Honus Wagner T206 baseball card, 1909-1911, being offered at auction on Nov. 4 to benefit the School Sisters of Notre Dame. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions.
DALLAS – The School Sisters of Notre Dame in Baltimore are about to receive a little divine love from the Holy Grail of baseball cards. A newly discovered T206 Honus Wagner card, left to the convent by the brother of a member of the order when he passed away, will be auctioned on Nov. 4 at Heritage Auctions’ Dallas gallery.
The card is estimated to bring in excess of $100,000.
“The proceeds from the sale of this card will go to benefit the work of the School Sisters of Notre Dame all over the world, in about 35 countries,” said Sister Virginia Muller, treasurer for the Baltimore convent. “Wherever the need is, we will share it.”
New T206 Wagner cards turn up about as often as bottles of 1921 Dom Perignon, Action Comics #1 or a diamond the size of a fist. Nonetheless, this example turned up in mid-summer 2010 when the card, which belonged to the blood brother of a member of the order, was left to the convent upon his passing earlier this year.
While the condition is not great – far below the most famous of T206 examples, which sold for $2,000,000 – it is still quite valuable, has caught the attention of collectors everywhere and represents a remarkable find in the world of high-end cardboard. It arrived to the auction house wrapped in plastic, with a note that read: “Although damaged, the value of this baseball card should increase exponentially throughout the 21th century!”
“For the first time ever, this copy of this coveted rarity is being placed on the auction block,” said Chris Ivy, director of Heritage Sports Collectibles, “adding one to the tally of genuine representations, generally agreed to hover right around fifty.”
It was Wagner himself who pulled the plug on the use of his image on the card, creating history’s most famous baseball card, though the reason is a subject of good-spirited debate among aficionados everywhere.
“The most popular story is that Wagner wanted no role in the promotion of tobacco use to kids,” said Ivy. “Another theory argues that it was nothing more than a failure to agree on money that led the American Tobacco Company to end production of Wagner’s card soon after it started.”
“I had no idea who Honus Wagner was before we saw this baseball card,” said Sister Virginia, “but I’ve certainly tried read everything I can about him now.”
Either way, the boon to the School Sisters of Notre Dame is obvious, and the potential good work done as a result of the sale of this card will only add to Wagner’s legend.
SNOWMASS VILLAGE, Colo. (AP) – Officials in Snowmass Village want experts to take control of the site where the bones of a woolly mammoth were found earlier this month.
Directors of the town’s water district voted unanimously Monday to pursue a formal agreement with the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. They want the museum to be responsible for the fenced-off area where the bones were discovered during a construction project and to take charge of an exhibit of some of the bones.
The bones were put on display for three days last week and water district manager Kit Hamby tells The Aspen Times that over 1,000 adults and children came to see them.
Hamby says district workers are so busy showing off bones they can’t do their regular jobs.
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Information from: The Aspen Times, http://www.aspentimes.com/
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Peter Coeln, WestLicht-Gründer mit dem ‘Daguerreotype Giroux’ von 1839. Die erste kommerzielle verkaufte Kamera erzielte 732.000,00 Euro im Mai 2010 bei Westlicht. Foto höflichst von WestLicht überlassen. Westlicht will eine Symbiose zwischen Apparatur und Fotografie herstellen. Technophile und Seh-Sinnige sollen an gleichem Ort verbindend mit Information und kreativer Leistung befriedigt werden. WestLicht in Wien ist eine Fotogalerie, ein Auktionshaus, eine Fotobibliothek und ein Kameramuseum. WestLicht ist ein Ort, um die Geheimnisse der fotographischen Technik zu erlernen. WestLicht hat sogar ein angeschlossenes Kamerageschäft und ist ein Traum für Fotoenthusiasten.
Das ganze Geschäft ist wie wahnsinnig in den letzten Jahren gewachsen“, sagte
Martin Reinhart. Er nennt sich bescheiden „eine Art Filmhersteller“ und lehnt es ab
dies zu erklären, weil seine Arbeit bei WestLicht so vielfältig ist.
