The New York Chinese Scholars Garden features an authentic Chinese house, designed and fabricated in China and assembled on site by 40 Chinese artisans and artists.
NEW YORK – The destination website AsiaWeekNYC.com, which bills itself as a “guide to all the auctions, shows and campaigns of Asia Week,” announced an in-kind donation to the New York Chinese Scholars Garden at Staten Island’s Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden.
The donation is the second provided by AsiaWeekNYC.com’s parent company, Antiques Weeks Media, LLC. It consists of a website banner and links; blog content about the Gardens, press releases to raise awareness, and inclusion in press releases relevant to AsiaWeekNYC.com. In total, the package is valued at $2,500.
“It is our policy to identify and feature a nonprofit organization that fits into the theme of each named antiques week website,” said Eric Miller, co-founder of Antiques Weeks Media.
Conceived in 1984 and completed in 1999, The New York Chinese Scholars Garden follows the form of traditional Scholars Gardens, which date back to the Han Dynasty, and typically were built by a scholar or an administrator retiring from the emperor’s court.
The New York Chinese Garden features an authentic Chinese house with a courtyard enclosed by walls, rocks and pavilions. An inner garden is also enclosed and structured around a pond. The architectural components were designed and prefabricated by the Landscape Architecture Corporation of China, in Suzhou 苏州. They were then assembled on the Snug Harbor site by a team of 40 Chinese artists and artisans.
The goal of the AsiaWeekNYC.com donation is to raise awareness of the New York Chinese Scholars Garden, particularly for the visitors to Asia Week. The site is open year round and accessible by Staten Island Ferry (free), and a short bus ride.
AsiaWeekNYC.com, which launched in early 2012, is the only targeted website for the events of Asia Week that is open to advertisers. It has already attracted a prominent group of advertisers, including Gianguan Auctions, the Arts of Pacific Asia Show, Stella Show Mgmt. Co., and the online magazine New Focus On.
Online: AsiaWeekNYC.com. Follow AsiaWeekNYC.com on Twitter for daily updates.
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About Asia Week:
Asia Week in New York runs March 16-25. Although known for the large numbers of Chinese buyers who come to shop the high-end auctions, shows and galleries, Asia Week also has a strong educational component. Launching the events is a two-day symposium at the Frick Collection titled “Dragon and Chrysanthemum: Collecting Chinese an Japanese Art in America.” It runs March 15-16.
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
The New York Chinese Scholars Garden features an authentic Chinese house, designed and fabricated in China and assembled on site by 40 Chinese artisans and artists.A view of the bridge, rockery and undulating wall at the New York Chinese Scholars Garden at the Staten Island Botanical Garden.
Quapaw bottle, 8 inches, Arkansas or Mississippi. Estimate: $300-$400. Image courtesy Robert Murphy Auctions.
KENSINGTON, Conn. – Robert Murphy Auctions will conduct a Native American and artifacts auction on Saturday, March 3, beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern. The online-only auction facility will have approximately 300 lots of high-quality, museum-grade material specializing in Native American, prehistoric and pre-Columbian wares. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.
Owner Robert Murphy said, “We are proud to be offering two significant collections in this specialized area. The first collection will feature several lots from the Caddo and Mississippian cultures including pottery, shell and bead work, tools, pipes and accessories. The second collection is a substantial body of work in more contemporary pieces. This will include a huge selection of pottery from many famous potters (Chino, Nampeyo, Quezada, Tafoya, etc) as well as storytellers, jewelry, and other miscellaneous items.”
Rounding out the auction will be a nice selection of blades and points, baskets, books, and rugs. Highlights will include a Parkin Punctate Mississippian jar, a Caddo Military Road jar, an exceptional Pre-Columbian effigy bottle and a Rose Chino Garcia Acoma pot.
For details call 860-828-1717 or www.robertmurphyauctions.com.
Paul Sormani (Italian/French, 1817-1877) Louis XV-style commode inlaid with elaborate floral marquetry and mounted with exceptional quality doré bronze. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
DALLAS – Dallas Auction Gallery will follow their $1.6 million dollar Nov. 16 auction with an outstanding Fine and Decorative Art Auction on Feb. 29 at 6 p.m. Central. This sale will feature exceptional signed French furniture from a local private collection. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.
