Typically fine estate items to be sold at Auctions Neapolitan on June 27

Italian impressionist Vincenzo Migliaro's street scene, 10 7/8 by 7 7/8 inches, is expected to sell for $4,000-$5,000. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
Italian impressionist Vincenzo Migliaro's street scene, 10 7/8 by 7 7/8 inches, is expected to sell for $4,000-$5,000. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
Italian impressionist Vincenzo Migliaro’s street scene, 10 7/8 by 7 7/8 inches, is expected to sell for $4,000-$5,000. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.

NAPLES, Fla. – A typically fine selection of antiques and fine art from local and South Florida estates will be sold at Auctions Neapolitan on June 27 beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern. While there may not be one blockbuster item to tout, owner-auctioneer Kathleen M. Pica isn’t apologizing for the sale.

“We’re known for our eclectic pieces,” she said. “We’re the fun auction where prices are affordable.”

LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

Several pieces of jade have generated interest from Asia. A 19th-century belt buckle of white jade in the form of a dragon with Kylin already has a handful of bids. “I see several of my regular Chinese buyers have bid so it must be a good piece,” said Pica.

A Chinese light green jade lamp in the form of a covered urn with a foo dog finial has a conservative estimate of $2,000-$3,000. Missing one of its two carved jade rings, it dates to the first half of the 20th century.

“You can call it a sleeper,” said Pica.

Also from China, a large 19th-century Rose Medallion porcelain bowl is in good condition and expected to make $1,200-$1,500.

Several sterling silver flatware sets will be sold including 126 pieces of Stradivari pattern by Wallace. Weighing 124 troy ounces, the set is estimated at $1,000-$2,000.

A painting by Italian Impressionist Vincenzo Migliaro (1858-1938) of a woman and a street vendor on a village street has a $4,000-$5,000 painting. “He’s a well-respected artist and it’s a good painting,” said Pica.

Another interest item is a large 19th-century captain’s tantalus chest complete with matching decanters, cut glass tumblers and numerous pieces of bar equipment. A medallion is inscribed, “James Macbeth, Christmas 1897.” The fitted chest and contents are expected to sell for $800-$1,200.

Finally, a 19th-century English miniature brass-bound chest on stand, 17 inches high by 12 inches wide, in exotic wood veneer, is an uncommon piece, said Pica. A label on the bottom reads, “Lady Georgina Bathhurst” (1769-1841). With veneer loss and a broken lock hasp, the chest has $300-$400 estimate.

The sale will be conducted at Auctions Neapolitan’s downtown galleries at 1100 First Ave.

View the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet during the sale at www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Red marble complements the Egyptian Revival motif of this French clock and garniture candelabra. The set has a $1,500-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
Red marble complements the Egyptian Revival motif of this French clock and garniture candelabra. The set has a $1,500-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
This Chinese Rose Medallion bowl is 19 1/2 inches in diameter and rests on a carved wooden stand. It has a $1,200-$1,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
This Chinese Rose Medallion bowl is 19 1/2 inches in diameter and rests on a carved wooden stand. It has a $1,200-$1,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
With its foo dog finial the Chinese urn-form table lamp of light green jade stands 21 inches high. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
With its foo dog finial the Chinese urn-form table lamp of light green jade stands 21 inches high. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
A nearly complete service for 12 of Spode's Trade Winds Red tableware has a $1,500-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
A nearly complete service for 12 of Spode’s Trade Winds Red tableware has a $1,500-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
Bidding should surpass the $600-$800 estimate for this 19th-century carved white jade belt buckle. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.
Bidding should surpass the $600-$800 estimate for this 19th-century carved white jade belt buckle. Image courtesy Neapolitan Auctions.

Tiffany, Georg Jensen classics in Skinner’s 20th Century sale, June 27

Circa-1910 Tiffany Studios table lamp with Peony shade on Peacock base. Provenance: descended in a Massachusetts family. Estimate $70,000-$90,000.
Circa-1910 Tiffany Studios table lamp with Peony shade on Peacock base. Provenance: descended in a Massachusetts family. Estimate $70,000-$90,000.
Circa-1910 Tiffany Studios table lamp with Peony shade on Peacock base. Provenance: descended in a Massachusetts family. Estimate $70,000-$90,000.

