M.S. Rau

M.S. Rau One of the world's largest dealers of fine art, rare antiques, and important jewels since 1912.

06/10/2026

You needed four keys and a pick just to open it.

Circa 1820, this monumental Italian hobnail floor safe was built from reinforced wrought iron and engineered with a "partner safe" locking system — requiring four distinct keys and a specialized lock pick to open. Used by merchants in place of banks, safes of this complexity served as the vaults of their era. The interior retains its original wooden drawers, complete with period inscriptions referencing goods from Biella, a city in the Piedmont region of northern Italy.

Examples of this scale and sophistication are extraordinarily rare.

A collaboration with 1stDibs . Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 32-1376.

Aspen's summer season starts here.M.S. Rau's Aspen gallery at 307 S. Galena Street is open this summer — and this month,...
06/09/2026

Aspen's summer season starts here.

M.S. Rau's Aspen gallery at 307 S. Galena Street is open this summer — and this month, we have three reasons to visit. From a curated exhibition on the history of entertaining to an art and wine pairing and a debut jewelry collection rooted in archaeology, each event offers a different lens into the art of collecting.

Explore the full event schedule on our website. Link in the comments.

06/08/2026

Thirty-seven pieces. One imperial table. This 1886 Russian silver and champlevé enamel dessert service was made for a household that took dinner seriously.

Comprising teaspoons, butter knives, dessert forks and sugar tongs, each piece is richly adorned in a traditional Pan-Slavic foliate and scrolling design rendered in vivid champlevé enamel — deep blues, greens and turquoise set against a polished silver ground. The terminals bear a finely detailed coat of arms beneath a princely crown with the motto “Sempre Alta La Fronte.” Marked with the Cyrillic maker’s initials “UG” and the 88 zolotnik standard (.916 fine silver), the set remains complete in its original velvet- and silk-lined presentation case.

Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 32-2526.

06/05/2026

A box that sings. Circa 1880, this Continental gilt-brass tabatière conceals a feathered automaton that flaps its wings, opens its beak and emits a lifelike chirping song when activated — a hallmark of the technical virtuosity celebrated at 19th-century royal courts.

Singing bird boxes represent one of the most remarkable intersections of miniature engineering and decorative artistry in European history.

Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 32-2516.

These tables represent two traditions of genius meeting in a single object.The tops were produced in the Grand Ducal wor...
06/04/2026

These tables represent two traditions of genius meeting in a single object.

The tops were produced in the Grand Ducal workshops of Florence — established by Ferdinando I de' Medici in 1588 and patronized exclusively by the Popes and Royalty of Europe. The bases were carved by Andrea Brustolon, the Venetian sculptor known as the "Michelangelo of Wood." Together, they spent approximately 250 years at Stoneleigh Abbey, the English country estate said to have inspired Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. The flower and bird panels relate directly to the celebrated Badminton Cabinet — which set the world auction record for furniture twice over.

What draws your eye first — the hardstone tops or the carved bases?

Discover this pair on our website. Link in the comments.

06/03/2026

Moser glass so rarely survives as a complete set — this one even has its original Karlsbad stickers.

A complete six-piece dressing table set by Bohemian master Ludwig Moser, circa 1880–90. Rendered in luminous straw-colored glass, each piece is richly decorated with polychrome enamel scrolling oak leaves, scattered insects and applied gilt-metal acorns. Founded in Karlsbad and favored by royalty and global dignitaries, Moser set the standard for luxury European glassmaking — and complete sets of this quality are exceptionally rare.

Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 32-2519.

Centuries before Western collectors took notice, Chinese artisans transformed s***f bottles into miniature masterworks.T...
06/02/2026

Centuries before Western collectors took notice, Chinese artisans transformed s***f bottles into miniature masterworks.

This 19th-century example is crafted from agate and 18K gold in a graceful teardrop shape, its amber surface adorned with intricate white agate flowers. A green enamel stopper fashioned from jade and cultured pearls — finished with a braided gold cord — completes this remarkable objet d'art. While French s***f bottles remain familiar to collectors, Chinese examples of this caliber are exceedingly rare.

What's the smallest object in your collection?

Discover this piece on our website. Link in the comments.

06/01/2026

A royal gift made silver.

In 1864, Empress Eugénie — wife of Napoleon III and the last Empress of France — commissioned London silversmith John Samuel Hunt to create this extraordinary 32-piece picnic set for her dear friend Baron Brolin. Engraved with the Baron’s initials and crown, each piece bears Hunt’s hallmark lineage to the legendary Paul Storr. The brass plaque reads: “To my favorite tenant Baron Brolin with my sincere gratitude, Eugenie.”

Would you take this on a picnic?

Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 31-9383.

05/29/2026

A mantel clock that tells a story 2,500 years in the making.

Signed Deschamps à Paris and dating to circa 1810, this Empire mantel clock depicts Tekmessa presenting the legendary shield of Ajax to their son Eurysakes — a moment rooted in Greek mythology and cast in mercury-gilded bronze. Relief scenes from the myth of Ajax extend across the rectangular base, transforming a timekeeping instrument into a work of sculptural narrative. Mercury gilding, a fire-gilding technique prized for its luminous depth, is no longer practiced today due to the hazardous nature of its process.

Discover this piece on our website. Item No. 32-1953.

Conceived for the 1900 Paris Universal Exposition, this monumental régulateur by François Linke — the most celebrated éb...
05/28/2026

Conceived for the 1900 Paris Universal Exposition, this monumental régulateur by François Linke — the most celebrated ébéniste of the Belle Époque — is widely regarded as the greatest sculptural clock ever created. Standing over 10 feet tall, the case is constructed from inlaid tulipwood and fruitwood and adorned with masterfully cast ormolu, surmounted by Chronos, the Greek god of time, wielding his scythe. Designed in collaboration with sculptor Léon Messagé, only six examples of this model were ever completed. The production cost alone was 22,966 francs — the equivalent of roughly eight years' wages for the average French worker in 1900. Contemporary critics described Linke's display as the defining moment in the history of furnishing art that year, earning him the prestigious gold medal.

Discover this piece on our website. Link in the comments.

Address

622 Royal Street
New Orleans, LA
70130

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5:15pm
Tuesday 9am - 5:15pm
Wednesday 9am - 5:15pm
Thursday 9am - 5:15pm
Friday 9am - 5:15pm
Saturday 9am - 5:15pm

Telephone

+18662855605

Website

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