Here is another in a series of occasional articles from Fr Andrew Marlborough, who prior to joining the clergy worked in the world of art sales. Our hope is that these articles will raise awareness of the sort of liturgical artifacts that might be found in auction houses, so that more can be saved for Church use.
Fr Andrew writes:
There continues to be an overwhelming amount of Catholic sacred art appearing on the auction market. Dozens and dozens of sacred vessels, monstrances, relics, vestments, and other items appear at auction every week across Europe and America. Although alarming, this is a material expression of the crisis in the Church, but also provides an opportunity for those looking for well-crafted traditional items, often at reasonable prices when compared to the cost of commissioning something new today. For a longer report on this situation, see my previous article.
A few recent examples show the broad range of what can be obtained. Firstly, a real bargain was this charming Continental silver chalice sold in a small UK auction in September. It was catalogued rather vaguely as simply ‘antique’ but the foliate detail around the foot-rim, gadrooned knop, and the overall style, reflect chalices made in the Low Countries in the 17th and 18th centuries. A good size at 20cm, and in need of a good polish, it sold for just £130 (excluding commission).
(Images credit Andrew Smith Auctions)
From a similar place and period, but a finer example, was this silver-gilt chalice made by Joannes van Sychen in Ghent in 1728. The stylistic similarity to the above chalice can be seen in the foot rim detail and gadrooned knop design, but the lively modelling of cherubs among heavenly clouds around the lower bowl is unusual and quite stunning. At 24cm high and 530g in weight it was still great value, selling in October for 2600 Euros (excluding commission) at a provincial auction in Belgium.
(Images credit Flanders Auctions)
