August 18, 2010 - Auction Central News

Vintage gas signs roll up premium prices at Matthews auction

The top lot of the sale was this Washington Chief Gasoline double-sided porcelain sign, which sold for $20,900. Image courtesy of Matthews Auctions LLC.

DES MOINES, Iowa – An outstanding 72-inch Washington Chief Gasoline double-sided porcelain sign with full Indian headdress profile for a graphic climbed to $20,900 at an auction conducted Aug. 6 by Matthews Auctions LLC. The sale coincided with the final day of the 2010 Iowa Gas Show and featured Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com.

The Washington Chief sign was the top lot of the more than 500 lots of petroliana – gas and oil signs, globes, cans and a collection of rest room signs – that changed hands that day. Headlining the sale were three major collections, consigned by Ray and Mary Sue Seider of California, the late Ace Feeks of Oregon and Ron Ueberhein of Lincoln, Neb. Other consignments were also featured in the auction.

“Petroliana and automobilia are alive and well as collectibles, particularly gas and oil signs,” said Dan Matthews of the Nokomis, Ill.-based auction company. “Globe prices were a little depressed and oil cans just held their own, but overall the auction was a big success. In fact, it was our largest one-day sale ever,” he said, adding that Internet bidding via LiveAuctioneers.com was very brisk.

All prices quoted from the auction include a 10 percent buyer’s premium.

The second top lot of the day was a rare Ace High & Wil-Flo Motor Oil porcelain thermometer, 38 inches tall by 8 inches wide. It went for $13,200. A pair of lots flirted with the $10,000 mark but fell just short. One was a Hood Tire Man with straight bow tie single-sided tin die-cut sign, which rolled to $9,900. The other was a nice Associated Gasoline “More Miles to the Gallon” single-sided porcelain sign, which reached $9,350.

A Dodge-Plymouth double-sided porcelain neon sign sold at $7,425; a Goodrich Safety Tires single-sided porcelain sign with Mountie logo, $6,600; a Hood Tire Dealer Man with straight tie single-sided porcelain die-cut sign, $5,500; a Red Hat Motor Oil Gasoline double-sided porcelain sign, $5,225; and a St. Helens Gasoline double-sided porcelain sign, $5,280.

A Mobiloil Marine double-sided porcelain sign with Pegasus graphic, 30 inches, garnered $4,400; a Little Bear Gasoline gill single lens in a gill glass globe body changed hands for $4,675; a Clipper with airplane image 15-inch single-lens in metal globe body coasted to $4,400; and a Red Rooster Fruit & Produce single-sided porcelain sign with great graphic, 36 inches, sold for $4,950.

A Richfield Richlube Motor Oil double-sided porcelain sign with open-wheel race car graphic, 24 inches, breezed to $4,675; a Veltex Company Fletcher Oil single-sided porcelain truck door sign, 18 inches, peaked at $4,400; a United Motor Service single-sided porcelain counter-top or window neon sign hit $4,950; and a Pure Lighted identification sign with two 48-inch lenses made $3,850.

A Mobil Pegasus cookie-cutter single-sided porcelain die-cut sign, 69 inches by 92 inches, earned $4,125. The same amount was realized for a Mobil Pegasus two-piece cookie-cutter single-sided porcelain sign; a Mohawk Gasoline 15-inch single lens in a metal globe body attained $3,850; and an RPM Motor Oil “A Knockout For Winter” one-sided tin sign with Donald Duck graphic fetched $3,850.

To learn more about Matthews Auctions visit www.matthewsauctions.com or call 217-563-8880.

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

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Hood Tire Man single-sided tin sign with straight bow tie graphic, 36 inches by 13 inches, $9,900.

Associated Gasoline ‘More Miles to the Gallon’ single-sided porcelain sign, $9,350. Image courtesy of Matthews Auctions LLC.

Goodrich Safety Tires single-sided porcelain sign with Mountie logo, 63 inches by 18 inches, $6,600. Image courtesy of Matthews Auctions LLC.

Rare High & Wil-Flo Motor Oil porcelain thermometer, 38 inches by 8 inches, $13,200. Image courtesy of Matthews Auctions LLC.

Dodge-Plymouth double-sided porcelain neon sign, $7,425. Image courtesy of Matthews Auctions LLC.

Antiques from Italian estates lead Aug. 19 Morton Kuehnert sale

Set of six Pietro Costantini dining room chairs. Image courtesy Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers.

HOUSTON – Beautiful Venetian, Victorian and Louis XV antique furniture – much of it sourced from family estates and imported from Italy – will join many interesting pieces from Houston estates in an Aug. 19 sale conducted by Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers and Appraisers. LiveAuctioneers will provide the Internet live bidding.

