This week determined collectors will converge on New York for the spring round of design auctions at Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips de Pury & Co. Among the rare finds on offer are Art Deco masterworks by Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Armand Albert Rateau, classic Nakashima seating, ceramic art by postwar sculptor Ken Price, and several coveted sheep sculptures created by François-Xavier Lalanne—along with the usual complement of choice Tiffany and Lalique. Suffice it to say, bidding should be robust.

Even in such distinguished company, a striking low table by Isamu Noguchi stands out. Up for sale at Christie’s on June 14, the one-of-a-kind piece was commissioned in 1948 by Mr. and Mrs. Samuel C. Dretzin for their country house in Chappaqua, New York, and it has remained in the family ever since. “It’s the most important work of furniture by the artist ever to come to market,” says Carina Villinger, the head of 20th-century design at Christie’s New York, who received an unsolicited e-mail from the seller and immediately recognized the table’s significance. “It had all the right ingredients—exceptional provenance, exceptional quality, exceptional condition.” Composed of three separate hunks of polished fossil marble, joined only by gravity, the piece relates closely to Noguchi’s interlocking stone sculptures of the ’40s. “You can look at the table from a pure design perspective, but it really transcends that,” says Villinger, likening it to a work of fine art. What might such a rarity cost? Bidders will decide, of course, but Christie’s has set the estimate at a hefty $800,000–$1.2 million.

For more highlights from the New York design auctions, click here.