Meissen ewers top $44,437 at Skinner’s European sale

The auction’s top seller, a pair of 19th century Meissen porcelain ewers emblematic of fire and water, brought $44,437.50. A large Russian church icon depicting the Dormition (Assumption) of the Virgin measuring over 45 inches tall sold for $24,885.

Examples of Wedgwood Fairyland Luster that performed well at the sale included a covered vase decorated with the Jeweled Tree pattern with a cat and mouse and copper trees that brought $23,700 and a lily tray in the Fairy Gondola pattern sold for $20,825.

Rounding out the top five lots of the sale is a dated 1877 Italian Carrara marble sculpture of a child reaching for a locket held by his mother, 41 inches high, which sold for $20,145.

For details contact Skinner Auction Inc. at 508-970-3279.

Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.

Rare glass negative of Lincoln sells for $32,250 at Cowan's

CINCINNATI – Cowan’s Auctions Inc. conducted an American History, Including the Civil War Auction on June 21, which realized $697,000. The highest selling lot in the sale was an Alexander Gardner colloidon glass negative from Abraham Lincoln’s last sitting, which hammered down at $32,250.

Descended in the family of photographer M.P. Rice, this seated portrait of the 16th president was taken on Feb. 5, 1865, in what was generally acknowledged as Lincoln's last sitting made in Gardner’s studio.

Several photographs were also among the top-selling lots in the auction. A photo described as Robert Linn with his stereoview camera, Lookout Mountain, Civil War by I.H. Bonsall realized $22,325. An Abraham Lincoln salted paper photograph by Samuel Fassett brought $3,172.50, more than $2,000 over the high estimate.

A rare menu from the Atlantic Conference, signed by all guests, including British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, realized $21,150. A George Washington signed document dated 1732-1739, sold for $19,975.

A David Crockett signed document, 1830, hammered down at $20,400.00. A Christopher Kit Carson signed document, Fort Union, N.M., 1866, realized $11,162.50. A Chief Joseph autograph brought $11,162.50; over $5,000 above the high estimate.

“I am extremely pleased with the results of yesterday's auction.” noted Katie Horstman, director of American history department, Cowan’s Auctions. “From the George Washington signed document to the collodion negative of Abraham Lincoln's last sitting, the prices that we achieved for the lots offered in the sale confirmed that the market for fine historic collectibles remains strong.”

More than 260 people from over nine countries bid competitively for the 391 lots on the telephone, online and in Cowan’s Cincinnati salesroom.

Additional noteworthy lots offered in the sale were miniature portraiture and CDVs. A rare Wild Bill Hickok CDV by A.P. Trott, Junction City, Kan., hammered down at $11,162.50. A Thomas Jefferson miniature portrait by William Russell Birch sold for $11,750. A rare panoramic photograph of the opening game at Cincinnati National League Park, Chicago vs. Cincinnati, 1912, fetched $13,200.

For details about the sale and to learn more about Cowan’s, visit cowans.com.

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Russian bronzes, Southern antiques hot sellers at Case’s June 30 sale

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— As the mercury outside spiked to an all-time record 105 degrees in Knoxville on June 30, bidders inside the Summer Case Antiques Auction were creating a heat wave of their own. A documented 1,850 bidders competed in person and from around the globe by phone, absentee and online via LiveAuctioneers.com for 750 cataloged lots of fine art and antiques.

There were eight phone lines and multiple Internet and absentee bids in play for the top-selling lot of the auction, a bronze figural group “Capture of a Wild Kirghz Horse” after Russian sculptor Evgeni Alexandrovich Lanceray (1848-1886). A Russian phone bidder roped it in for $39,440, more than double its high estimate. All prices quoted in this report include a 16% buyer’s premium.

Five phone bidders stayed on the line for a second, smaller Lanceray bronze sculpture of a soldier on horseback, which also doubled its high estimate, reaching $8,532. Another lot garnering strong phone interest was a French restoration period gilded and patinated bronze clock, depicting the mythological Jason capturing the Golden Fleece. The clock lacked its original works but was similar to a model signed by Lesieur, now in the collection of the Museé de Malmaison. Estimated at $5,000-$8,000, it soared to $19,140. Another elaborate French clock, the works signed Cie LeRoy Paris and the case made of hand painted porcelain in the style of Sevres with horizontal dial and gilt bronze mounts, ticked to $12,180 against an $1,800-$2,200 estimate.

