The auction company Wright’s preview for the upcoming (July 26) Four Seasons Restaurant auction was held today and The Architect’s Newspaper went along to see what was on offer. (You can recap our full coverage of the controversy surrounding the auction here.) Mixed in among the innumerable ladles, serving trays, wine glasses, and ashtrays was a selection of beautiful small Saarinen Tulip Tables ($5000-7000) and Stools ($500-700), Mies van der Rohe Brno Chairs ($3000-8000), seasonally patterned ash trays ($500-700), and several one-off pieces of servingware designed by Philip Johnson and Garth and Ada Louise Huxtable. There are scores of beautiful breadbaskets with little bent metal feet ($1000-1,500), caviar bowls ($1000-1500), and oyster dishes ($600-800). The most unique objects are a unique (Wright claims) Zabaglione server ($200-300), Johnson-designed lights from the pool room ($5000-7000), and a bright red sausage grinder ($200-300).

The objects that are most poignantly close to the Four Seasons Restaurant’s history are its brass signs designed by Emil Antonucci ($5000-7000). You can view all the lots on Wright’s website. But what happened to the large metal domes that used to cover all the dishes coming from the kitchen?