The Benaki Museum in Athens was founded in 1930 in the former Benaki family mansion. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
ATHENS (AFP) – The Benaki Museum in Athens, one of Greece’s foremost cultural institutions, on Monday publicly appealed for funds to counter spending cuts from the country’s near-bankrupt state.
“The museum needs support more than ever,” Emilia Geroulanou, head of the museum’s board of trustees, told a news conference. “We are starting a major campaign to secure additional funds” from private sponsors and donors, she said.
Geroulanou, the mother of Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos, said the museum’s state funding had declined by 60 percent since 2010, when Greece accelerated its descent into economic crisis.
State funding fell to 700,000 euros ($921,000) last year from 2.0 million euros in 2010, said museum director Angelos Delivorias.
“This money is not enough to cover staff costs, the museum’s six annexes and exhibitions, many of whom had to be cancelled this year,” Delivorias said.
Museum salaries have been cut by 20 percent since last year and a number of employees dismissed, said Geroulanou, who is also the granddaughter of museum founder Antonis Benakis, a wealthy cotton merchant, politician and art collector.
Sponsorships are also down, as is revenue from the museum’s shops, she said.
Founded in 1930, the Benaki Museum is Greece’s oldest private cultural institution.
It holds an important permanent collection of over 40,000 items focused on Greek history from antiquity to the early 20th century, and operates several annexes in Athens, including one dedicated to Islamic art.
The culture ministry, along with most state departments, has been hit by major spending cuts under an austerity drive imposed for the past three years in return for vital loans from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
Damaging criminal raids on museums have followed the spending cuts and staff layoffs.
In January, a painting personally gifted by Spanish-born master Pablo Picasso to Greece was stolen from the Athens National Gallery along with two other important artworks.
And last week, masked armed robbers stole over 70 ancient objects including a gold ring from a museum dedicated to the ancient Olympic Games in Olympia.
Minister Geroulanos submitted his resignation over the incident, but it has yet to be accepted by Prime Minister Lucas Papademos.
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
The Benaki Museum in Athens was founded in 1930 in the former Benaki family mansion. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Das Gemälde “Löwenbändiger” von Max Beckmann holte 846.000 Euro im Herbst 2011 auf der Auktion für moderne Kunst im Kunsthaus Lempertz, Köln. Ihre nächste Auktion für moderne Kunst findet am 22.Mai statt. Foto mit freundlicher Genehmigung von Kunsthaus Lempertz.
Falls Sie diesen Winter an die Tür eines Auktionshaues klopfen, könnte es sein, das Ihnen niemand antwortet. Nun, das ist vielleicht nicht die ganze Wahrheit, jedoch sind Experten vieler größerer deutschsprachiger Auktionshäuser sind in diesem frostigen Wetter unterwegs, um herausragende Objekte für ihre nächsten Auktionen zu finden. Das ist die bestmögliche Gelegenheit für alle Sammler, welche darüber nachdenken, ein Kunstwerk oder eine Antiquität zu verkaufen, zunächst aber die Möglichkeit eines Fachgesprächs mit einem Sachverständigen in Anspruch nehmen würden, bevor sie ihr Objekt in die Hände eine angesehenen Auktionshauses übergeben.
Ketterer Kunst, München, hat mit 20 Stationen einen der umfassensten Tourenpläne. Zusätzlich zu ihren Besuchen in Hamburg und Düsseldorf, wo sie über Büros verfügen, werden sie auch in Österreich, der Schweiz, Italien, Belgien, den Niederlanden, der Tschechischen Republik und den USA anzutreffen sein.
„Dieses sind einige unserer wichstigsten Regionen und unser Klientel schätzt sehr den persönlichen Kontakt“, merkt Robert Ketterer, Geschäftsführer von Ketterer Kunst, an: „Es macht es für sie sehr viel leichter, wenn sie ihre Werke nicht verpacken und zu uns bringen müssen, um den Standpunkt oder die Schätzung eines Experten zu bekommen.“.
Sammler lieben die Chance über ihre Sammlungen sprechen zu können und die Auktionsexperten begrüßen gern neue und zurückkehrende Kunden. Nicht an jeder Station der Tour erscheint ein neues Objekt Alter Meister, dennoch ist der gegenseitige Austausch gut.
„Im Hinblick auf Alte Meister oder sogar die Top Gemälde moderner Kunst wird es immer schwieriger, erstklassige Stücke zu beschaffen, da sich die meisten wichtigen Werke in Museen oder Dauersammlungen befinden. Im Gegensatz zu zeitgenösischer Kunst sind die Künstler bereits verstorben und es ergibt sich nur sehr selten Gelegenheit, dass eines ihrer Hauptwerke auf dem Aktionsmarkt erscheint.“, konstatiert Ketterer, „Eines der erstaunlicheren Stücke, was wir anlässlich einer Taxierung beschaffen konnten, war Otto Griebels Wasserfarben Gemälde ‚Zwei Frauen‘. Es wurde auf 30 – 40.000 € geschätzt und brachte zum Schluss 158.000 €.“
Das Griebel Gemälde ist eine Rarität. Ein großer Teil der Werke des Dresdener Künstlers wurde absichtlich zerstört, nachdem sie in eine 1937 von den Nazis organsierte Ausstellung „entarteter Kunst“ einbezogen waren, mit dem Ziel, moderne Kunst lächerlich zu machen. Griebels verbleibende Werke wurden während der Bombardierung Dresdens im Februar 1945 schmerzlich dezimiert.