BOSTON – Skinner will host its 20th Century Furniture & Decorative Arts on June 27, 2009, offering more than 550 lots of furniture, decorative and utilitarian objects from the Art Nouveau, Arts & Crafts, Art Deco, Mid-Century and Post Modern periods. Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.com.

The sale features a collection of timeless mid-20th century silver objets d’art and jewelry designed by Georg Jensen. Highlights include a Blossom coffeepot, covered sugar and cream pitcher (lot 215, est. $3,000/3,500); a pair of candelabra (lot 213, est. $7,000/9,000), a Caravel flatware set (lot 169, est. $2,500/3,500); and a sauceboat (lot 206, est. $1,800/2,000). Johan Rhode Georg Jensen offerings include two pitchers (lot 210, est. $5,000/7,000 and lot 186, est. $2,000/2,500); a Louvre bowl (lot 211, est. $1,000/1,500); and a Johan Rhode for Georg Jensen and William Seitz tea service (lot 214, est. $6,000/8,000).

Continue reading

Newcomb pottery, fine art, estate antiques at Neal Auction, June 27-28

1904 Newcomb College high-glaze pottery vase decorated by Marie Hoa LeBlanc in the Clematis pattern, $169,200. Image courtesy Neal Auction Co.
A Fine Newcomb College Art Pottery High Glaze Vase, 1904, decorated by Marie de Hoa LeBlanc, with an incised design of Jackmanii Climbing Clematis in blue, green, and yellow underglaze, the base marked with Newcomb cipher, decorator's mark, Joseph Meyer's potter's mark, "Q" for buff clay body and reg. no. "VV19", height 13 in., diameter 6 1/2 in. $35,000/50,000.
A Fine Newcomb College Art Pottery High Glaze Vase, 1904, decorated by Marie de Hoa LeBlanc, with an incised design of Jackmanii Climbing Clematis in blue, green, and yellow underglaze, the base marked with Newcomb cipher, decorator’s mark, Joseph Meyer’s potter’s mark, "Q" for buff clay body and reg. no. "VV19", height 13 in., diameter 6 1/2 in. $35,000/50,000.

NEW ORLEANS – The spirit of the independent women of New Orleans’ H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College is immortalized in the pottery that was produced in the early 20th century as part of its art school curriculum. A century after its creation, a premier source for Newcomb pottery is Neal Auction Co., which will offer a particularly fine example of a Marie de Hoa LeBlanc design – a 1904 vase with climbing clematis motif – in its June 27-28 Summer Estates Auction. Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.com.

Collectors of Newcomb pottery strive to learn as much as possible about the history of the articles they purchase, all of which were decorated by students. Newcomb College was founded in 1886 with a $100,000 financial gift from Josphine Louise Newcomb, with the expressed wish that it would provide an education for young women that was both “practical and literary.” The Art Department would become the focus of this ideal, and the pottery designed by its students would go on to win the school enduring acclaim for its beauty and quality.

Continue reading

Divers to survey Civil War ironclad USS Monitor

An engraving depicts the sinking of the USS Monitor in a storm off Cape Hatteras the night of Dec. 30, 1862. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
An engraving depicts the sinking of the USS Monitor in a storm off Cape Hatteras the night of Dec. 30, 1862. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
An engraving depicts the sinking of the USS Monitor in a storm off Cape Hatteras the night of Dec. 30, 1862. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

HATTERAS, N.C. (AP) – Divers plan to survey the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor off the North Carolina coast this week with high-definition cameras to look for deterioration in the nearly 150-year-old underwater wreckage.

Expedition organizers are hoping for good weather so divers can make maximum dives into the 230-foot-deep waters some 16 miles off Cape Hatteras, Jeff Johnston of the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary said Monday.

Johnston said the dive is exciting to sanctuary personnel because it will be the first time the ship will be examined using high-definition images, which make it easier to study the wreckage.

“The camera sees so much better than the eye does,” he said, adding that the integrity of the wreck is good. “It allows us to have an annual record of deterioration.”