A silver gelatin print photograph titled “Diamond Edge Saw Indiana Limestone Company” by Margaret Bourke White (American, 1904-1971) sold for $12,760; and a signed etching of a nude titled “The Weeper,” one of an edition of 30 by Henri Matisse (French, 1869-1954), hammered down for $11,600 (est. $6,000-$8,000). A vividly colored abstract painting by Roberto Burle Marx (Brazil, 1909-1982) tripled its high estimate to earn $6,960; while an oil on board of dancing women by Angel Botello (Puerto Rico, 1913-1986) reached $4,408; and an oil on board harbor scene by Egidius Linnig (Belgium, 1821-1860) docked at $4,176. An oil-on-canvas winter troika scene by Athanas Ivanovich Scheloumoff (Russian, 1892-1983) brought $1,392 (est. $500-700), and a small, early 20th century oil on board Russian school beach scene painting brought $1,000 (est. $300-$400).

There were more bidders registered from China than from any other country outside the United States. Top sellers in the Chinese category included a pair of early Republic period porcelain vases with fisherman motif, $6,960 (est. $1,800-$2,200), an interior painted glass snuff bottle, $3,364 (est. $200-$300), and a Chinese Imari porcelain charger, $2,784 (est. $300-$400). A large late 18th to early 19th century Famille Rose porcelain charger earned $1,856 (est. $500-$800), and a pair of 20th century sake cups with dragon design brought $1,972 (est. $300-$400).

Foreign silver also drew heavy interest. A Chinese Export silver trinket box received more Internet hits than any other item in the sale and finished at $3,712 (est. $600-$900). A hallmarked Persian silver punch bowl and underplate sold for $3,248 (est. $1,800-$2,200), while a Russian silver sugar basket with engraved farm scene and 1881 assayer’s mark brought $580 and a Georg Jensen Art Deco style cased bottle opener and corkscrew set popped at $986.

While international items commanded the spotlight for much of the auction, Case has built a passionate following for Southern decorative arts and historical items, and these were also in good supply. A Tennessee pottery barrel-form rundlet, signed by Charles F. Decker and dated 1897 with inscribed heart and star motifs, rolled to $9,512 (est. $4,000-$4,500). The North Carolina Museum of History won a North Carolina salt glazed jug stamped “W.W. Ballard” for $3,016, a set of four canisters by Georgia folk potter Arie Meaders realized $6,946, and a Sand Mountain, Alabama alkaline glazed pottery pitcher served up $1,392 (est. $700-$900). A one-gallon East Tennessee stoneware jar stamped William Grindstaff, with hairline crack, brought $1,856 – the same price as a redware jug with sine-wave decoration attributed to the Cain Pottery of Sullivan County, Tennessee. Southern art pottery also performed well: a Newcomb College vase by Sadie Irvine found a new home for $1,392 (est. $700-$900) while a Sara Bloom Levy high-glaze mug with hairline crack under its handle realized $1,160. A four-inch-tall George Ohr vase earned $1,392.

A scarce Tennessee needlework sampler with house, floral and alphabet decoration, circa 1835, brought its top estimate, $11,600. Red was the preferred color for a quartet of jacquard coverlets signed by the Maryville Woolen Mill Company (operating in Blount County, Tennessee from 1874-1906). The red and white version sewed up $2,204 (est. $500-$700), while the green, black and teal examples brought $2,088, $1,972 and $1,392 respectively.

A rare coin silver julep cup made by Nashville, Tennessee silversmith William Calhoun (working 1835-1865) hammered down for $2,436 (est. $800-$1200), while a circa 1860 agricultural coin silver julep cup retailed by John Kitts of Kentucky, inscribed “Premium on Tobacco,” reaped $1,160. A 1795 map of Tennessee engraved by B. Tanner, showing Native American landmarks, brought $1,508; and a black version of the Alabama Indestructible Doll, made by the Ella G. Smith Doll Company, sold for $3,944 against a $1,200 top estimate. (The company, which operated from 1899-1925, was the first doll maker in the South to manufacture black dolls).

