Lot 326

Chips and losses to top of laurel wreath, small chips to edges of ruff, various firing cracks notably on right hand side on head, in and under ruff and on shoulder, also smaller firing cracks on cartouche, base and lower left part of drapery, small pits to edge of base, no apparent repairs under UV.


The opinions expressed in the condition reports are a guide only and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Prospective buyers are encouraged to seek further information or request additional images during our pre-sale period where Leonard Joel staff are available for advice. Please note condition reports can be amended during the pre-sale period, so we strongly suggest any interested bidders check the published condition report available on the website before the auction commences. Leonard Joel makes no guarantee of the originality of mechanical or applied components. Absence of reference to such modifications does not imply that a lot is free from modifications.

Collection of the Counts of Waldstein, Schloss Dux, Bohemia
Nationalised circa 1945, thereafter in Schloss Hirschberg, Bohemia
Rudolf Just Collection, Prague, acquired at Galerie Horejs, Prague in May 1949
Sotheby's Olympia, December 11, 2001, lot 146, where presumably acquired by Robert Compton Jones
The Robert Compton Jones Collection, Sydney

The present lot is from the series of Meissen busts commissioned in 1744 by Maria Josepha, Electress of Saxony and Queen of Poland, as a monument to the Habsburg dynasty and its rise to imperial rank. All but one of the busts depict Habsburg rulers and it is quite possible that the impetus for the commission came from the court in Vienna.The first mention of the busts in the Meissen manufactory work reports is in April 1744 and the last in December 1747 (only nine are specifically referred to).
The Prague collector, Rudolf Just (1895-1972), acquired six of the Meissen busts in 1949. He was the last of a great tradition of Central European collectors of the decorative arts and was a scholarly and obsessive connoisseur, who famously inspired the fictional collector of Meissen porcelain in Bruce Chatwin's novel Utz (1988). He sold three of his Meissen busts in 1967 and the other three (including this lot) were sold together with the remainder of his collection at Sotheby's Olympia, 11 December 2001, lots 145-147.