Als eine greifbare Investition im Klima unsicherer Aktienmärkte und Weltwährungen, ist solch ein Werk mit Seltenheitswert sehr attraktiv. Robert Ketterer berichtet, das Jahr 2011 war mit Verkäufen in Höhe von 29 Millionen Euro das finanziell erfolgreichste der Firmengeschichte.
Steigende Preise ziehen potentielle Verkäufer zu den Expertentagen und könnten uns in näherer Zukunft unerwartete Schätze bescheren.
Für einen Termin oder den kompletten Plan der Expertentage besuchen Sie www.KettererKunst.de
Hier weitere Beispiele anderer Auktionshäuser mit Experten auf Tour, möglicherweise ganz in Ihrer Nähe:
Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen, Heilbronn, in München 1.-2. März; Hamburg und Bremen 7.-9. März; Zwiesel und München 18.-20. März. Terminvereinbarung erwünscht. Kontaktieren Sie www.Auctions-Fischer.de
Hauswedell & Nolte, Hamburg, werden am 29. Februar in Stuttgart sein; München am 2. März; Zürich am 5. März; Freiberg am 7.März. Terminvereinbarung erwünscht. www.Hauswedell-Nolte.de
Karl & Faber Kunstauktionen GmbH, München, am 29. Februar in Offenburg; Düsseldorf 5.-7. März; Karlsruhe 7.-8. März; Kölln und Bonn 7.-9. März; Nürnberg 14.-16. März; Salzburg 21.März; Innsbruck 23.März. Terminvereinbarung erwünscht. Kontaktieren Sie www.KarlundFaber.de
Lempertz, Kölln, in San Francisco am 21.-23. Februar; Paris 23.-24. Februar; Münster 24. Februar, in der Schweiz am 28. Februar sowie 1.-2., 8.-9. März. Terminvereinbarung erwünscht. www.Lempertz.com
Quitenbaum Kunstauktionen, München, in Parma am 1.März, Brüssel 6. März; Wien und Salzburg 5.-7. März. Terminvereinbarung erwünscht. www.Quittenbaum.de
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen plant seine nächste Auktion für afrikanische Stammeskunst für den 26.Juni. Die Guere, Liberische Maske, aus Holzfasern und Glocken, holte 4.400 Euro zur Stammeskunstauktion in 2010. Foto mit freundlicher Genehmigung von Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen.Das Gemälde “Löwenbändiger” von Max Beckmann holte 846.000 Euro im Herbst 2011 auf der Auktion für moderne Kunst im Kunsthaus Lempertz, Köln. Ihre nächste Auktion für moderne Kunst findet am 22.Mai statt. Foto mit freundlicher Genehmigung von Kunsthaus Lempertz.Diese farbenfrohe 1955 Murano Vase, Pollio Perelda (Entwurf), Fratelli Toso, brachte 12.500 Euro bei Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen, europäisches Glas und Studio Glas Auktion im Oktober 2011. Ihr nächster Verkauf findet am 17. März statt. Foto mit freundlicher Genehmigung von Dr. Fischr Kunstauktionen.Eines von Otto Griebels seltenen Gemälden, Zwei Frauen, 1924, wurde wiederentdeckt als es ein Kunde zu einem Expertentag von Ketterer Kunst brachte. Foto mit freundlicher Genehmigung von Ketterer Kunst.
This Max Beckmann painting Löwenbängider (Zirkus), fetched 864,000 Euro ($1,145,800) at the autumn 2011 Modern Art auction at Kunsthaus Lempertz, Cologne. Their next Modern Art auction is planned for May 22. Photo courtesy Kunsthaus Lempertz.
If you knock on the door of an auction house this winter, you may find no one at home. Well, that’s not entirely true, but experts from many of the larger German-speaking auction houses are under way in this frigid weather looking for prime pieces for their next auctions. This is an optimum opportunity for collectors who are considering selling an artwork or antique, but would like the chance to talk it over with an authority in the field before placing it in the hands of a reputable auction house.
Ketterer Kunst, Munich, has one of the most extensive touring schedules with 20 stops. In addition to visiting Hamburg and Dusseldorf where they have offices, they are also traveling to Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic and the U.S.A.
“These are some of the most important regions for us and our clients do appreciate the personal contact,” noted Robert Ketterer, managing director of Ketterer Kunst. “It makes their lives so much easier if they do not have to pack up their works and carry them to us to obtain an expert’s point of view or a valuation.”
Collectors love the chance to talk about their collections, and the auction experts welcome new and returning customers. Not every stop on the tour turns up a new-to-the-market Old Master, but the exchange is mutually good.