„Zuerst kam der Leica Shop, welcher von Peter Coeln vor etwa 18 Jahren gegründet wurde“, erklärt Reinhart. „Dieses ist nicht mit der Firma Leica verbunden, aber er (Coeln) hat ein gutes Verhältnis zur Firma und ist der Einzige auf der Welt, der den Leica Namen auf diese Art verwenden darf.“
Der Verkauf umfasst neue und gebrauchte Leicas und Kameras von jedem bedeutenden Kamerahersteller, erweitert mit fotografischer Ausrüstung und herrlichen Sammlungen wie Spy-, Stereolithographie- und Panoramakameras, wunderbarer Beleuchtung sogar Kameraliteratur und Kamerawerbung.
Coeln beabsichtigte eine Symbiose zwischen dem Technischen und dem Künstlerischen, dem Informierenden und dem Kreativen als er WestLicht als Fotographiegalerie 2001
begann.
„Die Auktionen, die vor etwa acht Jahren begonnen wurden, waren fast ein sofortiger Erfolg“, sagte Reinhart. Der Anfang war steinig. Zwanzig Minuten vor dem Beginn der ersten Auktion hatte der Auktionator einen Herzinfarkt und musste ins Krankenhaus.
„Normalerweise fragen die Menschen “ist ein Arzt im Hause?” Wir mussten hinaus gehen und das Publikum fragen, “ist ein Auktionator im Hause”, erinnerte Reinhart.
Glücklicherweise war James E Cornwall, der vor kurzem sein eigenes Fotographie-Auktionshaus in Köln geschlossen hatte, im Publikum und erbot sich zu übernehmen.
“Er blieb 4 – 5 Jahre und war für die Kunden von Cornwall ein wirklich guter Übergang“, bemerkte Reinhart.
WestLicht leitet Kamera- und Fotographieauktionen. Seit dem ersten Foto im Jahre 1826 hat sich der fotografische Vorgang ständig neu erfunden: Daguerreotypie, Glasplattennegative, grossformatige Filmfotografie, 35mm Filme, Polaroid, Pocket-Kameras, Disc-Kameras, Digitalkameras.
WestLichts Kunden sind sehr unterschiedlich. Der Kameramarkt ist eine geschlossene Gesellschaft von Enthusiasten.
“Sie besprechen sich untereinander”, sagte Reinhart. “Ich kenne Leute, die alles haben müssen. Sie besitzen Museen in ihren Kellern und etikettieren alles. Andere interessieren sich für antike Kameras und Linsen, weil diese ein ganz spezielles Bild ermöglichen.”
“Das Gebiet der Fotografie ist für Sammler besonders interessant”, bemerkte Reinhart. Kunden der WestLicht Foto-Auktion können ein besonderes Genre wie etwa Züge oder Landschaften suchen oder einen Lieblingsfotografen oder spezielle fotografische Vorgänge oder klassische Fotografien als Investition.
“Die fotografische Kunst von morgen wird heute entwickelt”. Reinhart äussert sich enthusiastisch über die kleine Gruppe der 20jährigen, die sich sehr für den Gebrauch von analogen Kameras und für Dunkelkammern interessiert, um ihre eigene Kunst zu kreieren. Es gibt ein wiederauflebendes Interesse an der Polaroidmethode.
„Analoge Photografie existiert noch immer und Menschen pflegen sie”, sagte Reinhart. “Es gibt ein Zurück zur Handwerkskunst in der Fotografie – eine Menge guter Arbeit wurde geleistet”.
WestLicht wird separate Kamera- und Fotografieauktionen am Samstag, den 4. Dezember 2010 veranstalten. Highlight der Kameraauktion ist eine schwarz lackierte Leica MP2 mit einem Wetzlarmotor, eine von nur sechs Exemplaren aus den späten 50er Jahren mit einem Schätzpreis von 150.000,– bis 180.000,– EUR.
Es wird auch eine sehr seltene Lancaster (1890) Miniaturkamera in Form einer Taschenuhr angeboten. Objektiv und Verschluss sind auf einem 6 gliedrigem Teleskop-Auszug montiert, der sich beim Öffnen des Uhrengehäuses mittels einer Feder selbst entfaltet. Bei dieser Miniaturkamera werden 50.000,– bis 60.000 EUR erwartet.