The collection includes a Paul Sormani Louis XV-style commode, a Linke mahogany Louis XV-style vitrine, a Grohe Freres Louis XVI-style writing table, and an Andre Lardin Regence-style tulipwood commode.
Scott Shuford, president of Dallas Auction Gallery, said, “We are pleased to offer an impressive collection of signed French furniture in this auction, along with a wonderful mix of high-end paintings, fine estate jewelry and silver. Dallas Auction Gallery is looking forward to celebrating our 10-year anniversary this year, and we are always welcoming quality consignments for our 2012 auction schedule.”
Bidding is available live, by phone, by absentee bidding, or online through LiveAuctioneers.com.
Highlights from the Feb. 29 auction include Lot 170, a Paul Sormani Louis XV-style commode, (Italian/French, 1817-1877). The lock plate of top drawer stamped, “Paul Sormani 10r Charlot, Paris” and “P. Sormani Paris” stamped into the top of the front legs under the marble. Provenance: Ex Coll: Baroness Leigh who maintained residences in Geneva, Penzance and New York. By repute, this commode was purchased directly from Sormani in Paris in the 1860s for the family residence in Geneva and later moved to Penzance. It has a $40,000-$60,000 estimate.
There will also be an Andre Lardin Regence-style tulipwood commode (Lot 156) with molded breche violette marble top over two short, two long and a secret top center drawer. Having ornate bronze pulls, escutcheons and mountings, the commode is stamped “Lardin” and “JME.” Andre Antoine Lardin was a Parisian cabinetmaker of the latter 18th century. The commode is estimated at $8,000-$12,000.
Lot 176 is an ivory inlaid oval shaped center table that features a bird’s-eye maple top. It is also estimated at $8,000-$12,000.
Artwork is paced by Henry Stull’s Heads Apart, an oil painting on canvas depicting a thoroughbred race at Queens County Jockey Club on Oct. 25, 1898 between: Kinnikinic, Warrenton and Swiftmas. In a frame measuring 38 inches high by 43 inches wide, the painting is signed lower right, “Henry Stull Copyright 1898.” The estimate is $25,000-$35,000.
A Tiffany & Co. mantel clock with enameled decoration to the domed top and three sides is in working condition with pendulum and key. The circular brass French-style movement with coiled gong strike on hour and half hour is marked, “Tiffany & Compy 3965 7 7” and a circular mark that reads, “Medaille d’Argent Vincenti 1855.” It carries a $4,000-$6,000 estimate.
A Tiffany-style stained glass window having three panels depicts a winding stream within a wooded landscape and a mountain in the distance. A metal tag signed is marked “Tiffany Studios New York” on lower left panel. The frame measures 69.5 inches high by 66 inches wide. It has a $5,000-$10,000 estimate.
For details visit the website: www.dallasauctiongallery.com or phone toll-free 866-653-3900
Paul Sormani (Italian/French, 1817-1877) Louis XV-style commode inlaid with elaborate floral marquetry and mounted with exceptional quality doré bronze. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
Linke mahogany Louis XV-style vitrine. Curved glass in door and side panels. Signed on bronze mount, ‘F. Linke.’ Francois Linke (French, 1855-1946). Estimate: $20,000-$30,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
Grohe Freres Louis XVI-style writing table, the body of tulipwood veneered oak on turned legs of solid purpleheart wood. Stamped twice
Fourteen-karat white and yellow gold and 1.95-carat fancy yellow diamond (GIA) ring. Estimate: $18,000-$24,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
Fourteen-karat white gold and 2.28-carat diamond (GIA) ring. Estimate: $15,000-$25,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
Henry Stull (American, 1851-1913), ‘Heads Apart,’ oil painting on canvas depicting a race at Queens County Jockey Club in 1898. Estimate: $25,000-$35,000. Image courtesy Dallas Auction Gallery.
A sampling of antiques to be auctioned Feb. 25 by Specialists of the South, with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com. Image courtesy of Specialists of the South. PANAMA CITY, Fla. – February 25, 2012 is the date The Specialists of the South will auction an out of town estate from a deceased master woodworker. Stellar tools and exotic woods are offered in conjunction with his antiques and collectibles. This no-minimum, no-reserve auction showcasing some 400 lots starts on the 25th at 8:00 AM CST with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com.