“With regards to Old Masters or even the top paintings of Modern Art, it does get more and more difficult to obtain high class pieces, as the most important works are tugged away into major museums or permanent collections. Unlike in Contemporary Art, the artists have died, and it is only on very rare occasions that one of their masterpieces appears on the auction market,” said Ketterer.
“One of the more exciting works we obtained at a valuation day was Otto Griebel’s watercolor Zwei Frauen. It was estimated at €30,000-40,000 ($39,800-$53,000) and ended up fetching €158,600 ($210,456).”
The Griebel painting is a rarity. A great deal of this Dresden artist’s work was purposely destroyed following its inclusion in the 1937 Nazi-organized Degenerate Art Exhibition, which ridiculed Modernist art. Griebel’s remaining works were sadly depleted during the Allied bombing of Dresden in February 1945.
As a tangible investment in this climate of insecure stock markets and world currencies, such a scarce work is very attractive. Robert Ketterer reported that 2011 was the most financially successful year in the firm’s history, with sales over 29 million Euro (nearly $39 million). Increasing prices draw potential sellers to Expert Days, and may bring us unexpected treasures in the very near future.
For an appointment and a complete schedule of Expert Days visit www.KettererKunst.de
Here is a sampling of other Auction Houses with experts under way, possibly in your own neighborhood:
Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen, Heilbronn, will be in Munich on March 1-2; Hamburg and Bremen on March 7-9; Zwiesel and Munich on April 18-20. An appointment is requested. Contact them at www.Auctions-Fischer.de
Hauswedell & Nolte, Hamburg, will be in Stuttgart on Feb. 29; Munich on March 2; Zurich on March 5; and Freiberg on March 7. Appointment requested. www.Hauswedell-Nolte.de
Karl & Faber Kunstauktionen GmbH, Munich, will be in Offenburg on Feb. 29; Dusseldorf on March 5-7; Karlsruhe on March 7-8; Cologne and Bonn on March 7-9; Nuremberg on March 14-16; Salzburg on March 21; and Innsbruck on March 23. Contact them at www.KarlundFaber.de
Lempertz, Cologne, will be in San Francisco on Feb. 21-23; in Paris on Feb. 23-24; in Munster on Feb. 24; and in Switzerland on Feb. 28, and March 1-2, 8-9. Appointment requested. www.Lempertz.com
Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen, Munich, will be in Parma on March 1; in Brussels on March 6, and Vienna and Salzburg on March 5-7. Contact for appointment. www.Quittenbaum.de
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen plans their next African Tribal Art auction for June 26. The Guere, Liberian mask, of wood fiber and bells, fetched 4,400 Euro ($5,800) at their 2010 Tribal Art auction. Photo courtesy Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen.This Max Beckmann painting Löwenbängider (Zirkus), fetched 864,000 Euro ($1,145,800) at the autumn 2011 Modern Art auction at Kunsthaus Lempertz, Cologne. Their next Modern Art auction is planned for May 22. Photo courtesy Kunsthaus Lempertz.This colorful 1955 Murano vase, Pollio Perelda (Entwurf/draft), Fratelli Toso, brought 12,500 Euro ($16,588) at the October 2011 Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen European Glass and Studio Glass auction. Their next glass sale takes place March 17. Photo courtesy Dr. Fischer Kunstauktionen.
Guy Charon (French b.1927), ‘Harbor Scene,’ oil on canvas. Estimate: $800-$1,200. Image courtesy Michaan’s Auctions. ALEMEDA, Calif. – Michaan’s Auctions’ Fine Arts sale March 4 will feature estate offerings that will include European and American works from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding for the auction, which will consist of well over 700 lots. The auction will begin at 10 a.m. Pacific.
Lots are composed of oils, watercolors, lithographs, etchings and drawings. Highlights include a Paolo Bergamaschi, whose proceeds will benefit the Lindsey Wildlife Museum (lot 023, $500-$800); a Valentina Cvetkova still life oil (lot 001, $5,500-$6,500), Paul Grimm’s Among the Smoke Trees, 1961 (lot 694, $4,000-$6,000); and an El Dutand oil (lot 709, $1,000-$1,400). Also quite notable is Guy Charon’s Harbor Scene, offered as lot 010 ($800-$1,200). The scene depicted overlooks a quaint town with boats serenely floating on tranquil waters, framed by lush trees. The piece is vibrant yet peaceful, played out in boldly saturated blues, greens and yellows.
The jewelry department’s March lots display an exciting range of pieces. The diverse sale holds many interesting finds, spanning many time periods and cultures. Featured are an Austro-Hungarian necklace with approximately 63.00 carats of citrines (lot 184, $400-$600) and a rare bronze and silver gilt Imperial Russian Order of the White Eagle Medal (lot 236, $35,000-$40,000).
A true standout of the sale lies in a unique carved coral Guanyin brooch. The unusual piece centers a Guanyin figure standing slightly over 3 inches, carved from a beautiful coral specimen. Ribbons of gold swirl about her as well as foliage décor made of 22 pearls, six jade leaves and 14 small jade cabochons. She stands upon a golden lotus flower, making the entire brooch measure approximately 4 inches in height. This uncommon find is well executed with an original and mystical air to it, fitting for the “goddess of mercy” (lot 213, $1,500-$1,800).