Internationale Highlights der kommenden WestLicht Photographica Auktion werden Arbeiten von Hans Watzek, Elliott Erwitt, Nobuyoshi Araki und von vielen anderen sein. Um die Onlineauktion zu sehen, besuchen sie www.westlicht.at und für Kameras besuchen bitte www.leicashop.com
Kunst- & Auktionshaus Herr, Köln, tritt LiveAuctioneers bei
LiveAuctioneers heisst das Kunst- & Auktionshaus Herr als neues Mitglied willkommen. Das Auktionshaus Herr besteht seit 1982 in Köln und hat sich auf die Bereiche Jugendstil, Art Déco, Bauhaus und Design des 20. Jahrhunderts spezialisiert. Die nächste Auktion findet am 11. November 2010 statt. Im 1. Teil der Auktion kommen mit der Angewandten Kunst kunsthandwerkliche Objekte aus den Bereichen Silber, Metalle, Schmuck, Porzellan, Keramik, Glas, Skulpturen, Gemälde und Grafiken zum Aufruf. Ein besonderer heighlight ist eine private Sammlung von 175 Jugendstilobjekten mit 154 Jugendstil-Glasobjekten.
Der 2. Teil der Auktion, welche am 20. November 2010 stattfindet, konzentriert sich auf Möbel, Leuchten und außergewöhnliches Design des 20. Jahrhunderts. Für weiterführende Informationen besuchen Sie bitte: www.Herr-Auktionen.de
Kommende Auktionen
November 2010
5.11. Auktionhaus Eppli, Stuttgart: Benefizauktion zugunsten d. Fördervereins Wildpark Pforzheim e.V. mit Edelschmuck und Waren aller Art. www.Eppli.com
5.11. Galerie Widmer Auktionen, St. Gallen: Ausgewählte Werke; 19.11. Sonderauktion Carl Walter Liner. www.GalerieWidmer.ch
10.-13. 11. Dobiaschofsky Auktionen, Bern: Gemälde (15.-21. Jh.), Grafiken und Plakate, Möbel, Antiquitäten und Schmuck. www.Dobiaschofsky.com
6.12. Sotheby’s, Zurich: Schweizer Kunst. www.sothebys.com
7.12. Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen, München: Studio Glas; Höhepunkte der Design-Geschichte VII – Tischkultur. www.Quittenbaum.de
9.12. Von Zezschwitz Kunst und Design, München: Italienisches Design. www.von-zezschwitz.de
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Der österreichische Maler Egon Schiele fotografiert von Anton Josef Trčka 1914. Negativ signierter Vintage-Print mit einem Schätzpreis von 50.000,– bis 60.000 EUR. Foto höflichst von WestLicht überlassen.
WestLicht Founder Peter Coeln poses with the 1839 wood Giroux Daguerréotype camera which brought 732,000.00 Euro ($1,021,944) including buyer’s premium in WestLicht’s May, 2010 auction. Photo courtesy WestLicht. A fusion of camera and image, the technical and the creative, WestLicht in Vienna has a wide-angle lens on photography. It serves as a photo gallery, auction house, photography library, camera museum; a place to learn about the mysteries of photographic technique; an event space, et al. It even has an affiliated camera shop. To find all of this in one place is a photo enthusiast’s dream.
“The whole business has grown insanely in the last years,” said Reinhart. He modestly calls himself “sort of a film maker,” but declined to declare a job title because his work at WestLicht is so varied.
“First came LeicaShop, founded by Peter Coeln about 18 years ago,” explained Reinhart. “It is not associated with the Leica company, but he (Coeln) has a good relationship with the company and is the only one in the world allowed to use the Leica name in this way.”
The sale of new and vintage Leicas and cameras from every major camera manufacturer expanded to include photographic accoutrement and delightful collectibles such as spy, stereo and panorama cameras, magic lanterns, and even some camera literature and advertising.
Coeln intended a symbiosis between the technical and the artistic, the informational and the creative, when he started WestLicht as a photography gallery in 2001.
“The auctions started about eight years ago and were almost an immediate success,” said Reinhart.
Not that the beginning wasn’t rocky. Twenty minutes before the start of the first auction the auctioneer had a heart attack and had to go to the hospital.