Antiques and collectibles exhibit a wide variety, from iridescent carnival glass to interesting artwork and lithographs. There is also a beautiful Tiffany-style stained glass shade. Also, look for the H.A. Muth ship prints, lithographs from Currier & Ives and an unframed chromolithograph of The Boyhood of Lincoln.
The Specialists will also offer two beautiful Oriental rugs. The first is an Iranian Bijar rug with a repeating intricate square pattern. The second is an Afghani Balouche tribal rug with unique reds and geometric patterns. The consignor also collected linens and quilts, including a brightly colored sunflower quilt and a lightweight nine patch red and blue quilt.
The selection of both large and small tools offered are sure to get the attention of \woodworking followers. Many are out of the ordinary and in very good shape, some even mint in the box. Of special interest are the Delta products, including an industrial table saw. Tools of note include an industrial band saw, a generator, a wood lathe and a Shopmaster open stand jointer. The consignor used his tools specifically for the exotic woods he worked with every day.
The estate offers a large assortment of beautiful wood in a range of sizes to include ebony, purple heart, zebra wood to name a few. Among his creations includes a handcrafted olive ash burl box and an assortment of boxes in progress made out of Birdseye maple, cedar, rose and lace wood – some with ebony touches. And, note the auction will offer a signed limited edition pedestal made of purple heart.
Also in the collection are some nice pieces of vintage furniture. While the consignor did not handcraft these pieces, he had an eye for beautiful wood. Among the furniture pieces is a tufted Victorian sofa, a beautiful dark finish armoire, a drum table, French style kidney-shape end tables, a Southerland drop leaf table, an older washstand, oak bench, a Chinese red painted box on stand, a vintage chest of drawers, a chest on chest, a traditional broken pediment headboard with footboard, a cherry dining table and a diminutive étagère.
In addition to the above, there are two porcelain and brass chandeliers, one made in Italy; and a crystal chandelier. Lighting also features Capodimonte-style table lamps, a floor lamp and oil lamps. There are pieces of Westmoreland and enameled blue glass, beautiful cut to clear blue vases, milk glass, signed Fenton glass, carnival glass, citron, cut glass, art glass and a large collection of fancy glass chandelier shades.
In ceramics there is Hummel Chimney Sweep, a retired Lladro of Girl w/Pig, large and small Toby jugs including the large Sancho Panga and Auld Mac, an R.S. Prussia rose bowl, a Vienna vase, a Nippon lobed dish, Staffordshire spill vases depicting “the hunt,” cookie jars, Blue Willow dinnerware, older kitchen bowls, and a Native American ceremonial pot.
Other categories interest include clocks (mantel and carriage), daguerreotypes, costume jewelry including turquoise necklaces and rings, buttons, records (45s and 33 1/3 albums), books including a large selection of woodworking books and magazines as well as novels, fishing poles, kitchenalia and craft items featuring a painted cheese box by Katie Koehnemann.
For additional information on any lot in the sale, call 850-785-2577 or e-mail them at specialists@knology.net.
A sampling of antiques to be auctioned Feb. 25 by Specialists of the South, with Internet live bidding through LiveAuctioneers.com. Image courtesy of Specialists of the South.
Original mixed media work depicting boxer Muhammad Ali by Peter Mars. Estimate: $7,900-$9,880. Image courtesy UniversalLive. NORTHBROOK, Ill. – Nearly 250 lots of Black Americana items, timed to coincide with Black History Month, are being sold in an Internet-only auction that is currently online and will end Friday, Feb. 24. The auction is being conducted by Universal Live, a firm that holds a host of themed online sales each month, often more than one a week. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.
The Black History Month auction is featuring artwork (by noted artists such as Romare Bearden, LeRoy Neiman, Mary Ann Rose, Peter Mars, Nathaniel Barnes and Essud Fungcap) plus a wide range of Black Americana objects, including 19th century pipes depicting black faces, authentic slave leg shackles (est. $200-$300), 1960s-era concert posters and sports items.
The men and women depicted in the many artworks are iconic Black American figures that cross multigenerational lines. They include basketball great Michael Jordan, boxing legend Muhammad Ali and musical giants like Billie Holiday, Nat “King” Cole, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and others.