Among the Asian department’s lots of porcelains, ivories, Peking glass, jade and furniture is a huanghuali brush pot ($600-$800). Offered as lot 347, the wood specimen displays a rich cognac color and desirable irregularities in its grain, popularly recognized as “ghost face” patterns. The cylindrical, finished pot is minimal, yet sleek in design; a perfect display for showing the translucent, shimmering beauty of huanghuali wood. Since the mid-Qing Dynasty huanghuali has become increasingly scarce and is presently considered to be one of the most precious and expensive woods on the market. In fact, huanghuali from Asia is classified as being extinct. The pot weighs approximately 3 pounds and measures approximately 6 1/2 inches in height and 5 1/2 inches in diameter. Wood thickness measures approximately three-quarters of an inch.
Furniture and decorations presents a wide range of treasures from the 18th through 20th centuries. Among the department’s lots is a large selection of clocks from Germany, Austria and Denmark. The furniture selection includes French, Dutch and Victorian pieces as well. Over 50 lots of fine sterling and Sheffield silver will also be a part of the March sale, a category that often shows strong bidder interest. An outstanding highlight is found in a highly collectible Suzani embroidery panel from Uzbekistan. Suzani has enjoyed an increase in popularity in the former Soviet Union and is now finding similar interest in the United States. The bright and lively hand-embroidered tapestry features a lovely floral design whose main color themes are salmon pink, fuschia and dark blue. The piece shows quality workmanship, as it is tightly woven with a concise and intricate design layout. The tapestry measures approximately 5 feet, 6 inches by 9 feet, 5 inches (lot 564, $1,500-$2,000). Collectors interested in the Suzani may also find interest in lot 562, an exceptional Caucasian long rug from the same region ($1,000-$1,500).
An illustrated auction catalog will also be on-line for review at www.michaans.com. Previews open at Michaan’s Auctions on March 2 and continue until March 4, the day of sale. For details visit Michaan’s website or call the front desk at 510-740-0220.
Michaan’s Auctions is located at 2751 Todd St., Alameda, CA 94501.
Guy Charon (French b.1927), ‘Harbor Scene,’ oil on canvas. Estimate: $800-$1,200. Image courtesy Michaan’s Auctions.
Valentina Petrovno Cvetkova (Ukranian 1917-2007), ‘Floral Still Life with Strawberries,’ oil on canvas. Estimate: $5,500-$6,500. Image courtesy Michaan’s Auctions.
Paolo Emilio Bergamaschi (Italian 1929-1990), ‘Girl with Flowers.’ Estimate: $500-$800. Image courtesy Michaan’s Auctions.
Can you recognize George Washington? This Staffordshire bust made in England in the 19th century does not look much like the oil paintings made when Washington was alive. But he was still admired years after his death, and this type of figure sold well until the 1850s. Price: $240 at a 2011 Neal Auction in New Orleans.
Presidents Day, still officially named George Washington’s Birthday, is celebrated on the third Monday in February. But it has not always been celebrated on that day. George Washington’s birthday, Feb. 22, was first celebrated as a federal holiday in 1880. It was moved to the third Monday in February in 1971 as part of a law that made many holidays fall on Mondays so citizens could enjoy a long weekend.
In 1951 there was an attempt to change the holiday to Presidents Day to honor all presidents, not just George Washington, but for years there were arguments about when to schedule it, what to name it and whom to honor.
In the mid-1980s, the use of the term “Presidents Day” instead of “Washington’s Birthday” spread across the country, spurred by stores advertising sales. While some states honor various presidents, usually those from the state, on the holiday, George Washington is part of all of the celebrations.
When Washington died, the public bought Staffordshire figurines picturing him, textiles with pictures of him ascending to heaven and many memorial medals and plates. Photographs did not exist, so these souvenirs, along with oil paintings, show how he looked. Many of the souvenirs are inaccurate representations of Washington, but they’re of interest to collectors today.
Q: I recently acquired an antique buffet made in a traditional style. A nameplate in a drawer says “Joerns Bros. Furniture Co., Stevens Point, Wis.” Please tell me something about the maker and what the piece might be worth.
A: Brothers Charles, Paul and Frederick Joerns founded their furniture manufacturing company in St. Paul, Minn., in 1898. Within a few years, the company moved to Sheboygan, Wis., a center of furniture-making at the time. After a fire at the Sheboygan plant, Joerns Brothers Furniture Co. moved again in 1927, this time to Stevens Point. Joerns made high-quality bedroom and dining-room sets until the late 1950s, when new management changed the company’s focus to less-expensive furniture. When that business model failed, the company began making furniture for nursing homes and has thrived in the health-care business ever since. Your buffet was made after Joerns moved to Stevens Point in 1927, so it is not technically an “antique” because it is not 100 years old. And its traditional style probably indicates that it dates from no later than 1940. But it is a good solid piece of furniture. If it’s in excellent condition, you might get several hundred dollars for it.