“Usually people are asking, ‘Is there a doctor in the house?’ We had to go out into the audience and ask, ‘Is there an auctioneer in the house?’” recalled Reinhart.
Fortunately James E Cornwall, who had recently closed his own photography auction house in Cologne, was in the audience and volunteered to take over.
“He ended up staying on as auctioneer for 4-5 years, which was a really good transition for the customers of Cornwall’s,” noted Reinhart.
WestLicht conducts camera and photography auctions. Since the first image of reality was captured in 1826, the photographic process has reinvented its self many times: Daguerreotypes, glass negatives, large format film photography, 35mm film, Polaroid, pocket cameras, disc cameras, digital cameras. WestLicht’s customers are as diverse as the medium.
“With the camera equipment, it’s a close, small society of enthusiasts. They have their thing and they communicate amongst themselves,” said Reinhart. “I know people who have to have everything. They have museums in their basements with everything tagged. Others are interested in the antique cameras and lenses because they produce a very special kind of look.”
The photography field, noted Reinhart, is much more open to collectors. Customers at WestLicht photo auctions may be searching for a certain genre such as trains or landscapes; photos taken by a favorite photographer; photos made using a specific photographic process, or even classic photographs as an investment.
The photographic art of tomorrow is being generated today. Reinhart is enthusiastic about the small group of 20-somethings who are very interested in using analog cameras and darkrooms to create their art. He said there is also a resurgence of interest in the Polaroid method.
“Analog photography still exists and people still care about it,” said Reinhart. “There is a return to handcraft in photography – a lot of good work is being done.”
WestLicht will hold separate camera and photography auctions on Saturday, Dec. 4.
Highlight of the camera auction is a black lacquered Leica MP2 with a Wetzlar motor, one of only six examples made in the late 1950s, estimated price 150,000 to 180,000 Euro. A tiny 1890 Lancaster Watch Camera, shaped like a telescoping pocket watch, is expected to fetch 50,000-60,000 Euro ($69,800-$83,760).
The photo auction features an international array of work by Hans Watzek, Elliott Erwitt, Nobuyoshi Araki and many others. To view online auction catalogs, visit www.westlicht.at. For camera retail sales, visit www.leicashop.com
Art and Auctionhouse Herr, Cologne, joins LiveAuctioneers
LiveAuctioneers welcomes art auction house Herr, Cologne, as a new member of our auction-house family. The company has been serving the Cologne area since 1982. Herr Auctions specializes in Jugendstil, Art Déco, Bauhaus und 20th Century Design. Their next auction is on Nov.11. Part one includes handcrafted works of silver, metal, jewelry, porcelain, ceramic and glass, plus sculptures, paintings and prints. A special highlight is the 175-piece private collection of Jugendstil objects, featuring 154 pieces of Jugendstil glass. Part two of the Nov. 20 auction offers 20th-century design furniture, lighting and accessories. For more information please visit www.Herr-Auktionen.de
Upcoming Auctions
November 2010
5.11. Auktionhaus Eppli, Stuttgart: Benefit auction to support the Wildpark Pforzheime. Fine jewelry and wares of every type. www.Eppli.com
5.11. Galerie Widmer Auktionen, St. Gallen: Selected Art Works; 19.11. Paintings by Carl Walter Liner. www.GalerieWidmer.ch
10.-13. 11. Dobiaschofsky Auktionen, Bern: Paintings from the 15th to 21st century. Prints and Adverstisements, Furniture, Antiques and Jewelry. www.Dobiaschofsky.com
11.11. Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen, Heilbronn: Icons, Russian Art & Fabergé. www.Auctions-Fischer.de
11.11. Von Zezschwitz Kunst und Design, Munich: Modern und Contemporary Art. www.Von-Zezschwitz.de
14.11. Sotheby’s, Geneva: Important Watches; 16.11. Exquisite Jewelry & an Outstanding Pink Diamond. www.Sothebys.com
17.- 20. 11. David Feldman Philatelists, Genf: themed auctions including World Rarities & Collections; Olympics & Tennis; France, Great Britain and the Colonies; Switzerland and Mexico. www.DavidFeldman.com
19.11. Doebele Kunstauktionen, Berlin: Art of the 20th and 21st centuries. www.fine-art-doebele.de
20. 11. Auction Team Breker, Köln: Scientific and Technical; Office Antiques; and Toys and Doll Automats. www.Breker.com
