Paris – This 21 November, Christie’s presents The Exceptional Sale, a highlight of the Classic Week sales running from 15 to 22 November in Paris. Mirroring this auction series, The Exceptional Sale will successively give centre stage to decorative arts, Old Masters, as well as Rare books and manuscripts. Following the leitmotif of this Classic Week, it will showcase several rare, iconic examples of the Rothchild Aesthetic, all drawn from the private collections of several branches of the family.

The past five years has seen The Exceptional Sale establish itself as the place to be – both for connoisseurs of masterpieces and for international collectors in search of museum-quality pieces spanning the history of art.

For its 2023 edition, the sale brings together around fifty extraordinary works of art featuring rare provenances, incredible history, and outstanding workmanship. Collectors may find themselves charmed by a Baroque Flemish cabinet (€200,000 - 400,000) or a guitar bearing Jean-Baptiste Voboam’s signature (€20,000 - 40,000). They might also become enthralled by a Haute Couture bridal gown designed by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel (€50,000 - 70,000). And they will be dazzled by the Sun King’s grandiose reign, beautifully recorded in a series of engravings making up 21 volumes of the Cabinet du Roi (1723-1727) originating from the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte (€400,000 - 600,000).

In October, Christie’s four New York sales celebrating the Rothschild aesthetic garnered over $62 million at auction. This November, Paris will serve as the backdrop to another Rothschild sale, featuring a dozen remarkable pieces drawn from three of the five branches of the family – the English, German and French sides. The French branch is notably offering six lots from the Château de Ferrières, including a superb pair of marble pedestals made by Pierre Gouthière, Louis XVI’s famed gilder and engraver, for the Duchess of Mazarin’s mansion at the Quai Malaquais (€300,000 - 500,000). The Rothschild family selected a magnificent Baroque Flemish cabinet to embellish the Château de Ferrières’ great hall. Attributed to Hendrik Van Soest, this very richly-ornamented ceremonial piece of furniture (€200,000 - 400,000) closely resembles a model found in the apartments of Windsor Castle. An equally resplendent and ornately decorated piece going under the hammer is a Baroque “Augsburg” clock (€200,000 - 300,000).

Last November, the palace of Versailles provided The Exceptional Sale with an auction highlight in the form of a royal armchair stamped by Georges Jacob and commissioned by Marie-Antoinette. In this year’s edition, collectors will have the opportunity to acquire a chair created for Marie-Antoinette’s games room at Versailles. This chair, crafted by cabinetmaker Jean Boulard, was purchased by Baron Edouard de Rothschild and has remained within the family ever since (€30,000 - 50,000).

Music was as omnipresent in Rothschild reception rooms as it was in the French royal court – epitomised by this Jean-Baptiste Voboam Baroque guitar from 1692, commissioned for Louis XIV’s niece, Elisabeth-Charlotte d’Orléans. There are now only around thirty known versions of these guitars made by the Voboam family, with one, dated 1697, currently on display at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art (€20,000 - 40,000).

Another central piece is a significant ivory statue from the entourage of Christophe Angermair, initially placed in Baron Mayer Amschel de Rothschild’s Mentmore House in Buckinghamshire. Executed between 1620 and 1630, this exceptionally fine masterpiece of sculpting – depicting the Roman god Mars in armour – captures the very essence of the Baroque movement (€150,000 - 200,000). Among the German branch of the family’s exceptional sculpture collection is an impressive patinated bronze panther with remarkable, silver leaf-encrusted eyes giving it a commanding presence (€150,000 - 250,000). The panther – likely created in Padua in the 16^th century – was part of the Goldschmidt-Rothschild collection in Frankfurt before being acquired by Baroness Alix de Rothschild (1911-1982), a major figure in the previous century’s collecting and art world.

Collectors will be interested in the around twenty other works with prestigious provenances up for sale alongside Rothschild family pieces, such as a remarkably elegant neoclassical pedestal table from the early 19^th century, made in imperial Russia’s famous Tula factory (€150,000 - 250,000). A neoclassical imperial bureau, designed for Tsar Alexander II around 1860, encapsulates a significant period in history. This pietra dura-inlaid bureau, enriched with lapis lazuli and adorned with chiselled bronze, is one of the auction's top lots (€300,000 - 500,000).

Finally, Haute Couture will be honoured with the first market appearance of three exceptional lots. The first is an Haute Couture bridal gown designed by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel’s Autumn-Winter 2014-2015 collection (€50,000 - 70,000), the second an Yves Saint Laurent drawing of the iconic Mondrian dress (€40,000 - 60,000), and last is a sumptuous bolero from Yves Saint Laurent’s “Les Chinoises” Autumn-Winter 1977-1978 Haute Couture collection, embroidered by Maison Lesage (€15,000 - 25,000).