The sale’s expected top lot is an original portrait on canvas of a scene from the movie The King and I, by William Chambers (est. $20,000-$35,000). The oval image, titled We Kiss in a Shadow, originally appeared on a well-known collector plate distributed by the Bradford Exchange. It was the fourth in a series and had been held in Chambers’s private collection.
Currently generating a good amount of online hit activity are a Civil War-era photo of black soldiers at Camp Brightwood, D.C. (est. $50-$75); a print of an original work by the black artist Archibald Motley titled Casey & Mae in the Street (est. $50-$80); and a signed letter and autograph photo of the renowned 19th century black figure Frederick Douglass (est. $100-$150).
LeRoy Neiman is one of America’s most famous contemporary sports artists, and this auction features numerous signed limited-edition prints. One, titled Muhammad Ali – Athlete of the Century, is double-signed, by Ali and Neiman (est. $7,500-$8,000). Another is a serigraph of Michael Jordan, shown surrounded by players from the Orlando Magic (est. $11,900-$14,375).
Speaking of Michael Jordan, three mixed media serigraphs depicting Jordan and signed by him and the artist, Carlo Beninati, carry estimates of $4,000-$6,500. They are titled Free Throw, Next Point and Last Victory Dance. Also, a giclee of Jordan, signed by Stephen Holland (est. $5,900-$7,375), plus another of Kobe Bryant (est. $7,500-$9,375) are being sold.
Romare Bearden (1911-1988) is considered one of the most important African-American artists of the 20th century. His collages of photos and painted paper on canvas depict aspects of American black culture in a Cubist style. Signed, limited-edition serigraphs by Bearden in the auction include Sorcerer’s Village (est. $3,750-$5,770) and Two Women (est. $2,850-$4,380).
Antique cast-iron banks are enormously popular with collectors, and examples showing black figures have double the appeal. The auction features a Dinah mechanical bank, where the user places a coin in her hand, presses the lever on her back and her eyes roll and her hand moves to her mouth; and a 7 1/2-inch-tall Mammy still bank. Both should realize $250-$375.
Pipes fashioned in the 19th century, depicting black faces (some of them even made by black Americans) are also coveted by collectors. The auction boasts many examples, including an exceptional carved walnut pipe of a black alligator trainer about to leap into a swamp and straddled to a huge alligator, crafted by a black American in South Carolina (est. $1,725-$2,500).
Other pipes include an early clay pipe depicting the head of a Southern slave (circa 1840-1860), unearthed at a tavern site in South Carolina, probably cast and given to a bidder when slaves were sold in the Charleston area (est. $400-$600), a detailed African-American clay pipe, 4 inches long (est. $150-$225), and a hand-carved wooden slave pipe (est. $370-$555).
Prints of concert posters from the 1960s carry estimates of $50-$80 each. These include Aretha Franklin at Philharmonic Hall in New York City in Oct. 1968 (and featuring the Sweet Inspirations with Cissy Houston, Whitney’s mother), James Brown in Nov. 1963, a week before the Kennedy assassination, and Stevie Wonder for a 1969 concert appearance in England.
Returning to artwork, multiple works by emerging and established artists are being sold. Examples include a half-dozen works by Mary Ann Rose (all est. $3,920-$6,030), two original mixed media works depicting Muhammad Ali by Peter Mars (est. $7,900-$9,880, $1,900-$2,925), and works by artist Nathaniel Barnes, two of them expected to sell for $3,500-$5,380.
Other items of Black Memorabilia include an engraved whale’s tooth depicting the wharf at New Bedford, Mass., and a slave (est. $250-$375); a cast-iron black child eating a watermelon (est. $150-$225); an original seat from Chicago Stadium (est. $600-$925); and a 1992 political button showing Bill Clinton and the black Senate candidate Carol Moseley Braun (est. $40-$60).
For additional information on any item in the auction, call 847-412-9900 or e-mail marty@mebmail.com.
NEW YORK – Affirmation Arts, in association with the Andy Warhol Museum, will present “Warhol: Confections & Confessions,” an exhibition of 53 unique vintage gelatin silver prints opening Saturday, March 3.
