Lot 774. A South German turned ivory cup, 17th century; height 18 7/8 in., 48 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 90,000 USD. Lot sold 62,500 USD. Photo Sotheby's

the stepped conical hexagonal foot with concave facets, below similarly faceted baluster stem, the cup of octagonal section, the conforming lid beneath a stepped shaft centered on an open work register supporting a flat octagonal platform with four spiraling columns supporting another octagonal platform, interspersed with tapering upward turned spirals surrounding a hanging ivory bell above a ring-shaped finial, this surmounted by a spire centered upon a pierced sphere containing an internally carved center with emerging tapering spiral points; one side of base painted in ink with "B 96° 11," the lid with identical marking. 

Provenance: Axel Vervoordt, Antwerp

Note: A comparable cup in the Danish Royal Kunstkammer at Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen attributed to the Zick workshop features a similar "bell tower" form comprised of two platforms supported by spiralling columns (Gundestrup 1991, p. 265, DKK 23.89). The present cup is further distinguished by the pierced sphere with internally-turned center on the finial, recognizable as one of the most technically advanced and visually appealing forms in the turner's repertoire.

Sotheby's. Property from the Collections of Lily & Edmond J. Safra - Volumes I-VI. New York | 18 Oct 2011 - www.sothebys.com