22. 11. Ketterer Kunst, Hamburg: Maritime and North German Art; Valuable Books, Manuscripts, Autographs, Decorative Graphics. www.KettererKunst.de
December 2010
2.-4. 12. Auktionshaus Kaupp, Sulzburg: Art Handcrafts; Jewelry and Watches; Paintings, Antiques & Furniture; Modern and Contemporary Art. www.Kaupp.de
3.-4. 12. Leipziger Münzhandlung und Auktion Heidrun Höhn, Leipzig. www.Muenzen-Leipzig.de
4. 12. Ketterer Kunst, Munich: Modern Art; After 1945/Contemporary Art. www.KettererKunst.de
4. 12. Schmidt Kunstauktionen, Dresden: Artwork of the 17th to 21st Centuries. www.Schmidt-Auktionen.de
7.12. Quittenbaum Kustauktionen, Munich: Studio Glass; Highlights of Design History VII – Table Culture. www.Quittenbaum.de
9.12. Von Zezschwitz Kunst und Design, Munich: Italien Design. www. von-zezschwitz.de
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Austrian painter Egon Schiele photographed by Anton Josef Trčka, Vienna, 1914. Vintage silver gelatin print signed and dated on negative. Estimated price 50,000-60,000 Euro. ($69,800-$83,760). Photo courtesy WestLicht.
The California National Historic Trail Interpretive Center located near Elko, Nevada, U.S. Bureau of Land Management photo.
ELKO, Nev. (AP) – A depiction of a pioneer woman cradling a baby was one of five life-sized bronze statues modeled on Old West pioneers unveiled at the California National Historic Trail Interpretive Center in Nevada.
The Elko Daily Free Press reported Monday that artist DiAnne Cooper was among officials at a weekend ceremony at the museum due to open in May 2012 off an Interstate 80 exit eight miles west of Elko.
The newspaper reports the Saturday event was part of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s National Landscape Conservation System.
The figures in the facility plaza also include a mountain man guide, an adventurer in a suit, a grizzly man and his son.
Cooper says they were modeled on an 1860s-era painting.
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Information from: Elko Daily Free Press, http://www.elkodaily.com
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – Lists that identify the books, music and movies individual customers bought from online retailer Amazon.com Inc. are protected from North Carolina tax collectors, a federal judge has ruled.
Amazon said in a lawsuit it filed in April in its hometown of Seattle that disclosing the names, addresses and purchases of its customers as requested by the North Carolina Revenue Department would harm anyone who may have bought controversial books or movies.
U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman ruled late Monday that the First Amendment protects a buyer from the government demanding to know the books, music, and audiovisual products they’ve bought.
Amazon and the American Civil Liberties Union, which later joined the case, “have established that the First Amendment protects the disclosure of individual’s reading, listening, and viewing habits,” Pechman wrote.
At stake are potentially millions of dollars in taxes that North Carolina contends Amazon was responsible for collecting for years before a state law was changed last summer.
A Revenue Department spokeswoman declined comment Tuesday while its attorneys reviewed the ruling. The agency argued previously it doesn’t care what Amazon customers read or view, just whether they paid sales taxes on their online purchases.
North Carolina requires residents to pay taxes on online purchases if buying the same item in a physical store would result in a sales tax. But out-of-state retailers can’t be forced to collect North Carolina’s tax if they have no physical presence in the state.
The dispute is over the state’s definition of whether Amazon had a North Carolina presence.
Last year, state legislators passed a law making Amazon responsible for collecting sales taxes because it had a network of local affiliates – North Carolina residents who linked to products on their blogs, promoted Web shopping deals and offered coupons.
Before the change was adopted, Amazon cut its ties to those North Carolina affiliates. The company also stopped working with affiliates in Rhode Island and Colorado because of collection-enforcement laws passed in those states.
North Carolina’s tax agency decided to pursue Amazon for taxes it argues should have been collected during the years those affiliates were operating, even before the new law was passed.
