Czerny’s expects a king’s ransom to be bid for Faberge box March 21

Czar Nicholas II of Russia received this marked Faberge gold snuffbox circa 1900. It is expected to sell for $55,000-$110,000 Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
Czar Nicholas II of Russia received this marked Faberge gold snuffbox circa 1900. It is expected to sell for $55,000-$110,000 Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
Czar Nicholas II of Russia received this marked Faberge gold snuffbox circa 1900. It is expected to sell for $55,000-$110,000 Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.

SARZANA, Italy – Everything from a Faberge snuffbox belonging to Czar Nicholas II of Russia to an armor helmet of a guard of King Louis XIII can be found at Czerny’s International Auction House’s Spring Sale to be conducted March 21. LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding.

Michael G. Czerny describes this as an important sale of fine antique arms, armor, memorabilia and militaria. It will feature the Dr. Paleari Henssler collection of rare guns and rifles, including a beautiful flintlock sporting gun from the property of King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Russia.

The sizes of the antique firearms range from a cased pair of Boutet pocket pistols to a collection of cannons. Early firearms include a rare pair of 16th-century wheel-lock “puffer” pistols from Saxony.

American firearms include an engraved silver-plated Colt Model 1855 Root revolver dedicated to Col. Lewis R. Stegman, who served in the Civil War with Gen. William T. Sherman.

A collection of 14 sets of European armor will be sold in addition to armor from China, Japan and Persia.

Antique bladed weapons include a scarce Hispanic-Moorish ear-dagger from about 1500 and a medieval sword with an inscription from about 1250.

The jeweled snuffbox from the property of Czar Nicholas II, one of several Faberge works in the auction, carries a $55,000-$110,000 estimate.

Also from Russia is a large silver presentation kovsch by M. Ovchinnikov.

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

Click here to view Czerny’s International Auction House’s complete catalog.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Union Col. Lewis R. Stegman, who was gravely wounded in the Civil War, was presented this engraved Colt Model 1855 Root revolver, which is in its original case. It carries a $13,750-$20,627 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
Union Col. Lewis R. Stegman, who was gravely wounded in the Civil War, was presented this engraved Colt Model 1855 Root revolver, which is in its original case. It carries a $13,750-$20,627 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.

Exhibiting craftsmanship fit for a king, this flintlock sporting gun was the property of Friedrich Wilhelm II of Russia during the last quarter of the 18th century. This elegant smoothbore weapon has a $34,400-$41,300 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
Exhibiting craftsmanship fit for a king, this flintlock sporting gun was the property of Friedrich Wilhelm II of Russia during the last quarter of the 18th century. This elegant smoothbore weapon has a $34,400-$41,300 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.

Brass-plate medallions with dragons in bas-relief adorn this 18th-century Chinese suit of studded armor. It is estimated at $20,300-$24,700. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
Brass-plate medallions with dragons in bas-relief adorn this 18th-century Chinese suit of studded armor. It is estimated at $20,300-$24,700. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.

This helmet probably belonged to a guard of King Louis XIII of France (1638-1715). It has a $34,400-$41,300 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.
This helmet probably belonged to a guard of King Louis XIII of France (1638-1715). It has a $34,400-$41,300 estimate. Image courtesy Czerny’s International Auction House.

Hemingway’s Key West house named literary landmark

Hemingway House (Ernest Hemingway House & Museum) in Key West Florida, 2006 photo by Andreas Lamecker, courtesy Wikipedia.

Hemingway House (Ernest Hemingway House & Museum) in Key West Florida, 2006 photo by Andreas Lamecker, courtesy Wikipedia.
Hemingway House (Ernest Hemingway House & Museum) in Key West Florida, 2006 photo by Andreas Lamecker, courtesy Wikipedia.
KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) – Ernest Hemingway’s Key West home, where the American author lived in the 1930s, has been designated a literary landmark.

Hemingway, who lived in the Spanish-colonial home with his second wife, Pauline, and their two sons, owned the property until his death in 1961. It became a museum honoring the Pulitzer and Nobel prize-winning author in 1964.

He worked on many of his best-known manuscripts in the Key West property’s second-story writing studio.

“Hemingway was probably our first and most popular writer to take residence in Key West,” said Dave Gonzales of the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum. “He lived here only nine years, but wrote 70 percent of his lifetime works in that nine-year period – the most prolific period of his life.”

Among them were For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Snows of Kilimanjaro and the Key West-based To Have and Have Not, Hemingway’s only novel set in the United States.

“This is a recognition long overdue,” said author Les Standiford, who presented the designation. “There are a number of other literary landmarks in Key West, but none dedicated to Hemingway.”

