,500-3,000) and the Robert Schmidt-Hamburg oil painting “Im Golf von Neapel” [“In the Bay of Naples”](estimate: € 3,000-4,000).

Entirely appropriate to the auction location are works by north German artists, including Albert Aereboe’s “Kürbisstilleben” [“Still Life with Pumpkin”] (estimate: € 6,000-8,000) and Thomas Herbst’s “Kuhhirtin auf einem Waldweg” [“Woman Herding Cows on a Forest Track”] (estimate: € 5,000-7,000), and especially the Fritz Overbeck oil painting “Bäume an der Aue im Sommerwind” [“Trees on the Aue in a Summer Breeze”], carrying an estimate of € 12,000-14,000.

Pre-sale viewings of all works are scheduled for the following dates and times in Hamburg: 
October 12-14 from 11am to 5pm 
October 23-25 from 11am to 5pm
Ketterer Kunst, Am Meßberg 1

Selected works will also be shown in Munich:
October 18-20 from 11am to 5pm 
Ketterer Kunst, Prinzregentenstr. 61

Since it was founded in 1954, Ketterer Kunst has been firmly established in the front ranks of auction houses dealing in art and rare books. While our Munich headquarters in the Prinz-Alfons-Palais is responsible for the two traditional annual auctions of Modern Art & Post War, the Meßberghof in Hamburg is the venue for two auctions a year each based on the following fields: Old Masters and Art of the 19th Century/Marine Art and Rare Books - Autographs - Manuscripts - Decorative Prints as well as Modern Art & Post War, with a focus on works on paper. In addition, exhibitions, special auctions and benefit auctions for charity are regular events at Ketterer Kunst.

Hamburg, October 10, 2006