Chiswick Auctions has announced the results for the sale of the The Comerford Collection of Irish portrait miniatures on March 25th. This outstanding collection was compiled over forty years by the late John and Pauline Comerford, who descended from the Irish miniaturist John Comerford (c.1770-1832). Their love of the art form began by sourcing works by some of the leading Irish miniaturists of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The entire collection of 121 lots sold, achieving a total of £98,000.
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Specialist in charge of the sale Suzanne Zack commented: “We were delighted with the results of this first stand-alone sale of Fine Portrait Miniatures, which included the spectacular Comerford Collection.
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“Good results throughout the sale show that the portrait miniature market is very much alive. The Comerford Collection of predominantly Irish Miniatures attracted strong interest and Chiswick Auctions is delighted to reveal that it was purchased by an anonymous private collector, to go on display at Waterford Museum House of Treasures in Ireland. This will allow the public to view this amazing piece of Irish heritage.”
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Evolution
The collection was studiously added to over many years and demonstrates the evolution of miniature painting in Britain, Ireland and the Continent from the late 16th to the 19th Century. It features the work of some of the greatest exponents of the portrait miniature art form including Christian Friedrich Zincke, Jean Andre Rouquet, Nathaniel Hone, Jeremiah Meyer, Charles Robertson, George Engleheart, Abraham Daniel, William Wood, John Smart, Richard Cosway.
Highlights included a fine portrait miniature of a dashing Officer (lot 18), dating from circa 1765/70 by Jeremiah Meyer R.A. (British 1735-1789), which achieved £4,500 and a portrait miniature of an unknown Lady, circa 1790 (lot 36), by Horace Hone A.R.A. (Irish 1754/6-1825), which sold for £4,125.
A portrait miniature of Lady Barkly (lot 44), by George Engleheart (British 1750/3-1829) achieved £2,250 and a portrait miniature of Edward Smyth the architect (1749-1812) painted in c.1800 (lot 79), sold for £2,875.
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