Cycladic II Greek marble idol of paramount importance leads Artemis Fine Arts' Nov. 6 Antiquities Auction

Also featured: 15th C. Nepalese gilt copper Amogshapasa, 16th C. Tibetan gilt brass White Tara bodhisattva, Roman marble sculpture of Apollo, Rembrandt etching

BOULDER, CO, UNITED STATES, November 3, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Artemis Fine Arts, the Colorado auction house known internationally as a premier authority in the field of ancient and ethnographic art, will host a November 6 online auction featuring 284 lots of museum-level antiquities, cultural artworks and relics from many of the world’s greatest and most influential civilizations. A Certificate of Authenticity will convey to the new owner of each and every auction item.

An eclectic, high-end sale known as “Connoisseur’s Delight,” the event is led by a highly important Early Cycladic II Spedos Type marble idol of the ancient Greek Keros-Syros Culture, circa 1700-2300 BCE. The distinctive abstracted figure was carved from fine-grained island marble and is beautifully proportioned with an elongated neck and arms folded across the chest with the right arm beneath the left, a hallmark of Cycladic sculpture conventions. The surface shows weathering and granular texture typical of long-term burial or exposure, yet the contours remain crisp and balanced. It is similar in style to a female Late Spedos Type figure in the Getty Museum’s collection. It is mounted on a modern museum display base and stands 10.35 inches high (inclusive of stand) by 2.4 inches wide. It is accompanied by a CIRAM Scientific Report (No. 0717-OA-52N-8) and analysis performed by Dr Olivier Bobin, New York, dated September 25, 2017. Its line of past provenance includes Dr Charles Alexander Best, a Member of the Canadian Parliament and son of Dr Charles Herbert Best, co-discoverer of insulin. The auction estimate is $450,000-$600,000.

Many premium-quality Asian treasures will be up for bid, including a circa-15th century CE Nepalese gilt copper figure of Amogshapasa – the bodhisattva form of Avalokiteshvara – depicted with an elaborately repousse and engraved mandorla. The bodhisattva's princely adornment glimmers with inlaid gemstones: a turquoise cabochon crowning the headdress, with further turquoise accents on his armband and belt, and a single deep red garnet set at the heart of the lotus flower in one of his left hands. The artwork’s full height, inclusive of stand, is 15.5 inches. Provenance can be traced back to an auction in Radevormwald, Germany, prior to joining a private collection in Colorado. Estimate: $130,000-$195,000

Of Tibetan origin, a superb 15th- to early 16th-century CE gilt brass White Tara (Sitatara) is seated serenely in the lotus posture upon a double-lotus pedestal. Her right hand is extended in varada mudra, the gesture of offering and compassion, while her left hand is raised in vitarka mudra, symbolizing teaching and wisdom, and delicately holds a lotus stem rising at her shoulder. Its height is 8.5 inches and the gold quality is assessed at 47% to 81% (equivalent to 11K to 19K+). Estimate: $70,000-$105,000

Distinguished provenance backs a fine marble herm portrait of Apollo from the Roman Imperial period, circa 1st-2nd century CE. Carved in the round with the god’s characteristic youthful idealism tempered by Roman veristic subtlety, the subject’s luxuriant “hair” is arranged in three rows of coiled locks crowning the head, with long wavy tresses cascading to shoulders, framing a tranquil, divine face. Measuring 7.3 inches high, this sculpture was published in the Royal Athena catalogs by J. Eisenberg: “Art of the Ancient World,” Vol. XXI, 2010, No. 13 and Vol. XXVII, 2016, No. 15. Formerly, the artwork was with Royal Athena Galleries, New York; Drouot auction house in Paris, May 2008; and a French collection. Estimate: $20,000-$30,000

A fine Apulian (Southern Italy) red-figure bell krater, Sisyphus Group, was created circa 350-325 BCE. Substantial and beautifully executed, it has a broad, inverted bell-shape body tapering to a disc foot, with a thick, flaring rim and pair of graceful loop handles affixed to the upper body. The surface is coated in lustrous black glaze, enriched by red-figure decoration and with refined painted details. Side A depicts a nude male youth and draped female figure, while Side B shows a pair of ephebes (young men in military training) wrapped in long himatia, facing one another in a quiet exchange. Its provenance includes a central London gallery, acquisition on the Dutch art market, and the collection of Hugo Lievens, Brussels, 1982. It will convey with a historical report prepared by cultural heritage expert Alessandro Neri, who is based in Florence, Italy. Estimate: $8,500-$12,500