Literary landmark designation is conferred by a division of the American Library Association. The Hemingway home is Key West’s eighth literary landmark. Others include the former homes of playwright Tennessee Williams and poet Elizabeth Bishop.

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On the Net:

Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum: http://www.hemingwayhome.com/

Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP-ES-03-15-10 1229EDT

 

 

 

Kentucky town, antique mall battle over license idea

HAZEL, Ky. (AP) – A southwestern Kentucky city and the owners of an antique mall are doing legal battle over a requirement that vendors at the mall obtain a license to sell.

Hazel city officials are trying to enforce the ordinance for the first time it’s revision in 2007. Mayor Kerry Vasseur told the Murray Ledger & Times that after a city council meeting last week, the city decided to enforce the requirement, which is similar to licenses in Murray and other cities in western Kentucky.

Charlie’s Antique Mall and Soda Fountain owner Ray Gough sued the city in 2008 over the requirement and maintains that only mall owners should have to pay the licensing fee, not the venors.

Currently some antique mall booth renters pay for a license, while others don’t. The city maintains that those not paying are breaking the law.

Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-CS-03-14-10 1246EDT

Saint statue stolen from Salt Lake church

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – First the Little Mermaid, now a Catholic saint. For the second time in a month, a valuable bronze statue has been stolen in Salt Lake City.

In the latest, a bronze statue of the namesake of St. Ambrose Catholic Church was ripped from its concrete pedestal over the weekend.

On Feb. 26, a 3-foot-tall replica of the famous Danish statue of Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid was stolen from Jordan Park.

St. Ambrose pastor Andrew Skrzypiec says the statue of the saint is worth nearly $30,000 and was commissioned in 1988 from the former chairman of the University of Utah’s sculpture department Angelo Caravaglia.

Father Skrzypiec says the statue is sacred and has a greater religious value to parishioners than any small amount someone could get for it in scrap metal.

He’s asking the thieves not to harm it.

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Information from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com

Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-WS-03-15-10 0537EDT

PBA sells Henry Miller collection in private-treaty sale

Henry Miller's 1930s Paris notebooks contained not only written content but also drawings such as this one, which was obtained directly from the Miller family. PBA Galleries has announced the private-treaty sale of the Henry Miller collection, which originally had been included in their March 18, 2010 auction. Image courtesy PBA Galleries.
Henry Miller's 1930s Paris notebooks contained not only written content but also drawings such as this one, which was obtained directly from the Miller family. PBA Galleries has announced the private-treaty sale of the Henry Miller collection, which originally had been included in their March 18, 2010 auction. Image courtesy PBA Galleries.
Henry Miller’s 1930s Paris notebooks contained not only written content but also drawings such as this one, which was obtained directly from the Miller family. PBA Galleries has announced the private-treaty sale of the Henry Miller collection, which originally had been included in their March 18, 2010 auction. Image courtesy PBA Galleries.

SAN FRANCISCO – In an announcement made yesterday, March 15, PBA Galleries confirmed that a major American research institution has purchased via private treaty the rare and extensive collection of Henry Miller items that were to be auctioned on March 18, 2010 as part of the Library of Roger Wagner. The collection of important manuscripts, letters, and archival material by the acclaimed American novelist and members of his circle includes the typed manuscript for the first draft of Tropic of Capricorn and Henry Miller’s Paris notebooks. “The literary significance of these extraordinary notebooks can hardly be overstated,” a press release from PBA Galleries states. “They capture the thoughts and reflections of Miller during his time of greatest creativity, and provide the basis for the works which were to make him famous.” The material in the collection is from Miller’s personal archives. In addition to his own manuscripts and letters, there are letters from his many friends and literary associates, including Anais Nin, Lawrence Durrell, Erica Jong and others.

Roger Wagner commented, “I’m happy to know that this important archive will stay together and be accessible to the scholars and fans of Henry Miller.”

The remaining 93 lots in PBA Galleries’ auction will be offered on March 18, 2010, with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com. The collection reflects Wagner’s skilled interest in a wide range of literary arts, science, history and human endeavor. The material ranges from the 15th through 20th centuries, and touches upon nearly every aspect of the progress of civilization. The 62 lots of books include a leaf from the Gutenberg Bible; a 1486 printing of Aristotle’s Opera; a superb copy of Abraham Ortelius Theatrum Orbis Terrarum from 1584, with 112 hand-colored maps; Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, first edition, 1776; the 1859 first edition of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species; and much more. The 31 lots of autograph and manuscript material range from a manuscript document signed by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, 1501, to a rare autograph letter signed by Herman Melville, to a short manuscript play written by John Steinbeck while visiting the Soviet Union in 1963.

View the fully illustrated catalog for the March 18 sale and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet through www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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Click here to view PBA Galleries’ complete catalog.