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Hansons: An Éminence Grise of the Arts: The Collection of Véra Russell (1911-1992)
Auction Reports
| Auction Name | An Éminence Grise of the Arts: The Collection of Véra Russell (1911-1992) | Total Sales (GBP) | 352,973.58 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auction Date | April 01, 2026 - April 01, 2026 | Low Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 144,160.00 |
| Sale Number | #40126 | High Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 221,620.00 |
| Total Lots | 196 | ||
| Sold Lots | 161.0 | Low Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 163,280.00 |
| % of Lots Sold | 82.14% | High Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 251,040.00 |
| Unsold Lots | 35 | Total Sales as a % of High Est. | 140.61% |
Top twenty-five by sale price
| Lot Number | Author Name | Book Title | Year Published | Estimate | Actual Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 38 | Matthew Smith (British, 1879-1959) | Vera Lindsay [Russell], Femme en Negligee |
[1954-55] | GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00 | GBP 32,950.00 |
| 2 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Vera Russell, three-quarter length seated portrait |
[1978] | GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00 | GBP 31,632.00 |
| 26 | Maggi Hambling (British, b. 1945) | John Pope-Hennessy [British art historian] |
[1972] | GBP 10,000.00 - 15,000.00 | GBP 22,406.00 |
| 3 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Paper Pools |
[1979] | GBP 7,000.00 - 10,000.00 | GBP 19,111.00 |
| 28 | [JASPER JOHNS (B. 1930) & SAMUEL BECKETT (1906-1989) | FIZZLES/FOIRADES: AUTOGRAPH LETTERS SIGNED, PREPARATORY MATERIAL & FINISHED PUBLICATION] |
1976 | GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00 | GBP 17,134.00 |
| 195 | Kim Lim (Singaporean-British, 1936-1997) | Untitled, stone carving, dedicated at base "For V" [Vera Russell] |
N/A | GBP 300.00 - 500.00 | GBP 15,157.00 |
| 4 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Homage to Michelangelo |
[1975] | GBP 5,000.00 - 8,000.00 | GBP 14,498.00 |
| 151 | [BLOOMSBURY GROUP]. An original "Round Robin" Typed Letter Signed to shareholders and patrons of the Omega Workshops... |
N/A | GBP 300.00 - 400.00 | GBP 13,180.00 | |
| 187 | Louise Nevelson (American, 1899-1988) | Cryptic XLI, wooden box with gallery label at base |
1966 | GBP 2,000.00 - 5,000.00 | GBP 9,885.00 |
| 6 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Igor Stravinsky - Metropolitan Opera |
1981 | GBP 2,000.00 - 3,000.00 | GBP 8,567.00 |
| 147 | DAHL, (Roald) | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory |
1964 | GBP 1,500.00 - 2,500.00 | GBP 7,249.00 |
| 15 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Autograph Letter Signed |
1979-09-08 | GBP 500.00 - 800.00 | GBP 5,535.60 |
| 1 | [AUTOGRAPHS -THE ARTS]. Vera & John Russell's visitor book, 1962-67 |
1962-67 | GBP 5,000.00 - 8,000.00 | GBP 5,272.00 | |
| 80 | Jay DeFeo (American, 1929-1989) | [An original section of "The Rose"] |
1960-12-18 | GBP 1,000.00 - 2,000.00 | GBP 5,272.00 |
| 19 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Autograph Letter Signed |
undated [September 1980] | GBP 400.00 - 500.00 | GBP 4,481.20 |
| 29 | [HENRY MOORE (1898-1986) & W. H. AUDEN (1907-1973) | AUTOGRAPH LETTERS SIGNED, PREPARATORY MATERIAL & FINISHED PUBLICATION] |
[1974] | GBP 3,000.00 - 5,000.00 | GBP 4,481.20 |
| 58 | Robert Medley (English, 1905-1994) | Design for Eliot Memorial Concert |
1964 | GBP 500.00 - 800.00 | GBP 4,217.60 |
| 136 | Arthur Szyk (Polish-American, 1894-1951) | The original design for the Ex Libris of noted journalist Vladimir Poliakoff (1864-1956) |
1933 | GBP 700.00 - 1,000.00 | GBP 4,217.60 |
| 71 | Max Ernst (German, 1891-1976) | Untitled 1962, signed by both Max Ernst & Dorothea Tanning (American, 1910-2012) |
[1962] | GBP 3,000.00 - 4,000.00 | GBP 3,954.00 |
| 52 | Mary Potter (English, 1900-1981) | Trees, signed on stretcher verso |
N/A | GBP 2,000.00 - 3,000.00 | GBP 3,558.60 |
| 65 | Princess Margaret (1930-2002) | An archive of Autograph Letters Signed to John and Vera Russell... |
N/A | GBP 1,000.00 - 2,000.00 | GBP 3,558.60 |
| 8 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Untitled interior with fireplace, digital art [Apple Macintosh] |
[c. 1990-91] | GBP 1,000.00 - 1,500.00 | GBP 3,426.80 |
| 156 | Sir Gerald Barry (1898-1968), British newspaper editor and organiser of the Festival of Britain 1951, second husband of Vera Russell (1911-1992) | [FESTIVAL OF BRITAIN 1951]. An archive of plans, notes, correspondence, and ephemera relating to the festival... |
N/A | GBP 500.00 - 800.00 | GBP 3,426.80 |
| 68 | Marc Chagall (1887-1985) | L'Ecuyere [The Woman Circus Rider] |
[1956] | GBP 1,000.00 - 1,500.00 | GBP 3,295.00 |
| 21 | David Hockney (English, b. 1937) | Autograph Letter Signed |
1980-10-18 | GBP 400.00 - 500.00 | GBP 3,163.20 |
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Sotheby's Book Week