Q: I have two matching framed prints, one with a portrait of Abraham Lincoln and one with a portrait of George Washington. The first one has a small metal plaque that says “Abraham Lincoln by George P.A. Healy – The White House Collection from The President and Mrs. Nixon – Christmas 1971.” The George Washington print has a similar plaque and is dated Christmas 1969. Do you know anything about these?
A: President Richard Nixon and his wife gave prints of famous presidential portraits to White House staff members as Christmas gifts each year he was in office. Each print was in a red presentation folder and included a parchment sheet with an explanation of the portrait, a ribbon and an embossed presidential seal. Hallmark made 3,500 copies of Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of Washington for the 1969 gift. A print of Jefferson’s portrait was given in 1970, Lincoln in 1971, Theodore Roosevelt in 1972 and James Monroe in 1973.
Q: I own a glass plate that belonged to my grandmother, who was born in 1885. It is decorated with an embossed figure of President William McKinley, showing his birth date on the left side above his elbow and his death date on the right side. At the top of the plate it reads, “It is God’s way,” and on the bottom, “His will be done.” There is no name of a company to identify who made this.
A: William McKinley was elected president of the United States in 1899. He was shot by an anarchist, Leon Czolgosz, while he was visiting the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, N.Y., on Sept. 6, 1901. McKinley died the next week, on Sept. 14. His last words were: “It is God’s way. His will be done.” Your pressed glass plate was made in 1901, but its manufacturer is unknown. Value: $50.
Q: I have a Mary Marvel wristwatch that dates back to 1948. My parents had this watch for sale in their jewelry store in Berlin, Wis. It still keeps time. I’d like to know what it’s worth.
A: The character Mary Marvel first appeared in a Captain Marvel Adventures comic book published by Fawcett Publications in 1942. She was Captain Marvel’s sister and possessed the same powers as her brother. Mary Marvel had her own series of comic books from 1945 until 1948. She continued to appear in other Marvel comics published by Fawcett until 1954. Mary Marvel wristwatches came with different colored bands and in different boxes. We have seen them with red, green, blue and black bands. The earliest boxes had a Mary Marvel cover pasted over the original Captain Marvel cover. Value of your wristwatch is $200 to $300.
Tip: Do not wash or rinse gold-decorated glass with very hot water or strong soap. It will remove some of the gold.
Take advantage of a free listing for your group to announce programs or to find antique shows and other events. Go to Kovels.com/calendar to find and plan your antiquing trips.
Terry Kovel answers as many questions as possible through the column. By sending a letter with a question, you give full permission for use in the column or any other Kovel forum. Names, addresses or email addresses will not be published. We cannot guarantee the return of any photograph, but if a stamped envelope is included, we will try. The volume of mail makes personal answers or appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, Auction Central News, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.
CURRENT PRICES
Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
Flash cards of U.S. presidents, picture on front, biography and dates on back, Edu-Cards, copyright 1978, 44 cards, $15.
Little Orphan Annie Pastry Set, pastry board, rolling pin, star cookie cutter, Transogram, original box, 1930s, $20.
Abraham Lincoln penny bank, bust, bronze color, Banthrico, Chicago, 5 x 3 1/2 inches, $35.
Curtain panels, red, white and blue stripes, stars, initials “USA,” pleated, white lining, 1970s, 27 x 45 inches, pair, $50.
Gen. Ulysses S. Grant pressed glass plate, “Patriot & Soldier,” surrounded by stars, raised dots on edge, Bryce, Higbee & Co., circa 1885, 9 inches, $65.
Navajo sterling-silver belt buckle, five turquoise stones, bear claw center, 3 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches, $225.
Effanbee Bubbles doll, composition, blue tin sleep eyes, open mouth with two teeth, pink dress with white lace, pink ribbons, pink mohair booties, 1924, 26 inches, $325.
Trench art U-boat, brass, gun rotates, swing-out periscope, World War I, 12 1/2 inches, $395.
Chippendale-style sofa, camelback, rolled arms, mahogany legs, green upholstery, down cushion, 20th century, 84 x 38 inches, $470.
Kovels’ American Collectibles, 1900 to 2000 is the best guide to your 20th-century treasures – everything from art pottery to kitchenware. It’s filled with hundreds of color photographs, marks, lists of designers and manufacturers and lots of information about collectibles. The collectibles of the 20th century are explained in an entertaining, informative style. Read tips on care and dating items and discover how to spot a good buy or avoid a bad one. And learn about hot new collectibles and what they’re worth so you can make wise, profitable decisions. The book covers pottery and porcelain, furniture, jewelry, silver, glass, toys, kitchen items, bottles, dolls, prints and more. It’s about the household furnishings of the past century – what they are, what they’re worth and how they were used. Out-of-print but available online at Kovels.com; by phone at 800-303-1996; or send $27.95 plus $4.95 postage to Kovels, Box 22900, Beachwood, OH 44122.
Can you recognize George Washington? This Staffordshire bust made in England in the 19th century does not look much like the oil paintings made when Washington was alive. But he was still admired years after his death, and this type of figure sold well until the 1850s. Price: $240 at a 2011 Neal Auction in New Orleans.