Johnston said the divers don’t plan to bring artifacts to the surface.

Major artifacts like the Monitor’s revolving turret, its engine and propeller have been recovered and are housed at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, Va. The wreck was discovered in 1973 and designated the first national marine sanctuary in 1975.

The ship made history on March 9, 1862, during the battle of Hampton Roads against the Confederate ironclad CSS Virginia. It sank that year on Dec. 31 in a storm while being towed to Beaufort. However, experts say the ship’s design, which included a revolving turret and armor, helped revolutionize naval warfare.

Divers ran into tricky currents Sunday and couldn’t launch a robotic sub to survey the wreckage, and the weather may be windy and stormy during the week, Johnston said.

The dive is under the umbrella of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, but includes private divers, New Jersey-based Deep Explorers and a team from Rutgers University, which has the robotic minisub.

___

On the Net:

NOAA Monitor sanctuary:
http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/missions/2009monitor/

Deep Explorers: http://deepexplorers.com

Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-ES-06-22-09 1419EDT

Mummies to get CAT scans at New York hospital

Egyptian mummies were much sought after by museums in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This Egyptian mummy is kept in the Vatican Museum. Source: Joshua Sherurcij. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Egyptian mummies were much sought after by museums in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This Egyptian mummy is kept in the Vatican Museum. Source: Joshua Sherurcij. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Egyptian mummies were much sought after by museums in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This Egyptian mummy is kept in the Vatican Museum. Source: Joshua Sherurcij. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

NEW YORK (AP) – Four Egyptian mummies from New York City are getting ready for their close-ups. Brooklyn Museum officials say the mummies will undergo sophisticated CAT scans on Tuesday at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y.

Researchers hope to gain further knowledge about their identities, cause of death, and ancient funerary practices.

Egyptian art curator Dr. Edward Bleiberg said the bodies embalmed for burial by the ancient Egyptians have been packed to survive the 18-mile trip during rush hour.

The mummies range in age from more than 3,000 years old to just over 1,700 years old.

Bleiberg said a 2007 hospital scan of a mummy showed the man was 30 years older than estimated and had died from an infected gallstone.
___

On the Net:

Brooklyn Museum: http://www.brooklynmuseum.org

Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

The world takes note of ‘Made in Trenton’ exhibit

Boehm porcelain figures have been made in Trenton, N.J., for nearly 60 years. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.
Boehm porcelain figures have been made in Trenton, N.J., for nearly 60 years. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.
Boehm porcelain figures have been made in Trenton, N.J., for nearly 60 years. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.

TRENTON, N.J. – In an age when the majority of consumer product are marked “Made in China,” it’s refreshing and encouraging to find something special made in America. An exhibit titled Made in Trenton will open June 27 celebrating products currently manufactured in this New Jersey industrial center once known for producing steel, rubber, wire, rope, linoleum and ceramics.

The exhibit will be at the Trenton City Museum at Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park and is sponsored by the museum and the Trenton Museum Society.

Trenton’s present-day industries produce such specialized equipment as run-flat tires for military use and emergency survival equipment to decorative porcelain figures and candles.          

“This exhibit showcases a small sampling of Trenton manufacturers who have either survived the changing market and continue to grow and thrive – or who have identified their niche recently and produce products and services in the 21st century,” said Museum Director Brian O. Hill.  “The slogan, ‘Trenton Makes, the World Takes’ is as true today as it was when S. Roy Heath, then owner of Heath Lumber, came up with the phrase and won a slogan contest sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce in 1910.”

An opening reception for the exhibit will be Saturday, June 27, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the museum. A members-only preview will begin at 6 p.m.

Boehm Porcelain, which has been making decorative porcelain figures in Trenton since 1950, will present a demonstration on the construction of flowers and eagles on Sunday, June 28 at 2 p.m.

The exhibit will run through Sept. 13.