2 June - 9 JulySotheby’s, June 25: Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations, on its 250th anniversary. $180,000 to $250,000.Sotheby’s, June 17: Fontana, Lucio. Concetto Spaziale. 1967. Leporello en papier doré. Bel exemplaire signé. €4,000 to $€,000.Sotheby’s, June 25: Fitzgerald, F. Scott. "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past”. $150,000 to $200,000.Sotheby’s, June 25: Washington, George (as First President). Washington decries “an ostentatious imitation, or mimickry of Royalty” in his Presidency. $250,000 to $500,000.Sotheby’s, June 17: Lope de Vega. Rare manuscrit autographe signé de la préface dédicatoire de "El Cardenal de Belen" (le cardinal de Bethléem), pièce composée en 1610. €40,000 to €60,000. -
Leland Little, June 12: The First Illustrated Edition of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.Leland Little, June 12: John Morton, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, Signed Pennsylvania Land Survey.Leland Little, June 12: The Scarce Jansson Edition of a Remarkable Early View of London.Leland Little, June 12: Signed Limited Edition of The Works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.Leland Little, June 12: Faden’s Important and Scarce Map of the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution.Leland Little, June 12: William J. Tate (NC, 1869-1953), Archive of the "Original host to the Wright brothers at Kitty Hawk.” -
Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Galileo Galilei. Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo tolemaico, e copernicano. Firenze, 1632Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Saverio Manetti. Storia naturale degli uccelli. Firenze, 1771-76Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Fortunato Depero. Depero futurista. Rovereto, 1927Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Nicolas Visscher. Atlas minor sive totius orbis terrarum contracta delineat ex conatibus. Amsterdam, circa 1649-95Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Andreas Vesalius. Anatomia. Addita nunc. Antiquorum Anatome. Venezia, 1604Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Tristan Tzara and Salvador Dalì. Grains et Issues. Parigi, 1935 -
June 25, 2026 Doyle, June 25: Houdini's biography, boldly signed. $3,000 to $5,000.Doyle, June 25: A volume from Abraham Lincoln's library, signed just before heading to Washington for his inauguration. $20,000 to $30,000.Doyle, June 25: A very early Confederate recruiting manual belonging to the chief commissary in Lee's Army. $600 to $800.Doyle, June 25: Rare hand-colored lithographs of the life of Napoleon. $20,000 to $30,000.Doyle, June 25: The "Holster Atlas" of the American Revolution. $5,000 to $8,000.Doyle, June 25: Jewish ceremonies in fine hand-colored engravings. $7,000 to $10,000.Doyle, June 25: A very rare work on Turkish military costume. $1,000 to $1,500.June 25, 2026 Doyle, June 25: The most important illustrated work on the Mexican-American War. $10,000 to $15,000.Doyle, June 25: The finest illustrated book on Afghanistan. $10,000 to $15,000.Doyle, June 25: Henry Justice Ford St. George rescues the Princess from the horrible Dragon. $2,000 to $3,000.Doyle, June 25: A rare work of Prussian Army uniforms under Frederick William II, with exquisite hand-colored engravings. $800 to $1,200.Doyle, June 25: Lenny Bruce typed letter signed to a Village bohemian during his obscenity trials, with a manuscript note and drawing. $300 to $500.Doyle, June 25: Schiff's scarce Shanghai Sketchbook. $300 to $500.Doyle, June 25: The first accurate published representation of the American flag. $2,000 to $4,000. -
Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 123. Celebrate 250 Years of Independence with Original Stars and Stripes (1790) Est. $1,400 - $1,700Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 20. Keulen's Spectacular Chart of the World Featuring California as an Island (1728) Est. $12,000 - $15,000Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 42. Schedel's Ancient World Map with Fantastic Humanoid Creatures (1493) Est. $14,000 - $17,000Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 591. Matching Set of 3 Stunning Globe Gores of Eastern Asia from Coronelli's 3.5 Foot Globe (1688) Est. $5,500 - $7,000Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 9. Speed's Popular World Map with Allegorical Representations of the Elements (1651) Est. $14,000 - $17,000Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 168. First Separate Map of Kansas & Nebraska Territories (1854) Est. $5,500 - $7,000Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 43. Only Macrobius Map with Britain Attached to Europe (1515) Est. $800 - $950Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 250. Rare Map of Boston and One of the Earliest Maps of the Revolutionary War (1775) Est. $2,000 - $2,300Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 79. Schenk's Uncommon Map Featuring Two Figurative Title Cartouches (1696) Est. $1,200 - $1,500Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 681. Hand-Colored Image of the Annunciation to the Shepherds (1502) Est. $800 - $950