One of the highlights, Lot 185, consists of a lovely pair of Victorian bedroom chairs covered in velvet and satin, accented with long fringe. The duo is estimated at $200-$250. Another furnishing that’s sure to connect with interior designers is Lot 78, a Venetian console table and mirror estimated at $300-$400.

Lot 197, a small Italian painted metal bed, could serve as the focal point of any bedroom and is conservatively estimated at $200-$300. An exquisite Venetian vanity with a beveled mirror, Lot 102, is expected to fetch $150-$200.

A number of Venetian servers, sideboards and armoires set to cross the auction block validate the long-held reputation of Italian designers as leaders in their field. Two Venetian sideboards with exquisite burled walnut wood, Lots 114 and 115, carry individual estimates of $400-$500. A matching armoire, Lot 118, could make $400-$500 on auction day.

Other sale highlights include: Lot 7, an interesting Seth Thomas mantel clock with the original label on the back, $100-$150; Lot 167, a set of six Pietro Costantini dining room chairs, $250-$300; and Lot 181, a Victorian single-end chaise, $250-$300. Lot 93, an oak barley-twist tea table, is entered in the sale with a $150-$200 estimate. A treasure trove of paintings, stained glass and terra cotta garden pottery also will be available.

For additional information on any lot in the sale, call Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers at 713-827-7835 or e-mail inquiry@mortonkuehnert.com.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Seth Thomas 8-day half-hour clock. Image courtesy Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers.

Venetian vanity with beveled mirror. Image courtesy Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers.

Pair of velvet and satin Victorian bedroom chairs. Image courtesy Morton Kuehnert Auctioneers.

International Society of Appraisers announces fall education schedule

CHICAGO – Director of Education for the International Society of Appraisers Leon Castner, ISA CAPP has announced a full and challenging fall schedule of courses for ISA member appraisers as well as non-members. Following the successful Assets 2010 Annual Conference in Toronto, the ISA continues to focus on its primary mission of education for its members.

The fall schedule begins with two classes scheduled for Sept. 28-Oct. 3 at the Hilton Garden Inn in downtown Chicago. The course offerings are Appraisal of Fine Arts, with instructors Richard Casagrande, ISA CAPP and Cathy Peters, ISA CAPP; and Appraisal of Antiques & Residential Contents, with instructors David Mapes, ISA CAPP and Karen Rabe, ISA CAPP. All are veteran ISA instructors. Both courses are new versions of the course and include several new topics. Pre-course reading and a written assignment are required for both courses.

The Fine Arts course emphasizes the primary categories of fine art frequently encountered by appraisers and dealers: paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photography, animation art, Russian icons and Spanish Colonial art. Major areas of focus include art history, identifying and researching fine art works, properly describing art works and a field trip to a local Museum such as the Art Institute of Chicago.

The Antiques & Residential Contents course provides information necessary to properly identify and value items falling into the broad category of antiques and residential contents. The focus is on construction and manufacturing, and discerning the difference between “good,” “better” and “best” quality. Course sections include furniture, ceramics, glass, silver, toys and dolls, and vintage fashions as well as general household contents and includes a trip to Chicago’s Merchandise Mart.

Enrollment for each course for ISA members is $1,200. Non-members are welcome to register for $1,470.

Those courses are followed in Naperville, Ill. (metro Chicago) on Oct. 4-5 by the Requalification Course, required every five years for members. It is also offered as a Distant Education course if attendance onsite is not possible. Castner is the instructor for this course, which is essential in maintaining knowledge of current ISA standards, particularly in appraisal methodology, industry regulations and report writing. This course is open only to those who have completed the ISA Core Course or who are bridging to ISA from other organizations. Enrollment is $625 with an early enrollment discount. See the Web site for details of the Distant Education version of this course.

The 15-hour National USPAP course follows on Oct. 7-8 in Naperville. This course is intended to fulfill the National Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice requirement for credentialed membership levels within a professional property appraisal organization. The course instructor will be Roger Durkin, a personal property attorney. Enrollment is $300 for members, $450 for non-members.

The final course of the year is the Core Course. The Core Course is the “nuts and bolts” approach to personal property appraising in all disciplines and is the starting point for anyone interested in becoming a personal property appraiser. The Course is an action packed seven-day marathon, held in Naperville in conjunction with Northern Illinois University, that includes hands on experience outside the classroom. The course includes everything a prospective appraiser needs in order to begin a new career including practice appraisals and written appraisals. Class activities include inventorying property, using the computer for research on Internet sites and finding comparable sales, and will include examples of good and bad appraisals. Enrollment is $1,150 for members and $1500 for non-members.

Castner’s newest expansion of the education program is the presentation of several one-hour Webinars each month. The subject rotates between specialty topics and methodology subjects, with some free informational versions included. Registration is open to anyone, and ISA membership is not required. Registration details are available on the ISA Web site.

