In the salerooms: Exquisite Asian and African art at Adam’s and beautiful boats by John Behan at Morgan O’Driscoll

Adam’s sale of Fine Asian and African Art takes place on Tuesday June 25 at 11am. “It’s the very first sale in Adam’s history that combines Asian and African art,” says Wei Wang, head of Adam’s Asian Art department. She highlights some of the finest lots in the sale as coming from Irish collections.

A pair of gilt-bronze and cloisonne enamel “Wan Shou Wu Jiang” bowls (Lot 159: est. €20,000 to €30,000) were made in China’s Qianlong period (1736-1795) but come from a collection in the south of Ireland.

Lot 195, a lemon-yellow enamelled ogee saucer from the same period (est. €5,000 to €7,000) also comes from an Irish vendor. African sculptures in the sale include a maternity Senfufo Pombibele figure from Ivory Coast (Lot 488: est. €5,000 to €6,000). It’s carved in wood and shows a woman breastfeeding her child. See adams.ie

​Morgan O’Driscoll

Bidding at Morgan O’Driscoll’s Irish Art Online Auction closes on Monday June 24 between 6.30 and 9.30pm.

There are several sculptures by John Behan in the sale, including his iconic Famine Ship (Lot 109: est. €15,000 to €20,000). At 66cm high x 72cm long, it’s a sizeable bronze with a patina that gives it the appearance of a ragged ghost ship.

Behan’s equally famous Broighter Boat (Lot 106: est. €5,000 to €7,000) is a smaller bronze (35cm high) and comes from an edition of nine.

There are three paintings by Letitia Marion Hamilton in the sale and two artworks by Graham Knuttel, who died in May 2023. One of these, Mr Punch (Lot 32: est. €8,000 to €12,000) is a tapestry (180 x 91cm) woven by House of Pinton in Aubusson, France. See morganodriscoll.com