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A RARE AND LARGE HUNGARIAN PARCEL-GILT SILVER SET OF TORAH CROWN AND PAIR OF FINIALS, JOHANNES MATHIAS ROTH, BUDAPEST, LATE 18TH CENTURY |
Estimate
150,000 - 250,000 USD
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Description
- marked inside base with city and maker's mark, repeated on frames and crowns
- height 17 1/2 in., length 15 in.
- 44.5 cm, 38 cm
the crown of boat form vigorously chased with scrolling foliage and polished scrolls on matted ground, fitted with triform frames hung with three tiers of bells, surmounted by crowns with crowned double eagle finials
Condition
Crown with missing sections to rim, a rim split closed with later tabs behind, missing six bells.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
After centuries of oppression and persecution, including as recently as 1746 the expulsion of the Jews from Buda, with the accession of Joseph II the Hungarian Jewish community found its position improved and stabilized. A 1783 decree by the new Emperor removed most of the oppressive regulations for the community, and allowed them to settle freely in most of the country. In 1790-91, Emperor Leopold II confirmed their position and gave them Imperial protection. This new status allowed great prosperity and luxury, also in synagogue furnishings, and many displayed the Habsburg crown and double-headed eagle in recognition of their benefactors. This form of an oval Torah Crown with attached stepped Finials seems to have been particular to Budapest. An example by János Muhály Schwager has the Pest date letter for 1774-1781 and a presentation inscription to the Holy Society in Obuda (Old Buda) in 1806. Another example, very similar to the offered lot in the decoration of the crown, is by János Müller, with the Pest hallmark for 1793-97. Both are now in the Hungarian Jewish Museum and Archives in Budapest, see Ilona Benoschofsky and Alexander Scheiber, The Jewish Museum of Budapest, 1987, no. 34 and 35, pp. 76-78.
Johannes Mathias Roth, or Reth, became a master in Budapest (Buda) in 1775 and worked until 1807. In addition to this Torah Crown with Finials and the monumental Torah Shield also in this collection (lot 130), he was recorded in 1936 as the maker of a faceted beaker in the Jewish Museum in Obuda, shown in an exhibition there in 1935, no. 34 (Kószegy no. 341, pp. 58-59).
Johannes Mathias Roth, or Reth, became a master in Budapest (Buda) in 1775 and worked until 1807. In addition to this Torah Crown with Finials and the monumental Torah Shield also in this collection (lot 130), he was recorded in 1936 as the maker of a faceted beaker in the Jewish Museum in Obuda, shown in an exhibition there in 1935, no. 34 (Kószegy no. 341, pp. 58-59).