For information about any of the professional education opportunities offered by the ISA visit their Web site at http://www.isa-appraisers.org, call Michelle Stearns at 312-981-6778, email isa@isa-appraisers.org or write to: ISA, 737 North Michigan Ave., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60611.

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Puzzling lava Colter Stone on display in Grand Teton

Sometime between 1931 and 1933, William Beard and his son discovered a rock carved into the shape of a man's head while clearing a field in Tetonia, Idaho, which is immediately west of the Teton Range. The name "John Colter" appears on the stone.

MOOSE, Wyo. (AP and ACNI) – The mysterious Colter Stone is being displayed in Grand Teton National Park this week.

The lava stone resembles a human head and is engraved with the name “John Colter” and the year 1808. Some speculate the stone was the work of trapper and explorer John Colter, who was likely the first person of European descent to travel through the Grand Teton area.

Others say the stone is a hoax. The stone was discovered in Idaho in 1933.

Grand Teton National Park will remember Colter with special events Wednesday. This will be the third annual John Colter Day in Grand Teton.

The Colter Stone can be seen at the Colter Bay Visitor Center. The stone is on loan from the Teton Valley Historical Museum in Driggs, Idaho.

The story of the Colter Stone has been described this way:

Sometime between 1931 and 1933, William Beard and his son discovered a rock carved into the shape of a man’s head while clearing a field in Tetonia, Idaho, which is immediately west of the Teton Range. The rhyolite lava rock is 13 inches (33 cm) long, 8 inches (20 cm) wide and 4 inches (10 cm) thick and has the words “John Colter” carved on the right side of the face and the number “1808” on the left side. The stone was reportedly purchased from the Beards in 1933 by A.C. Lyon, who presented it to Grand Teton National Park in 1934. Fritiof Fryxell, noted mountain climber of numerous Teton Range peaks, geologist and Grand Teton National Park naturalist, concluded that the stone had weathering that indicated that the inscriptions were likely made in the year indicated. Fryxell also believed that the Beards were not familiar with John Colter or his explorations. The stone has not been authenticated to have been carved by Colter, however, and may have instead been the work of of later expeditions, possibly as a hoax, by members of the Hayden Survey in 1877. If the stone is ever proven to be an actual carving made by Colter, in the year inscribed, it would coincide with the period he is known to have been in the region, and that he did cross the Teton Range and descend into Idaho, as descriptions he dictated to William Clark indicate.

Auction Central News International contributed to this report.

AP-WS-08-17-10 0702EDT

NYC museum closes for rest of August as it restructures

Chelsea Art Museum, New York. Photo by Team Tiara, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

NEW YORK (AP) – New York City’s Chelsea Art Museum is shutting down for the rest of August to avoid foreclosure.

The company that owns the West 22nd Street museum filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this month in an effort to avoid foreclosure.

A lawyer for museum president, Dorothea Keeser, told the Wall Street Journal that the museum is in discussions with various financial parties to restructure it finances.

The Chelsea Art Museum features 20th and 21st century art, particularly works by artists who are less exposed in the United States than in their home countries.

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Information from: Wall Street Journal

AP-ES-08-17-10 0730EDT

Specialists of the South to auction antiques of special citizen Aug. 28

Two-piece, early 19th-century fall-front desk with bookcase top and inlaid conch in the drop. Image courtesy The Specialists of the South Inc.

MARIANNA, Fla. – A major on-site auction featuring items from the estate of the Floye E. Brewton, 2006 Citizen of the Year in Marianna and former owner of the 1840 House Antique Shop there, will be conducted Saturday, Aug. 28, by The Specialists of the South Inc. LiveAuctioneers will facilitage Internet live bidding.

The sale will be conducted at 4359 Lafayette St. (U.S. Route 90) in Marianna, a town located along Interstate 10 in the Florida panhandle. The house is just one of many historic properties that Brewton bought and renovated during his long and fruitful life. It is known as the McKinnon House.

Brewton was originally from McDavid, Fla., but he adopted Marianna as a second home. He went there in the early 1980s to build a hotel on property he purchased near the interstate, but a dilapidated train depot caught his eye while he was in town.

The depot was identical to the one he remembered as a boy growing up in Florida, and seeing it in a deplorable state motivated him to want to save and restore it. And that’s what he did. But he didn’t stop there. Over the next couple of decades, Brewton purchased and renovated many other historic properties.

By the time he died in March, Floye Brewton had become one of Marianna’s most beloved citizens. Now, many of the items he acquired for his home and business will be available to the highest bidder. Also selling that day will be five storage units filled with Continental antiques that have been kept in a climate-controlled environment for five years.

Furniture items will include a 20th-century corner cabinet with string inlay, several French-style bombe commodes, an outdoor patio set with heart-shaped Gothic design, an 11-foot by 16-foot floral Kerman Karastan rug in the #747 pattern, and a tapestry piece from one of the storage units with a figural landscape design.