Proving that the market for Tennessee-born African-American artist Joseph Delaney extends well beyond his home state, his oil-on-board depiction of a woman in a yellow dress sold to a Northeastern museum for $3,944. The same institution also picked up a watercolor of a nude by Delaney for $1,508, more than twice its high estimate. An oil-on-board painting of a stream with mill by Thomas Campbell (Tennessee, 1834-1914) churned out $3,132 (est. $1,000-$1,200), while a Smoky Mountain landscape canvas by Louis Jones (1878-1958) brought $2,204 (est. $550-$650).

Many bidders came seeking military items. A freshly discovered and graphic archive of over 100 Civil War letters related to Captain Oliver Pinkney McCammon of the 3rd East Tennessee Cavalry (a unit which saw action in Tennessee and lost many of its members when The Sultana exploded), surged past its $4,000-5,000 estimate to $10,440. The diary of Confederate private Adam Kersh of the 52nd Virginia Infantry sold for $2,088 (est. $600-$800), and a letter archive related to Private Weed Nims of the 12th Iowa Infantry and the 1862 capture of Fort Donelson achieved $1,972. A 20th century archive including a bomber jacket and flight records owned by Lt. Colonel Raymond Swenson, the first American pilot shot down in WWII, landed at $1,972 (est. $800-$1,200), but bidders were even more motivated by an archive of the same period belonging to Technical Sergeant George A. Pierce of Tennessee. It included his bomber wings and a much more elaborately decorated jacket, featuring a pinup girl and 31 bombs stitched with the names of the cities bombed by its owner, and shot to twice its high estimate, $5,568.

Estate jewelry was another hot seller. A 2.99-carat fancy yellow diamond and platinum ring earned an outburst of applause when it hammered down for $29,000, double its high estimate. An Art Deco diamond and platinum ladies watch containing 139 small diamonds brought $5,104; while several other diamond solitaire rings and 14K-gold pocket watches brought their high estimates or more. A set of three circa 1900 Chinese silver and hardstone bracelets wrapped up $1,624 (est. $200-$300), and a William Spratling silver and amethyst quartz frog bracelet leapt to $986.

An 1837-38 copy of Gould’s “Synopsis of the Birds of Australia,” a complete volume with 73 hand-colored lithographic ornithological plates, realized $7,192 (est. $2,500-$3,500), and a 1967 first edition Andy Warhol Index pop-up book sold for $638 (est. $150-$200). A lithograph titled “Mid-Air” by Louis Lozowick (American, 1892-1973) rose to $2,784 (est. $600-$900) and a lithograph titled “Bathing Beach” by George Bellows (American, 1882-1925) sold for $2,204.

A rare Aesthetic style six-light brass gasolier by the Angle Lamp Company of New York, $4,872 (est. $500-$900) led a collection of early lighting. Other highlights included a signed Galle cameo art glass vase, $3,364; a 19th century American school oil-on-canvas portrait of a child with kitten, $3,480; a Southern stained poplar high post tester bed, $1,740; and a rare 12-inch Statue of Liberty American Committee Model, which brought $3,480 despite its missing flame.

Case is currently accepting quality art and antique consignments for its October auction. For more information, call the gallery in Knoxville at 865-558-3033 or the Nashville office at 615-812-6096; or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

View the fully illustrated catalog for Case’s June 30 Summer Auction, complete with prices realized, online at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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'Trail Boss' corrals highest price at Michaan's fine art auction

ALAMEDA, Calif. – William H. Dunton's painting The Trail Boss led Michaan’s Auctions’ 19th & 20th Century Fine Art Auction on June 9, selling for $234,000. The painting was known to exist but remained unlocated for over 100 years. Commissioned by the D.M. Ferry Seed Co. in 1910, the artist was hired to create an iconic image that captured the spirit of the movement west.

Centenarian painter Hermann Herzog’s Farallon Islands, Pacific Coast, was estimated at $20,000-30,000 and sold for a robust $43,875. The painting was modeled after a photograph dated to 1868-69 by Carleton Watkins. Following on its heels was Granville Redmond’s California Landscape with Stream, which sold for a noteworthy amount of $22,230.

