May 13, 2013 - Auction Central News

Sticker shock: Feds probe canceled sale of $1.7M Chinese vase

Left, the Chinese vase that was bid to $1.7 million in Altair Auctions' May 12, 2013 auction; right, the Chinese vase that sold at Jackson's International on May 23, 2012 for $3,840. Images courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and the auction houses.

NORWOOD, Mass. (ACNI) – Real or unreal, a purported antique Chinese famille rose vase that hammered $1.7 million at Altair Auctions & Appraisers on March 30th is attracting far more attention than the seven-figure bid it garnered. Its origin and provenance may have been embellished, says the Boston Globe, whose reporters Sean P. Murphy and Andrea Estes wrote an extensive article on the piece in the daily newspaper’s May 12, 2013 edition.

Acting on a tip, Murphy and Estes looked into the background of the double-gourd Chinese vase described in Altair’s auction catalog as “18th century” with a “Qianlong six-character mark” and concluded it bears striking similarities to a possible repro vase that sold last year for a mere $3,840.

The vase said to be a modern iteration of an antique design was auctioned on May 23, 2012 in a Russian, Asian, European & American Fine Art sale conducted by Jackson’s International Auctioneers & Appraisers of Cedar Falls, Iowa. Jackson’s, a highly reputable, long-established specialist in fine art and antiques, had identified the vase in its catalog description as being Chinese famille rose porcelain with a “Qianlong archaic mark on the base.” The description made no mention of the vase being an antique, which was borne out by the modest auction estimate of $5,000-$7,000.

The main differences between the 6¾in modern copy sold at Jackson’s and the line-for-line twin auctioned recently by Altair had to do with representation. The vase in Altair’s sale was identified as having “Provenance From Christie’s Sale 2/23/1989. Lot 297.” A further reference noted: “See ‘Palace Museum Collection of ancient ceramics data Clippings (Volume II)’ page 180, Figure 204 Forbidden City Publishing House, 2005.”

The vase even bore a Christie’s sticker under its base suggesting it has been entered as Lot 297 in the aforementioned 1989 sale at the company’s South Kensington gallery in London. But there was one problem with that. Lot 297 in that particular sale was not even a vase; it was a blanc-de-chine statuette of Guanyin estimated to be worth around $100.

The vase sold by Jackson’s had on its base an aged partial sticker, also from Christie’s, with an illegible lot number on it. If, indeed, it was the same vase that appeared a year later in Altair’s auction, then logic would suggest that someone may have tampered with it subsequent to its sale at Jackson’s by adding a newer Christie’s sticker that had no connection to the vessel whatsoever.

Jackson’s president and CEO James Jackson spoke extensively with Auction Central News about the two vase transactions. Jackson stated that it “did not require an expert” to see that the vase in their May 2012 sale was not an antique. “You can put a Mercedes-Benz hood ornament on a VW Beetle, but that doesn’t make the car a Mercedes. Likewise, you can put a Christie’s sticker on a vase, but that doesn’t warrant that it’s an antique or that it even sold at Christie’s. We place no validity in auction house stickers unless research proves the sticker to be authentic and/or indigenous to the piece. This is the type of research we do on a regular basis and which often takes very little time and energy. Stickers have no bearing on value.”

“In this supercharged Asian art market, it’s not unusual for things with questionable stickers to come through any auction house’s doors,” Jackson continued. “You’ll notice that in our catalog description we made no mention of provenance from Christie’s, even though the vase had a Christie’s sticker. Our pre-sale estimate of $5,000-$7,000 told bidders our opinion of what the vase’s value was. I have four kids to put through college. If we had even sniffed the possibility that it might be a $1.7-million-dollar vase, we would have sought out an independent expert’s opinion. I’ve spent 25 years building up our company’s reputation. Does anyone really think we would have let it go for $3,840?” he asked rhetorically.

Jackson explained that the inclusion of “Qianlong archaic mark” in the auction-catalog description for the vase was in line with standard protocol used throughout the auction industry.

“It did have a Qianlong archaic mark on it, which any expert in Asian art will tell you is in no way a representation of a piece’s age. A ceramic made today in a village in China could have that mark on it. When the famille rose vase first came in to us, we thought it was probably a copy of an archaic prototype.” Jackson said.