Artwork will include oil portraits of Fisher Gleason (1790-1846) and Sally Harley Gleason (1792-1853), thought to be the great aunt and uncle of Walter Cronkite, in wide gilt frames; a plaster cast plaque in Classical motif of a mother and child with cherub, 28 inches in diameter; and an oil on canvas of Walter Jacob Robinson (1820-1890) in an ornate gilt frame.

Other art will include four framed architectural engravings by Deneufforge, tagged original prints, Paris, circa 1900; a pair of metal sculptural “Wildcats” signed by T. Cartier, both 19 1/2 inches tall; a bronze scalloped vide-poche depicting sea gods, signed G. Michel, 10 1/2 inches tall; an original charcoal work by Alice Louella Fidler; and a watercolor by W. McGrath.

Orientalia will feature a pair of blue and white 19th century-style Chinese vases and a late 19th century-style Southern Chinese marriage chest, wood, with red and black lacquer and gilded carved inserts with figural motifs. Silver will include a Gorham flatware set in the Strasbourg pattern, and a repoussé sterling flatware set, 61 1/2 troy ounces, and a Reed & Barton carving set.

Decorative accessories will include an outstanding Federal three-arm girandole 19th-century mirror in a gilt wood and gesso frame with convex mirror surmounted by a carved spread eagle, spelter figurines, cloisonné, a trumeau-style mirror, a Victorian fire screen with carved pierced crest and tapestry inset, and a wonderful hand-painted ceramic desk set stamped “Orlik, Germany.”

Lamps and lighting will illuminate the saleroom. Expected top lots include a pair of candelabra with prisms and marble bases, a nice wooden floor lamp with a grid shade and a gorgeous lamp with a camel base.

Additional furniture includes a Federal-style oval table by Johan Tapp marked “707 1/2,” a refectory table with side and armchairs, a gold velvet tufted-back sofa, a marquetry top table with ormolu and a Victorian marble-top dresser with secret drawer.

The live sale will begin at 9 a.m. Central with a preview scheduled for 8 a.m.

For details visit the Web site www.SpecialistsoftheSouth.com or call 850-785-2577.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Federal three-arm girandole 19th-century mirror in a gilt wood and gesso frame with convex mirror. Image courtesy The Specialists of the South Inc.

Trumeau-style mirror with period print after a painting by French artist Jean-Honore Fragonard. Image courtesy The Specialists of the South Inc.

Mahogany 19th-century inlaid hunt board table with secret compartment. Image courtesy The Specialists of the South Inc.

Bronze scalloped vide-poche figural work depicting sea gods, signed G. Michel. Image courtesy The Specialists of the South Inc.

Florence defends its ownership of Michelangelo’s David

Michelangelo's David, 1504, in situ at Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence, Italy. Photo by David Gaya, GNU Free Documentation License.

ROME (AP) – Florence’s mayor is defending his city’s ownership of Michelangelo’s marble masterpiece David after the Culture Ministry reportedly asserted that the treasure belongs to the central government in Rome.

The Renaissance-style feud broke out over the weekend with reports that Rome was laying claim to the sculpture, one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy.

Michelangelo completed the 4.34-meter (14 foot)-high nude statue in Florence in 1504, and its home has been the city’s Galleria dell’Accademia for more than 100 years.

Florence Mayor Matteo Renzi said the statue, along with other treasures, was ceded to the city of Florence by a decree in 1870 or 1871 when Rome became the capital of newly formed modern Italy.

“David is ours,” Renzi told La Repubblica over the weekend in an interview broadcast on its website. “That’s what the documents say.”

Lawyers commissioned by the culture ministry in Rome, however, argue that Florence cannot own David because, over the centuries, the sculpture passed from sovereign state to sovereign state, starting with the Medici’s rule.

Culture Minister Sandro Bondi called the debate “absurd and inopportune.”

“Michelangelo’s David is a symbol of cultural unity for Florence and for Italy,” Bondi said in a statement Monday. “The problem of ownership of a piece of art, posed in propagandistic terms by Florence’s mayor, is a petty one.”

He said the issue could be resolved by joint management.

Renzi sees the government’s move as a grab for money, including the reported euro8 million ($10 million) in annual ticket sales to view the masterpiece.

He complained in newspaper interviews that the government was quick to grab the revenue, but was not doing its part to help Florence pay for cleaning and maintenance of infrastructure sorely tried by tourists.

“This government is federalist when it comes to spending, and centralist when it is time to cash in,” Renzi said.

Florence officials are also upset that Premier Silvio Berlusconi has not kept an electoral promise to give Florence more freedom in dealing with its historic and artistic treasures.

AP-ES-08-16-10 1115EDT

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