The handsome portrait of Mrs. Samuel Bell by Parisian turned New Orleans resident painter Jean Joseph Vaudechamp brought a respectable $18,720, while her husband’s portrait, Mr. Samuel Bell, by John W. Jarvis brought $2,925.

Other noteworthy lots include German painter Eugen Dukker’s Old Man in a Rowboat sold as lot 2002 for $11,700 and a still life by Russian Federation artist Iulii Y. Klever II sold as lot 2010 for $16,380. An oil painting by contemporary Russian Federation painter, Viacheslav Vasilevich Kalinin titled Autumn, Lilac, Love brought in $21,060 as well.

“Collectors as well as the buying public have come to view Michaan’s Auctions as a source of connoisseurship and product knowledge, offering a wide selection of fresh, high quality American and European works of art,” said Michaan's Fine Art Director Thomas De Doncker. “I am undoubtedly pleased that this notion is reflected in our sales results. Michann’s Auctions is increasingly becoming a collector destination, as we have embraced fine oil paintings, sculpture, works on paper, prints and photography in our auction repertoire.

“Our June 9th sale witnessed spirited bidding and selling throughout the United States and into Great Britain, the Netherlands, France and Israel. In these challenging economic times, Michaan's has emerged as the go-to auction house for the savvy and discriminating buyer.”

Complete results for the 19th and 20th Century American and European Fine Art Auction as well as future auction information and bid submission is available online at www.michaans.com. For general information call Michaan’s Auctions front desk at 510-740-0220 ext. 0 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Michaan’s Auctions is located at 2751 Todd St., Aameda, CA 94501.

Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.

Price of Rhead vessel mushrooms to $150,000 at Rago sale

The two-day auction, composed of 1,096 lots, grossed $4.74 million.

Ninety bidders competed in-house. Phone bidders numbered 265, and 142 absentee bids were placed. Online bidders, through LiveAuctioneers.com, numbered 451 for the Early 20th Century session and 461 for the Modern session. Eighty-two percent of the lots sold.

"The five Modern auctions that preceded ours the week of our sale were mostly strong, but there were some soft spots in European furniture and Tiffany," said David Rago. "Our sale had soft spots, too, but did pretty much as we had hoped, in spite of $20 million having been taken out of the market before our first hammer fell. And it was Father's Day."

The Early 20th Century Design/Arts & Crafts sale on Saturday was estimated at $1.1 million to $1.6 million. Including the 25 percent buyer’s premium, the total was $1.75 million.

In addition to the Rhead vessel highlighted lots were a Tiffany Studios floor lamp with Tulip shade, $137,500; a Frances Rocchi, Saturday Evening Girls center bowl, $96,875; a Duffner & Kimberly table lamp in Louis XV pattern, $40,625; a Samuel Yellin pair of large doors, $37,500; and a Lalique pair of Longchamps mascots, $18,750.

The 20th/21st Century Design segment was estimated at $2.5 million to $3.5 million, and with the premium mustered $2.99 million.

Saturday's Contemporary Pottery highlighted lots were a Viktor Schreckengost, Cowan Jazz Bowl, $100,000; a Pablo Picasso tile with portrait, Tête De Garcon, $59,375; Betty Woodman ceramic winged sculpture; $25,000; and an Otto and Gertrud Natzler earthenware bowl, $12,500.

Sunday's Modern highlighted included a Paul Evans copper sculpture, $53,125; an Albert Paley custom dining table, $53,125; a George Nakashima, Nakashima Studios fine turned-leg dining table, $53,125; a Harry Bertoia untitled (bush) bronze and copper sculpture, $38,750; and a Christopher Hiltey large exterior interactive mobile sculpture, $25,000.

Consignments are now being accepted for Rago’s next 20th Century Design auctions, Oct. 27-28. Phone 609-397-9374 or email info@ragoartscom.

Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.

Rare 15th C. manuscript sells for $102,000 at PBA Galleries

SAN FRANCISCO – A rare 15th century manuscript of Werner Rolewinck’s world history, Fasciculus temporum, sold for $102,000 at PBA Galleries’ June 21 auction of rare books and manuscripts, within the range of the $100,000-$150,000 estimate. The strong price demonstrates the vigor of the antiquarian market, as rare and important material continues to climb in value.

