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The Robert H. Baer Collection: Artifacts & Antiques

The Robert H. Baer Archeology Collection

October 12, 2025  |  Live & Online
Hollywood, FL USA

The Robert H. Baer Archeology Collection spans art, books, maps, and artifacts gathered over a lifetime of exploration. At its core are important shipwreck finds and maritime relics, from salvaged cargo and nautical instruments to field collected pieces that trace trade routes across centuries. Anchoring the seaborne material are historic cannons and components, joined by coins, medals, and other maritime curios that speak to discovery, commerce, and conflict on the open water.

World cultures and antiquities are equally strong. Highlights include Chinese porcelain in a range of glazes and patterns, Greek and Egyptian pottery from everyday wares to decorated vessels, and Pre-Columbian pottery representing multiple regions and styles. These are complemented by ethnographic objects, metalwork, and decorative arts that map the exchange of ideas and materials across continents and eras.

Fine art and scholarship round out the collection. Maritime oils by Gudin and Tyler sit alongside Hudson River School landscapes, portraits, and works on paper from Europe and America. Rare books on exploration and natural history, early maps and atlases, and architectural and scientific prints provide context and depth. Taken together, the Baer Collection offers a rare opportunity to acquire art, artifacts, and documents that chart the human story from the ancient world to the age of sail and beyond.

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The Robert H. Baer Archeology Collection

October 12, 2025  |  Live & Online
Hollywood, FL USA

The Robert H. Baer Archeology Collection features shipwreck relics, cannons, coins, and maritime artifacts, alongside Chinese porcelain, Greek and Egyptian pottery, and Pre-Columbian vessels. Rare books, maps, and atlases join fine art by Gudin, Tyler, and Hudson River School painters. A remarkable trove spanning centuries of art, history, and discovery.

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Auction Highlights

French Military Bronze Signal Cannons

Two bronze cannons mounted on wooden carriages with spoked wheels, origin and date undetermined. The barrels feature intricate reliefs of classical figures, showcasing exceptional detail in the bronze casting. Each wheel is constructed from multiple wood segments, bound by metal fasteners and encircled by a metal rim adorned with fleur-de-lis motifs in relief. The wooden carriages, reinforced with iron straps and nails, support the barrels and axles with visible mechanical fittings. The bronze barrels are smoothbore and embellished with ornate reliefs extending along the entire length of each tube. Provenance includes distinguished ownership through The Brown Collection, The Fowler Museum Collection, and The Steve Condella Collection. The dimensions are approximate.

Collectors prize them for their imposing presence and the craftsmanship that blends functional engineering with artistic detail-rarely seen outside of museum contexts.

Jan Muller after Adriaen de Vries, Original Mannerist Ink & Wash Drawing

A masterful Mannerist ink and wash drawing in black chalk, pen, closely following the bronze fountain figure of Hercules and the Hydra by Adrian de Vries, commissioned for the city of Augsburg and unveiled in 1602. This striking composition presents the mythological hero Hercules in the throes of battle with the Hydra, rendered with dynamic anatomical articulation and expressive movement. The muscular figure, executed in tonal washes and fine linear detail, towers above the coiling hydra, a study in classical violence and Mannerist exaggeration. The drawing bears strong similarities to Jan Muller’s engraving Hercules Battling the Hydra, published c.1597, itself based on the bronze composition by Adriaen de Vries. That engraving, among Muller’s most celebrated works, helped establish his reputation as one of the most accomplished engravers of his generation. This drawing relates to the same cycle of mythological subjects and court commissions, capturing Muller’s interpretation of sculptural mass through graphic media. The energetic musculature, theatrical pose, and deep shadow modeling are all hallmarks of Muller’s stylistic language. Though relatively few drawings are confidently attributed to Muller, works like the present example reflect his graphic sensibility and interest in heroic themes, positioning him at the nexus of printmaking, court art, and classical revival. Numbered 36 in the lower right, suggesting it may originate from a series of academic or collector’s studies. Elegantly framed under glass with ornate silver-toned molding and a double mat.

Collectors pursue works like this for their rarity and their direct connection to the artistic ideals that shaped European history.

Chinese Qing Dynasty Silk Embroidered Dragon Robe

A magnificent and complete Qing Dynasty Chinese imperial dragon robe, elaborately embroidered in silk and metallic threads and presented in a museum-style shadowbox frame. This formal jifu (court robe) features nine five-clawed imperial dragons depicted in dynamic motion among cloud clusters, bats (symbols of fortune), flaming pearls, and Daoist emblems. The copper-brown silk ground is richly ornamented with shades of blue, cream, gold, and green threadwork. A classic lishui pattern of rainbow-hued waves and mountain peaks encircles the hem, signifying cosmic order and the emperor’s central role in sustaining harmony between heaven and earth. The robe’s collar and sleeve bands are detailed with finely stitched additional dragons and scroll motifs on a dark navy ground, indicating its use by someone of elevated rank, likely nobility or a high-ranking court official. The robe is mounted in a silk-lined frame with a deep cherry lacquer wood surround and gilt inner edge, preserving its structure and intricate surface detail.