Affirmation Arts is an arts complex located at 523 W. 37th St. in Manhattan’s Hudson Yards District.
The photographs, dating from circa 1974-1983 have never been seen outside of the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh and eight from the archives have never been previously exhibited. The exhibition presents Warhol as a fine art photographer in a way that is rarely seen; no celebrities, no pop—just portraits, still lifes and interiors.
Warhol is best known for his colorful pop art images of celebrities and Campbell’s soup cans, his hundreds of films, The Factory studio, “15 minutes of fame,” and his frequent appearances at Studio 54. Though his lifestyle and most popular work matched the decadence of the era, he also produced a considerable number of quieter, stripped, more thoughtful black-and-white works such as the 8-by-10 photographs in this exhibition.
“As Affirmation Arts approaches its fourth anniversary, it is a great honor to celebrate this unknown side of Andy with such limitedly exhibited works that reveal his unexpected talent as a fine art photographer,” said Marla Goldwasser, director of Affirmation Arts. “We are grateful to the Andy Warhol Museum for the opportunity to present this exhibition, and are pleased to bring greater awareness to the museum and support its mission to galvanize audiences through creative interaction with the art and life of Andy Warhol.”
“Warhol: Confections & Confessions, 8×10 B+W Photographs from The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh” runs through May 5 and will be complemented by a catalog of the same name with an essay by Eric C. Shiner, director of the Andy Warhol Museum.
Fifth U.S. President James Monroe painted by Samuel Finley Breese Morse. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (AP) – The James Monroe Museum and Memorial Library has acquired a document bearing what’s considered the earliest known official document bearing Monroe’s signature.
The museum purchased a furlough signed during the Revolutionary War that Maj. James Monroe signed on Feb. 23, 1778, at Valley Forge, Pa. Monroe issued the military pass to 2nd Lt. John Wallace Jr. of the 6th Pennsylvania Regiment.
Museum director Scott Harris tells The Free Lance-Star that a collector owned the document for decades before putting it up for sale. Harris says the price was several thousand dollars, and the museum received donations for its purchase from several groups and people.
Monroe was the 5th U.S. president and was the last one to have served in the Revolutionary War.
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Online:
jamesmonroemuseum.umw.edu
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Information from: The Free Lance-Star, http://www.fredericksburg.com/
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-02-20-12 1002GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Fifth U.S. President James Monroe painted by Samuel Finley Breese Morse. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Statue of Khufu, Pharoah of Ancient Egypt’s Old Kingdom, in the Cairo Egyptian Museum. Khufu reigned from around 2589 B.C. to 2566 B.C. and is generally accepted as the builder of the Great Pyramid of Giza.
CAIRO (AP) —Archaeologists on Monday began restoration on a 4,500-year-old wooden boat found next to the pyramids, one of Egypt’s main tourist attractions.
The boat is one of two that were buried next to the Pharaoh Khufu, spokesmen for a joint Egyptian-Japanese team of archeologists said. The boats are believed to have been intended to carry pharaohs into the afterlife.
Khufu, also known as Cheops, is credited with building the Great Pyramid of Giza, the largest of the pyramids. Khufu, son of Snefru, was the second ruler of the 4th Dynasty around 2680 B.C. and ruled Egypt for 23 years.
Both boats, made from Lebanese cedar and Egyptian acacia trees, were originally discovered in 1954. One of the boats is on display at a museum near the pyramids.
The second boat, which is now undergoing the restoration, remained buried. It is thought to be smaller than its sister ship, which is about 140 feet (43 meters) long.
The head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mustafa Amin, said Egyptologists began taking samples of the wood for restoration on Monday.
“The boat was found in a complete shape, intact and in place,” he said, adding that the focus now is on taking samples of the wood.
He said Egyptologists are studying “the different components and fungus in the wood in order to find the most sufficient and advanced way to work on the wood.”
Last year in June, a team of scientists lifted the first of 41 limestone slabs each weighing about 16 tons to uncover the pit in which the ancient ship was buried, said Sakuji Yoshimura, professor from Japan’s Waseda University.
At the time, experts said restoration would likely take about four years and that at its completion, the boat would be placed on display at the Solar Boat Museum near the pyramids, which routinely attract millions of tourists and boost one of Egypt’s most important industries.