Gustav Klimt’s masterpiece, ‘The Kiss,’ 1907-08. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
VIENNA (AFP) – A Vienna museum launched Monday an unusual contribution to celebrations marking 150 years since Gustav Klimt’s birth with an online search for the kitschiest objects adorned with the artist’s work.
The Wien Museum’s “Worst of Klimt” campaign invites people to post on its Facebook page “the most horrible or most absurd Klimt products.”
Examples already posted on Monday included cake tins embossed with the Austrian artist’s famous The Kiss, a dog blanket, a pair of shoes, a Smart car, a bathing suit, a couple of tattoos—and even a piece of toast.
The museum said that the best—or worst—objects might feature in its Klimt exhibition that opens on May 16, one of a flurry of shows planned this year in the Austrian capital to honor the painter.
The posters of the 10 objects causing “the most controversy, discussion or approval under the Facebook community between now and March 15, will be rewarded with a joint exclusive guided tour through the exhibition,” it added.
Klimt, the co-founder of the turn-of-the-century Secession movement and one of Austria’s key modern artists alongside Egon Schiele and Oskar Kokoschka, was born on July 14, 1862 and died on Feb. 6, 1918.
Although his work adorns the walls and ceilings of prestigious Viennese institutions like the Burgtheater and Kunsthistorisches Museum (Art History Museum, KHM), Klimt is best known for his later “Golden Period” paintings.
One of them, the 1907 Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I briefly became the most expensive painting ever sold when it changed hands in the United States in 2006 for $135 million.
His paintings recall a heyday in Viennese cultural life when the capital of the Austro-Hungarian empire bustled with the greatest artists and intellectuals of the day—but have also inspired a splurge of tourist knicknacks.
The museum’s Facebook page can be viewed at http://www.facebook.com/WienMuseum.
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Gustav Klimt’s masterpiece, ‘The Kiss,’ 1907-08. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
With no government funds to assist them, Greece’s museums face a difficult task to protect national treasures like this 5th century B.C. kylix with a depiction of a Greek hoplite battling a Persian warrior. National Archaeological Museum of Athens. Public domain image in the USA.
ATHENS (AFP) – Greek officials on Monday said robbers who raided a museum in ancient Olympia last week had made off with dozens of artifacts including items dating back more than 3,000 years.
Police and the culture ministry released a list of 77 items stolen on Friday from the Ancient Olympic Games museum in Olympia, southwest Greece, a higher number than originally estimated.
They include a 3,300-year-old gold ring, a bronze statuette of a victorious athlete, a 2,400-year-old oil jar, clay lamps, bronze tripods and miniature chariot wheels, and dozens of idols of charioteers, horses and bulls.
Two clay goblets and a drinking cup were also smashed during the robbery and left behind, the authorities said.
Two masked men took advantage of the fact that the museum was unguarded for an hour early Friday. They knocked out the alarm, then overpowered the building’s sole female guard when she arrived for her shift.
The incident prompted Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos to submit his resignation to Prime Minister Lucas Papademos, who has yet to accept it.
Greece, rich in archaeological heritage, has been targeted by antiquity smugglers for decades. But the financial crisis rocking the country has now brought hundreds of staff layoffs among archaeologists and guards, leaving musuems vulnerable to theft.
The robbery in Olympia, some 300 kilometres (190 miles) southwest of Athens in the Peloponnese peninsula, was the second museum hit by thieves in a month. It follows the theft in January of a painting personally gifted by Spanish-born master Pablo Picasso to Greece from the Athens National Gallery.
In that case, the thief or thieves knocked out the alarm system and forced open a balcony door at the back of the building, which is located across from one of Athens top hotels.
The gallery was on reduced security staffing owing to a strike.
Two other important artworks, one by Dutch abstract artist Piet Mondrian and another by 16th-century Italian painter Guglielmo Caccia, better known as Moncalvo, were also taken.
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ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
With no government funds to assist them, Greece’s museums face a difficult task to protect national treasures like this 5th century B.C. kylix with a depiction of a Greek hoplite battling a Persian warrior. National Archaeological Museum of Athens. Public domain image in the USA.
‘Story of The Wreck of The Titanic, World’s Greatest Sea Disaster,’ published in 1912, is an actual account of the sinking that year. It should not be confused with Morgan Robertson’s fictional work published 14 years earlier. Image courtesy The Gap Auction.
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) – It’s a familiar story: The largest ship ever built, billed as “unsinkable” by its British owners and the press, strikes an iceberg one April and goes down. Due to a lack of lifeboats, more than half the passengers perish in the North Atlantic.
Except The Titan is a fictional ship, and author Morgan Robertson first published his novella, Futility, in 1898—14 years before the sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 14, 1912.
The similarities between Robertson’s plot and real life have given Futility an uncanny reputation among cognoscenti, with references popping up in everything from Walter Lord’s 1955 nonfiction account of the Titanic sinking, A Night to Remember, to Alan Moore’s graphic novel A League of Extraordinary Gentleman. The Doctor Who audio play The Wreck of the Titan is partly based on Robertson’s novella.