The following contributors provide a glimpse of what the city offers the world today:

  • Ana Design Corp. – Company founder Frank Weeden designed the machine for producing striped tapers. The company has produced the original striped candles since 1994.
  • Blacksmith of Trenton – Ukrainian-born Sasha Parubchenko is New Jersey’s only full-time industrial blacksmith. As demand for heavy metal work has been declined, Parubchenko has refocused to serve the local homeowner and construction markets with custom-made metalwork. His place of business on North Olden Avenue in Trenton has been a blacksmith shop since 1883.
  • Bolt Welding & Ironworks Inc. – President Chris Hiltey and his staff of seven employees provide gates and other metal products to the builders of high-end homes.
  • E. M. Boehm – Sculptor Edward and wife Helen Boehm founded the company in 1950. Today it recognized as one of the world’s foremost porcelain studios. Boehm fine porcelain sculptures and limited-edition collectibles, as well as historically commissioned pieces are created by skilled artisans in the same Trenton, N.J., studio in which the company was founded. Art from the Boehm studio has been presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Pope John Paul II, Mikhail Gorbachev and every U.S. president since Dwight D. Eisenhower.
  • Hutchinson Industries – Founded in 1853, Hutchinson is one of the world’s oldest rubber product manufacturers. It manufactures mobility components for wheeled vehicles, including wheels and runflats for commercial and military use.
  • Modern Metal Work – Artist and furniture designer Peter Abrams likes to refer to himself as a reverse engineer. He culls recycled materials like elevator cables and transforms them into useful objects like fireplace screens and fire bowls.
  • Switlick Parachute Co. – Established in 1920, Switlick no longer manufactures parachutes. Today’s products include inflatable life vests and life rafts for military and the commercial airline rescue operations.
  • Terracycle – Eco-friendly entrepreneurs John Szaky and Jon Beyer head a company that produces organic fertilizer made from the excrement of earthworms. The company also produces packaging from recycled materials.

Museum hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sundays, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.  The Museum is closed on Mondays and holidays. Visit www.ellarslie.org for more information and directions or for additional information, contact Brian O. Hill, museum director, at 609-989-3632.

ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE

A specially-made machine in used to produce Ana striped candles. Frank Weeden founded the company in Trenton, N.J., in 1994. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.
A specially-made machine in used to produce Ana striped candles. Frank Weeden founded the company in Trenton, N.J., in 1994. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.
Historic Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park will be the showplace for ‘Made in Trenton,' including this display for Bolt Welding & Ironworks Inc. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.
Historic Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park will be the showplace for ‘Made in Trenton,’ including this display for Bolt Welding & Ironworks Inc. Image courtesy Trenton City Museum.

In Review: Gustave Caillebotte at the Brooklyn Museum

Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848–1894). "Oarsman in a Top Hat," 1877–1878. Oil on canvas, 35 7/16 x 46 1/16 in. (90 x 117 cm). Private collection. Image courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum.
Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848–1894). "Oarsman in a Top Hat," 1877–1878. Oil on canvas, 35 7/16 x 46 1/16 in. (90 x 117 cm). Private collection. Image courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum.
Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848–1894). "Oarsman in a Top Hat", 1877–1878. Oil on canvas, 35 7/16 x 46 1/16 in. (90 x 117 cm). Private collection. Image courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum.

BROOKLYN, N.Y. (ACNI) – It has been 30 years since New York last played host to the stunning and magical works of Gustave Caillebotte (French, 1848-1894). Although best known for his depiction of urban workers and the daily life of Parisians in the modern city and branded by critics of his day as “rebellious” and “vulgar,” Caillebotte was more than just an “urban Impressionist.” His unique style and versatility are amply showcased in an exhibition of 40 Caillebotte works running through July 5 at the Brooklyn Museum, titled Impressionistic Paintings from Paris to the Sea.

Caillebotte’s paintings show true-to-life expressions ranging from his affluent upbringing to his love for yachting and river sporting activities. With outdoor scenes from fabulous apartments overlooking Paris, elegant gardens of Petit Gennevilliers, the riverbank of Yerres and shores of Normandy, he documents his passions on canvas.

I had never seen a painting by Gustave Caillebotte and was particularly fascinated by Oarsman in a Top Hat, which drew me in because it reminded me of my first love. It’s a gorgeous painting, colorful and serene. The observer feels as though they are with the subject in his beautifully crafted boat, sailing down the river on a Sunday.

Continue reading