The team had initially thought the vessel would be safer left underground than exposed to pollution, but evidence showed that pollution, water and insects had invaded the boat’s chamber.
A $10 million grant from Waseda University has helped in preparing the ship’s excavation process.
Pate-sur-pate is a delicate, time-consuming technique that continues to command aesthetic admiration and competitive bids from collectors. This Grainger Worcester vase with gilded handles, circa 1892, sold for $2,607 (est. $300-$500) in Skinner’s January Fine Ceramics sale. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.
Ingenious fans are looking for new ways to sustain their Downton Abbey high, as the series goes into hiatus. Season Two offered lingering looks at the glories of the formal table, which provided a glamorous backdrop for laughter, tears and romantic intrigue.
Books like The World of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes and Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey by the Countess of Carnarvon, are filled with fascinating information on period interiors and manners.
Collectors who would like to make the enjoyment last can entertain in Downton Abbey style, with appropriate china and silver from a century ago. British porcelain from the decades before and after 1900 comes up at auction every weekend.
Some categories are avidly sought-after by specialists, while others offer real bargains for savvy collectors. Auction houses such as Skinners in Boston include these wares in regular sales of fine ceramics.
As the popular television series reveals in each episode, the pre- and post-World War I decades were a period of unsettling changes in mores and fashions. Traditional British porcelain manufactories, many with roots in the 18th century, continued to make formal tableware and garnitures as they had throughout the 1837-1901 reign of Queen Victoria.
At the same time, small firms were producing fresh art pottery lines that appealed to buyers eager to own the latest thing. William de Morgan, for example, had been friends with Arts and Crafts Movement guiding spirit William Morris, and his London workshop produces various experimental lines.
No educated person who went to exhibitions or expositions would have been unfamiliar with the Art Nouveau style, which made its mark around 1890-1910. By the time the Great War ended in 1918, Art Deco and the jazz age of the 1920s were just around the corner.
Yet in the great city and country houses, porcelain decorated with classic patterns by old firms such as Worcester, Minton, Wedgwood, Copeland and Coalport still set the formal table. Directors lavishly set out china to recreate that look for period drama, and collectors can put together services to achieve the same effect at home.
Families who regularly inherited money, land and houses filled with furniture and decorative arts would display cherished objects from many different periods.
A dining room or grand salon might contain 18th century heirlooms, porcelain purchased during Victoria’s reign, and a variety of fashionable decorative pieces. The latter might range from Minton’s latest product to Chinese vases to a whimsical art pottery jug by the Martin Brothers.
Stuart Slavid, the expert on fine ceramics at Skinner’s, has heard the Downton Abbey buzz around the sale room: “There was a little conversation going on here yesterday among several people who were all big fans of the show.”
The influence is subtle: The collector may not set out to recreate that fictional table, but when an elegant form comes on the block, paddles go up. Porcelain in the Jan. 14 Boston sale included a circa 1885 Wedgwood Auro Basalt covered potpourri vase sold for $2,489; a pair of ornate Royal Worcester vase with masks on the handles, circa 1900, for $1,067; and a Royal Crown Derby dark blue ground vase dated 1920 for $1,541.
Slavid emphasizes that porcelain in that period was not confined to the table: “It was a more formal lifestyle so the decorative appeal was much more formal. They all had china cabinets; that’s probably why so many pieces survived.” Porcelain would have been displayed in such cabinets in the main living rooms, on bedroom mantels and dressing tables, and, of course, on impressive sideboards in the dining room.
Collectors pay a premium for the work of well-known artists, and many of the tour-de-force vases and centerpieces are signed. The expert explains, “So you could have a Royal Worcester hand-painted vase and if it was done by a particular artist, it’s the artist that will command the price.”
One decorating technique in vogue at the turn of the century was pate-sur-pate, in which relief designs are carefully built up by applying layers of slip. M.L. Solon, who signed his work, brought the French technique to Minton, and many other firms imitated the wares.
Slavid points out, “It’s tremendously time-consuming because each layer is applied separately. As you get different heights and depths of the relief, some of the most impressive pieces could take nine months to finish.”