Lawyers for the tax agency said either Amazon or its customers owe North Carolina $50 million in sales and use taxes on Internet purchases.
Since the recession slashed tax collections, states have been stepping up efforts to collect from online retailers.
In 2008, New York became the first state to treat local affiliates as enough of state presence to require retailers to collect sales taxes. Lawmakers in Iowa, New Mexico, Vermont and Virginia have considered similar laws, according to the Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based research group.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s studio at 951 Chicago Ave., Oak Park, Ill., designed in 1898 and restored to its 1909 appearance. Photo taken on June 5, 2009 by Jeff Zoline, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.
OAK PARK, Ill. (AP) – The Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust is moving to a downtown Chicago historic landmark where the late architect once had an office.
The trust’s offices currently are in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Wright’s hometown.
Officials say the new space will open in December in The Rookery and include a public information center, administrative offices and a gift shop.
The Rookery was designed by famed architects Daniel Burnham and John Root in 1888 and remains the oldest standing high-rise in Chicago. The building’s lobby was refurbished by Wright in 1905, combining the original ironwork with his own Prairie style.
The trust operates historic house museums at Wright’s Oak Park Home and Studio and at the Robie House in Chicago.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Cravath Hall, Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn., May 24, 2008 photo by EVula. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Fisk University on Monday rejected a proposal to keep its Stieglitz art collection on display at the school.
The Nashville university said in a statement that the proposal Friday by the state attorney general is a “scheme which fails to address Fisk’s survival.”
Fisk is asking for court permission to sell a 50 percent share in the collection, donated by the late painter Georgia O’Keeffe. The historically black university has argued it could face bankruptcy without the $30 million generated by the sale to the Crystal Bridges Museum in Arkansas. The school has also argued it is a financial burden to maintain and display the 101-piece collection.
State officials said Friday that a donor has come forward with enough money to allow Fisk to keep the collection and display it on campus at no cost to the school.
Fisk said in its statement Monday the proposal “does not address Fisk’s fundamental financial challenge which is that without a large infusion of cash, Fisk cannot continue to operate.”
Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle last month rejected an earlier plan from Attorney General Bob Cooper that would have relocated the collection to Nashville’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts.
In court documents Friday, Cooper introduced the new proposal, writing that Fisk alumna Carol Creswell-Betsch has established a fund that would pay the maintenance and display costs of the collection, subject to the court’s approval.
The fund is named in honor of Creswell-Betsch’s mother, Pearl Creswell, who was the first curator of the Stieglitz collection, which includes works by Picasso, Renoir, Cezanne, Marsden Hartley and Diego Rivera as well as O’Keeffe and her husband Alfred Stieglitz, an art promoter and photographer.
The attorney general is involved in the case because his office has jurisdiction over charitable giving in Tennessee. Cooper has argued that allowing Fisk to sell a donated art collection would deter future gifts in the Volunteer State.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) – About $3,000 worth of jewelry and art works stolen from a Lubbock gallery have been returned after the thief apparently had a change of heart and left the loot at a church.
Tornado Gallery owners Tony Greer and Larry Simmons were contacted Monday by a representative of Templo Nazaret United Methodist Church.
The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reports two large boxes of items, discovered missing on Sept. 30, had been left at the church. An anonymous note accompanied the boxes, saying: “Please return these items to the Tornado Gallery.” The note included the gallery’s phone number.
Simmons says the return of the items renews his faith in humankind.
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Information from: Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, http://www.lubbockonline.com
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
LOS ANGELES (AP) – An auctioneer who helped sell fake art to thousands of TV viewers has been sentenced to five years in federal prison.
James Mobley was sentenced Monday in Los Angeles, the last of three defendants sentenced in the scam that involved fake Picasso and Chagall pieces. He had pleaded guilty to conspiracy and willful failure to file a tax return.
The 63-year-old Mobley was the on-air auctioneer for Fine Art Treasures Gallery, which prosecutors say sold $20 million in fake art to more than 10,000 U.S. customers. The art auction show ran twice a week on DirecTV and The Dish Network from 2002 to 2006.
Gallery owner Kristine Eubanks was sentenced to seven years in prison, while her husband, Gerald Sullivan, another owner, was sentenced to four years.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