“If you have any interest in the Titanic, it’s a must-have,” said Mark Dimunation, chief of the rare books and special collections department at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. “It’s a great collectible book and there’s this odd aspect to it makes it completely interesting.”
But while you’ll see a fictional copy in the video game “Titanic: Adventure Out of Time,” very few copies of the 1898 edition still exist. (After the sinking of the Titanic, Robertson re-released Futility in 1912 with a new subtitle, The Wreck of the Titan.)
The Library of Congress has a copy, as does the British Library and a few other private libraries. And so does Vaughn Baber, owner of Bicentennial Books, Kalamazoo’s oldest used bookstore.
Baber, 83, said he found his copy 25 years ago in a used bookstore in St. Petersburg, Fla. Aware of its rarity, he snapped up the copy, which had a sticker price of $3.
“He didn’t know what he had,” Baber said of the owner of The Lighthouse bookstore. Baber and his wife, Arlene, have decided that the centennial of the Titanic’s sinking in April makes it the right time to sell Futility. While they have not yet settled on a venue, Baber believes an auction will generate the most interest.
“I challenge you to find another copy,” Baber said inside his 35-year-old store on Westnedge Ave., with books filling the floor-to-ceiling shelves and spilling onto the floor.
There are no other copies currently for sale in the United States, according to both Dimunation and Joyce Kosofsky, a rare books expert at the Brattle Book Shop in Boston, one of the oldest antiquarian bookshops in the U.S. Kosofsky said that the last available copy of Futility sold at auction in October 2010 for $2,200.
“That’s a hammer price,” said Kosofsky, which she says is more useful in determining value than an appraisal.
It’s not clear whether that copy’s condition was similar to Baber’s, which is in very good shape for a 114-year-old book, with an inside water stain as the only visible blemish. The machine-press cover shows a picture of an ocean liner sinking beneath the waves with an iceberg behind it.
It’s not first Shakespeare folio money, and one page of an original 1456 Gutenberg Bible would fetch more than 10 times more. But “that’s a good price for a book,” said Kosofsky.
Baber doesn’t think so. “I won’t sell this for less than $10,000,” he said. “Particularly now with the centennial and the sinking of the Costa Concordia.”
In fact, he said he turned down an offer about a year ago for $6,500.
While Dimunation did not set a dollar amount on Baber’s copy, he thinks Baber should expect a “bump” because of the anniversary.
“Now in the year of the centennial, anything Titanic is extraordinarily collectible,” he said. “The text itself is of great interest to people, to have the first printing … makes it a highly desirable to a certain audience. It’s a lovely piece in that regard.”
When asked if Futility is the rarest edition he’s ever owned, Baber said, “in 35 years, there have been many old books.”
Another memorable title was Experiments and Observations on Gastric Juice and the Physiology of Digestion, written in 1833 by William Beaumont, a 19th-century U.S. Army surgeon who served on Mackinac Island and is known as the father of gastric physiology.
Arlene Baber actually found that copy, while waiting for Vaughn in a bookstore.
“I was kind of bored waiting, so I said `Here’s an old book’ and pulled it off the shelf,” she remembered.
That copy was purchased for Western Michigan University’s library, where it was presented as the 1 millionth volume, the Babers said.
Robertson wrote his novella with a pen, not a Ouija board, and there are differences between his narrative and the actual sinking. Most notably, 705 passengers are reported to have survived the wreck of the Titanic; only 13 survived Robertson’s Titan. The Titanic was on its way to New York when it sank; the Titan was headed the opposite direction on it way to Europe. The Titan strikes the ice head on; the Titanic, which tried to turn to avoid the iceberg, took a glancing blow that tore open its side. The Titanic took about three hours to sink; the Titan disappeared under the waves in five minutes.
But the similarities are striking.
“I challenge anyone not to raise an eyebrow,” said Dimunation. “It’s all within inches of being completely identical.”
In fact, the events are so similar that Lord prefaced A Night to Remember, with a comparison of the real and fictional events.
“In 1898, a struggling author named Morgan Robertson concocted a novel about a fabulous Atlantic liner, far larger than any that had ever been built. Robertson loaded his ship with the rich and complacent and then wrecked it one cold April night on an iceberg,” Lord wrote. “Fourteen years later, a British shipping company named the White Star Line built a steamer remarkably like the one in Robertson’s novel. … The real ship was 882.5 feet long; the fictional one was 800 feet. Both vessels were triple screw and could make 24-25 knots. Both could carry about 3,000 people, and both had enough lifeboats for only a fraction of this number. But, then, this didn’t seem to matter because both were labeled, ‘unsinkable.’”
Baber won’t be the only collector celebrating the Titanic centennial with an auction. In April, some 5,500 artifacts from the shipwreck go up for bidding at Guernsey’s, a New York auction house, the Associated Press reported in December. The artifacts, which are the largest Titanic collection in existence and include china, a diamond necklace, ship’s instruments and a portion of the hull, appraised for $189 million.
Prospective bidders hoping to pick up a ticket or a teacup are out of luck: The artifacts are to be sold together as a winner-take-all auction and the winning bidder must abide by court-ordered covenants regarding the historical trove. According to a 2010 court ruling, the collection must be made available “for public display and exhibition, scientific and scholarly research and educational purposes.”