Only the wealthiest collectors could have purchase pate-sure-pate when it was made, and signed examples command the most formidable prices. An 1889 Louis Solon decorated vase brought $52,140 at Skinner’s in 2008. An 1892 Grainger Worcester vase by an unknown artist in this year’s sale sold for a more reasonable $2,607.
Collectors who want period impact on the table can choose from a variety of decorated service plates. These beautiful dishes were not meant for the rough and tumble of eating and washing up. They would have been removed or surmounted by another plate when the food service began.
At Skinner’s January 2011 sale, 12 Coalport fish plates from 1893, signed by artist John Hugh Plant, sold for $2,252; 10 Royal Crown Derby service plates from 1911 for $1,659; and 10 Royal Worcester hand-painted service plates from 1929 for $4,444.
Bargain of the day was a Minton porcelain partial breakfast set, circa 1875, with a covered bowl and compote for only $237. Decorated in an intricate transfer design with gold accents, these pieces could be used to enhance simpler porcelain for an elegant effect on a budget.
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
Pate-sur-pate is a delicate, time-consuming technique that continues to command aesthetic admiration and competitive bids from collectors. This Grainger Worcester vase with gilded handles, circa 1892, sold for $2,607 (est. $300-$500) in Skinner’s January Fine Ceramics sale. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Designed to hold complex floral arrangements on a formal table, a pair of Royal Worcester vase with applied lion masks brought $711 earlier this year. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Noble nurseries featured elaborate toy tableware for children’s play. This extensive Wedgwood Queen’s ware set made just before World War I sold for $4,147; the ‘Noah’s Ark’ pattern was designed by Daisy Makeig-Jones, the artist behind the firm’s Fairyland Lustre line. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Fine individual examples of turn-of-the-20th century porcelain can often be acquired for reasonable sums. This beautifully-decorated Copeland porcelain covered bowl and stand, circa 1896, was purchased in the January 2011 sale for $296. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Collectors pay a premium for individual pieces decorated by well-known artists. This bottle-formed Worcester porcelain vase, circa 1888, enameled with birds in flight by Charles Baldwyn, soared to $5,925 (est. $800-$1,200) in a 2011 auction. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Decorative service plates, such as this ethereal Minton pair decorated by Alboin Birks circa 1924 set the style at formal meals. The lot brought $2489 last year. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.Flush with industrial profits, wealthy Americans wanted to buy the best. These Royal Crown Derby service plates, circa 1911, were retailed in the United States by Tiffany & Co., New York; the gilded and enameled set of 10 sold in 2011 for $1,659. Image Courtesy Skinner Auctions.
The LSU campus in Baton Rouge, La., with Tiger Stadium in the foreground. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
DENHAM SPRINGS, La. (AP) – Sheriff’s deputies in Livingston Parish are investigating the theft of two dozen LSU championship rings taken from the home of an assistant athletics director.
The Advocate reported the theft happened in December from the home of Kevin Wagner. Deputies announced the incident this past week.
Included is the 2007 ring from LSU’s football national championship, which Wagner said is the most valuable to sports memorabilia dealers.
Wagner said he was shocked to return home and find the rings gone, and says he has little hope of recovering them. He said jewelry belonging to his wife also was taken.
“I got a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach,” said Wagner. “I just stood there looking. I couldn’t believe they were gone.”
He said he notified authorities shortly after discovering the burglary.
Perry Rushing, chief of operations at the Sheriff’s Office, said that at Wagner’s request, investigators didn’t publicly report the theft earlier in hopes the thief might be caught trying to pawn or sell the rings to dealers who had been notified of the theft.
The rings commemorate national titles, bowl games, men’s basketball championships, women’s basketball Final Four tournaments and baseball championships, the sheriff’s office reported.
The collection is valued at more than $50,000, Rushing said.
“The rings represent 23 years of LSU athletics,” Wagner said.
He said national dealers in such rings exist, but he doubts the thief has any idea what to do with them, especially since Wagner’s name is engraved on them.
Sheriff’s deputies said anyone with information about the rings should call detectives at 800-443-7681.
“Realistically, I don’t believe we’ll ever see them again,” Wagner said.
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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com
Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-WF-02-18-12 1833GMT
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
The LSU campus in Baton Rouge, La., with Tiger Stadium in the foreground. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