Collectors value such garments for their exquisite workmanship and cultural resonance, preserving the opulence of a vanished world.

17th c. Terracotta Storage Jar from the San Miguel Archangel Shipwreck

Large Spanish colonial terracotta storage jar, circa early 18th century, recovered from the San Miguel Archangel shipwreck off Jupiter Inlet, Florida, in 1987 by project archaeologist Robert H. Baer. This impressive hand-thrown vessel features a robust globular form with a narrow base, flared rim, and a decorative band of impressed tooling just below the shoulder. Surface wear and mineral accretions are consistent with prolonged submersion, enhancing its historical character. An incised “A” mark is visible near the upper body, likely denoting a maker or shipment batch. Standing approximately three feet tall, this utilitarian jar would have originally served for transporting staples such as grains, oil, or dried provisions across the Atlantic as part of the Spanish colonial maritime trade. A rare and evocative survivor from a documented shipwreck, ideal for collectors of maritime or colonial-era artifacts.

Maritime collectors and historians treasure such objects for their tangible connection to global trade, exploration, and the endurance of material culture against time and tide.

Auction Highlights

French Military Bronze Signal Cannons

These ceremonial bronze cannons, mounted on wooden carriages, embody the grandeur of European martial tradition. Collectors prize them for their imposing presence and the craftsmanship that blends functional engineering with artistic detail-rarely seen outside of museum contexts.

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Jan Muller after Adriaen de Vries, Original Mannerist Ink & Wash Drawing

This refined ink and wash drawing, attributed to Jan Muller after the great sculptor Adriaen de Vries, captures the intellectual energy of the Renaissance. Collectors pursue works like this for their rarity and their direct connection to the artistic ideals that shaped European history.

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Chinese Qing Dynasty Silk Embroidered Dragon Robe

Embroidered with golden dragons and cloud motifs, this robe exemplifies the authority and symbolism of Qing Dynasty imperial life. Collectors value such garments for their exquisite workmanship and cultural resonance, preserving the opulence of a vanished world.

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17th c. Terracotta Storage Jar from the San Miguel Archangel Shipwreck

Recovered from a Spanish colonial shipwreck, this jar bears the marks of centuries beneath the sea. Maritime collectors and historians treasure such objects for their tangible connection to global trade, exploration, and the endurance of material culture against time and tide.

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1980 Moscow Olympics Poster by M. Manuilov, Happy New Year

A striking piece of Soviet-era graphic design that captures the cultural and political spirit of the late 20th century. Highly sought after by poster and Cold War memorabilia collectors.

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Antique European Stained Glass Panel with Mary and Joseph

A luminous devotional work blending artistry and spirituality, cherished for its craftsmanship and the enduring tradition of stained glass.

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Ancient Greek Attic Black-Figure Kylix, 6th Century BCE

A 6th century BC drinking vessel decorated with mythological scenes, valued for its rarity and direct connection to classical Greek daily life and ritual.

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19th Century Rare Diplomatic Court Jacket

Once worn in formal settings of diplomacy and ceremony, this rare garment reflects the grandeur of political life and the artistry of period tailoring.

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1752 Nanking Cargo Shipwreck Chinese Celadon Meiping Vase

Salvaged from the fabled 1752 wreck of a Dutch East India Company vessel, this porcelain vessel is coveted for its maritime provenance and its role in global trade history.

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Afghanistan Kushan Empire Earthenware Vessel (1st–3rd Century CE)

A rare ceramic from the heart of Central Asia, representing the Kushan Empire’s role as a cultural crossroads between East and West. Collectors treasure such vessels for their antiquity, craftsmanship, and direct connection to ancient trade networks along the Silk Road.

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Event Details

Date: October 12, 2025
Time: 12:00p ET
Hosted By: Lion & Unicorn Auction House
Location: Hollywood FL, USA

The auction offers an encyclopedic glimpse into Dr. Baer’s passions. The sale is rich with maritime artifacts from historic shipwrecks, including items personally recovered by Dr. Baer during his archaeological fieldwork. The collection’s scholarly breadth is showcased through classical antiquities from the Greek and Roman worlds, European fine art including Old Master drawings, and museum-quality Asian textiles. Further strengthening the collection are Pre-Columbian artifacts, rare historical documents, and a significant library of books on archaeology, art, and exploration, notably featuring first editions of Dr. Baer’s own acclaimed scholarly monographs and novels.

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