Masters of fine art, from classical artists of the 17th century through the modern and contemporary era form a specialty section of great breadth and quality. There are works by Joan Miro, Peter Max, Edith Kramer, Jozsef Molnar, and the great Rembrandt Van Rijn (Dutch, 1606-1669). A Rembrandt etching and drypoint on wove paper mounted to vellum paper is titled The Statue of Nebuchadnezzer and is signed and dated in the plate Rembrandt f. 1655. Rembrandt created this, and three other etchings, to illustrate a messianic treatise by the Sephardic rabbi and scholar Samuel Manasseh Ben Israel (1604-1657) titled Piedra gloriosa de la estatua de Nebuchadnesar (Glorious Stone of the Statue of Nebuchadnezzar), which was written in Spanish and published in Amsterdam in 1655. It comes to auction with a pre-sale estimate of $10,000-$15,000.

A remarkable circa-17th-century CE European armorial chest displays both Stuart and Imperial emblems. Its wooden body is covered in hide, and its arched lid and front are bordered with rows of domed brass tacks forming the date “1683.” A crowned shield bears the Stuart Royal Arms encircled by the Order of the Garter motto Honi soit qui mal y pense. The chest measures 21 inches long by 8.5 inches wide by 10 inches high. Estimate: $15,000-$25,000

Of great importance to those of the Jewish faith, a circa 18th- to early 19th-century CE Ottoman Empire Megillat (Book of Esther) manuscript is written on vellum and elegantly housed within an ornate silver repousse case crowned by a coral finial. The scroll is written in clear Hebrew script across 17 lines per column, and the silver case, which exhibits superior Ottoman artistry, is adorned with elaborate repousse and chasing in floral and vegetal motifs. The silver quality is assessed at 50 to 93.5%. Its line of provenance includes a Los Angeles private collection, acquired between 1995-2005; and Menorah Galleries in New York City. Estimate: $18,000-$30,000

Dating to sometime between 500 BCE and 800 BCE, a sensational necklace from the Pre-Columbian, Caribbean, Pre-Taino or Early Taino, Saladoid Tradition is composed of carved green serpentine effigy beads, each in the form of a stylized frog or toad. Such amphibians are sacred symbols of rainfall, fertility and agricultural renewal in ancient Caribbean cosmology. This necklace is published in Treasures of the Caribbean by Rodney Hilton Brown (War Museum, 2023), Page 63, where it is illustrated and discussed as an example of Pre-Taino or Saladoid lapidary craftsmanship. Formerly in the Rodney Brown Estate collection and collected from 2010 to 2015, it comes to auction with a $9,000-$15,000 estimate.

Several significant fossils are entered in the auction, including a massive fossil panel discovered at the Green River Formation, Wyoming, and dating to the Eocene Epoch, circa 53.5 million to 48.5 million years ago. Its astonishing imagery includes preserved palm fronds inlaid with three classic species of fish from the area of the Green River Formation. Prepared for wall display, with hardware provided, the 29-inch by 35-inch slab was previously part of a Berthoud, Colorado collection. Its pre-sale estimate is $12,000-$15,000.

Artemis Fine Arts’ November 6, 2025 Connoisseur’s Delight online auction will start at 8am MT/ 10am ET. Absentee bidding is currently in progress. The company ships worldwide and has its own in-house white-glove packing and shipping department to ensure quality control, however customs-clearance issues prevent shipment of goods to Germany, Switzerland or Australia. Also, it should be noted that Artemis cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (e.g., Egyptian pieces to Egypt, Greek pieces to Greece, etc.). View all lots, with detailed, authoritative descriptions and multiple photos, in the online catalog. For additional information on any auction item, call Teresa Dodge at 720-890-7700 or email teresa@artemisfinearts.com. Bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers.

Teresa Dodge
Artemis Fine Arts
+1 720-890-7700
teresa@artemisfinearts.com
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