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Information from: Kalamazoo Gazette, http://www.mlive.com/kalamazoo
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-02-16-12 1909GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
‘Story of The Wreck of The Titanic, World’s Greatest Sea Disaster,’ published in 1912, is an actual account of the sinking that year. It should not be confused with Morgan Robertson’s fictional work published 14 years earlier. Image courtesy The Gap Auction.
Jackson Pollock working in his studio. Photo by Martha Holmes. Image courtesy Wikipaintings.org.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The University of Iowa Museum of Art intends to have its Jackson Pollock masterpiece restored.
Mural is almost 70 years old and is showing it.
Museum director Sean O’Harrow told the Iowa City Press-Citizen that varnish applied in the 1970s has aged, toning down the colors.
The painting has been valued at nearly $150 million.
O’Harrow says he’s talking to several agencies about securing money for the conservation work. He says he hopes funding will come soon but he didn’t elaborate.
The work could cost $300,000 or more.
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Information from: Iowa City Press-Citizen, http://www.press-citizen.com/
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-02-17-12 1129GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Jackson Pollock’s ‘Mural,’ 1943. Image courtesy Wikipaintings.org.
A painting by Francis Sartorius (English, 1734-1804) depicts British warships sinking the Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes off the south coast of Portugal on Oct. 5, 1804. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – A federal judge on Friday signed off on a Spanish government plan to begin moving a vast shipwreck treasure from Florida to Spain next week, culminating a five-year legal battle with the treasure hunters who found and raised it off the Portuguese coast.
U.S. Magistrate Judge James Pizzo ordered Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration to give Spanish officials access to the 17 tons of silver coins and other artifacts beginning Tuesday. It’s been stored in an undisclosed facility since Odyssey salvaged it from the wreck of the Spanish galleon Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes and brought it back to the Tampa area in May 2007.
The treasure is expected to be moved out of the storage facility by Feb. 24, but because of security concerns officials wouldn’t disclose how or exactly when that would take place.
“This is a very complicated logistical operation that has been prepared well in advance,” said Guillermo Corral, who heads the cultural office of the Spanish embassy in Washington.
Odyssey, which uses remote-controlled vehicles to explore the depths and bring the tiniest of items to the surface, lost at every level of the federal court system in its attempt to keep all or most of the treasure. The Spanish government filed a claim soon after the coins were flown back to Tampa, contending that it never relinquished ownership of the ship or its contents. A federal district court first ruled in 2009 that the U.S. courts didn’t have jurisdiction, and ordered the treasure returned.
Melinda MacConnel, vice president and general counsel for Odyssey, said Spanish officials will be given access to the treasure and the company won’t contest the ruling. She said the company followed federal maritime law and did nothing wrong in salvaging the wreck and bringing it back to the United States without the cooperation or permission of Spain. She blamed politics for the courts’ decisions since the U.S. government publicly backed Spain’s efforts to get the treasure returned, and she lamented that the company was unable to bring the case to trial.
She said the ruling against Odyssey will keep other explorers from working with governments on salvage projects and set the stage for the covert plundering of other shipwrecks.
“We’ll allow (Spain) to celebrate, until they realize they’ve been very short-sighted in this case,” MacConnel said.
Spanish officials disagreed, with James Goold, the Washington attorney who fought Odyssey on the Spanish government’s behalf, likening the salvage of shipwrecks for profit to plundering the wreck of the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor for souvenirs.
MacConnel said Odyssey learned from the struggle with Spain, noting that it is working with the full cooperation of the British government on several efforts to salvage that nation’s sunken ships, with agreements to share what it recovers.
Odyssey made an international splash in 2007 when it recovered the 594,000 coins and other artifacts from the Atlantic Ocean near the Straits of Gilbraltar. At the time, experts speculated the coins could be worth as much as $500 million to collectors, which would have made it the richest shipwreck treasure in history.
The company said in earnings statements that it has spent $2.6 million salvaging, transporting storing and conserving the treasure.
Odyssey fought Spain’s claim to the treasure, arguing that the wreck was never positively identified as the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes. And if it was that vessel, then the ship was on a commercial trade trip—not on a sovereign mission—at the time it sank, meaning Spain would have no firm claim to the cargo. International treaties generally hold that warships sunk in battle are protected from treasure seekers.
The Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes was sunk by British warships in the Atlantic while sailing back from South America with more than 200 people on board.
People who claimed to be descendants of merchants who owned the coins also filed claims, but they were also rejected by the court. A Key West attorney, David Paul Horan, recently filed another lawsuit on behalf of the one of the descendants who is seeking 172,000 of the coins.
Goold told Pizzo that the coins will be taken in trucks to a secure location where they can be loaded onto a plane for transport. Spanish officials said the treasure will be distributed to museums where it can be studied, researched and exhibited.
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Follow Mitch Stacy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mitchstacy.
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-02-17-12 2237GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
A painting by Francis Sartorius (English, 1734-1804) depicts British warships sinking the Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes off the south coast of Portugal on Oct. 5, 1804. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