Rolewinck’s Fasciculus temporum was a significant work in its day, a history of the world with dual parallel timelines dating both from creation and the birth of Christ. The manuscript version that sold at PBA Galleries dates from around 1471, preceding the first printing of 1474 by Arnold ther Hoernen in Cologne. There are only 13 known manuscript examples extant, and six of those were produced after the printed version came out—and the copy at PBA Galleries was the only one known to be in private hands.

Rolewinck’s history was important, not the least for its being immensely popular it its day. It went through 30 editions before 1500 and was the best-selling 15th century book by a contemporary author. Indeed, the Fasciculus was apparently the second publication of any living author, seeming to be predated only by Robertus Valturius’ De re militari (1472).

Besides being rare and important, the Fasciculus manuscript has another characteristic that lends to its great desirability and value, that of beauty. It is a striking example of the craft of the medieval scribe, calligrapher and illuminator. The manuscript comprises 30 vellum leaves, in Latin, handwritten in brown and red ink, with numerous roundels in red. There are three miniature paintings in colors (of Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus in the manger; Christ nailed to the cross; and a resurrected Christ, a nimbus of tooled gold leaf surrounding his head, holding a gold leaf orb that is also delicately tooled), and a large, elaborate initial in red and blue leading off the text, with several smaller initials in red or blue. Of further note is the large size of the manuscript, done in “Grand Format,” dwarfing the printed versions. This allows fuller utilization of the elaborate roundel format, with an elegance and beauty not available in the printed version. This grand format is a characteristic of the prepublication manuscripts only. Post-1474 manuscripts typically followed the smaller format of the printed book. The printed examples did have a series of small woodcut illustrations, markedly different from the three beautifully executed miniature paintings in this manuscript. The manuscript is elegantly bound in 17th century paneled calf with gilt tooling.

For the full catalog description of the Fasciculus temporum, go to www.pbagalleries.com and click the catalogs link on the toolbar.

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Rare Eames design spikes June auction at Kamelot

PHILADELPHIA — Buyers at Kamelot Auctions’ June 8 Town & Country Estate Sale competed for top-quality pieces from a trove of twentieth century and antique designer furniture, lighting and garden antiques. Additionally, interest was strong for good sterling silver and fine and decorative art. LiveAuctioneers.com provided the Internet live bidding for the sale.

A highly specialized collector from New York state cast the final bid for a rare, circa-1952 Eames ESU-series storage unit having two compartments with sliding doors, open shelving and 11 drawers. It sold for $8,250. Three more lots from the same Eames series grossed over $14,000.

The strong form of a Ruhlmann-style burled walnut and inlaid desk captured the imagination of a local Art Deco buyer, who bought it for $3,600, while $4,300 was enough to secure a French Deco dining table with eight matching chairs. A Teplitz Art Nouveau amphora lamp went to a New York City buyer for $4,600, more than ten times the low estimate.

The charm and classical elegance of a rare lacquered Jansen sideboard earned $4,200; while three lots of silver-on-bronze figural groups including one signed ‘Christofle et Cie’ grossed over $8,000. There were some excellent garden antiques, as well. Lot 589A, a pair of Victorian lily-of-the-valley iron chairs was purchased by a well-known Philadelphia real estate developer for $4,800. A charming carousel horse attributed to Herschell-Spillman sold to a collector in Massachusetts for $6,600.

The June 8 sale at Philadelphia’s Kamelot Auctions exhibited many such successful results throughout the day-long run of over 800 lots. The next three sales at Kamelot will take place in September, October and November of 2012. For more information, visit kamelotauctions.com or call 215-438-6990.

Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.

Chinese teaset sells for $251,000 in Canadian auction

There were more than 10,000 online catalog page views, as well. It was a relatively small (165 lots) auction, but some of its contents were quite select. A fine, extremely rare purple clay teapot set made to honor the centennial of the great Chinese master painter Zhu Qizhan (1892-1996) finished as top lot. Fewer than 90 pieces of this coveted, hand-lithographed pottery are believed to exist, mainly in museums or private collections.

The set sold through LiveAuctioneers for Canadian $258,000 (US$251,000).

Visit the fully illustrated catalog, complete with prices realized, at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.