“Not just in Chinese art, but in all Asian art, it’s not uncommon for contemporary makers to apply a mark to pay homage to their forefathers or to the artist who they apprenticed under,” Jackson explained. “For example, a Japanese woodblock print might be signed ‘Hiroshige,’ but does that mean it was created by Ando Hiroshige [born in the late 18th century] or one of a long line of artists whose work is ‘in the manner of’ and signed in the same way as original Hiroshiges were?”

Jackson said that he and his staff “look suspiciously” at everything that is brought in to them for potential consignment to auction. “Every item has to stand on its own merits. Its value can’t be assessed on the basis of an auction-house sticker or marking,” he said.

Altair Auctions & Appraisers is owned and operated by Benjamin Wang, who studied Asian art and antiques at the Institute of Mongolian History. He opened the doors to his auction business in September 2012.

Wang spoke at length with Auction Central News and confirmed that the $1.7 million sale of the vase has been canceled, not due to any sort of revelation that the vase was a copy, but because of nonpayment on the part of the winning bidder, who had participated by phone.

“After the auction we contacted the winning phone bidder in Italy, but he failed to pay for the vase or any of the other items he had won in the sale,” Wang said. “Instead, he asked to see the provenance for the vase. He asked if we had the consignor’s receipt from its prior sale, and my office sent it to him along with the invoice for all of the other pieces. We never heard from him again. Unfortunately that is not an uncommon occurrence in Asian art sales.”

Wang said the buyer had provided Altair with a copy of his passport as well as credit card details, which were used to charge a $3,000 deposit prior to bidding in the sale. Asked why he did not charge the same credit card after the sale for the amount shown as due on the invoice, Wang responded, “because the provenance – the receipt we had sent to him – turned out to be a fake.”

According to Wang, the vase was consigned to Altair’s sale by someone well known to him. “He’s a customer and a friend of mine. I trusted his judgment because he is a longtime collector of Chinese art,” Wang said. “My mistake was trusting him and not having the vase checked in depth. [The consignor] did not admit it to me openly, but the sticker turned out to be a fake. This has damaged my company.”

Wang denies any wrongdoing with respect to the now-aborted sale of the vase and says he still believes the piece to be a genuine Qianlong production. “The fact that the bidding went so high shows it’s real,” Wang told Auction Central News. “People weren’t bidding just because of the Christie’s sticker, which did not belong on the vase.”

However, in light of the controversy, the Department of Justice has taken an interest and is investigating parties involved in the Altair vase transaction to determine if any misrepresentation or fraud might have occurred.

In the Boston Globe article, Attorney Orestes Brown, who represents Benjamin Wang, said that his client plans to send the vase to China for independent authentication. “We don’t want the reputation of the vase to be tainted because of the opinion of some guy with no credibility,” Brown reportedly told the Globe in reference to James Jackson.

Jackson told Auction Central News he found Attorney Brown’s comment to be “extremely offensive,” adding, “If [Wang] is so sure the vase is of the Qianlong period, why doesn’t he stand up for his guns? With the sale canceled, presumably he has lost a very large commission. Why doesn’t he have a mutually agreeable expert here in the United States examine it?”

Wang told Auction Central News he “fully intend(s)” to have the vase authenticated, not in China but in the United States.

“I’m not a god. I could have gotten that piece wrong or I could have gotten it right, but I sincerely believe it’s real. If I had thought it was a fake, I would have had it checked out,” he said.

Auction Central News will continue to report on this story as it develops.

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ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE

Left, base of vase sold by Altair Auctions, with a Christie's sticker that was either a fake or was removed from a piece that legitimately sold at Christie's and applied to the vase; right, base of vase sold by Jackson's International with the remnant of what appears to be an old Christie's sticker. Images courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and the auction houses. — Left, base of vase sold by Altair Auctions, with a Christie’s sticker that was either a fake or was removed from a piece that legitimately sold at Christie’s and applied to the vase; right, base of vase sold by Jackson’s International with the remnant of what appears to be an old Christie’s sticker. Images courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and the auction houses.

Willard clock, Impressionist painting lead Case auction May 18

This late 19th century elephant tusk with Gorham sterling silver mounts, including an elephant head handle, measures over 10 inches tall and is estimated at $5,000-7,000. Case Antiques image.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— A Simon Willard tall case clock with original label and a Boston Impressionist painting lead the offerings at the Case Spring Auction, to be held Saturday, May 18. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

Both the clock and the painting are from the estate of Margaret Wemyss Connor of Nashville, whose collection of American art and antiques accounts for over 125 lots in the sale. The 725-lot auction also features pieces from other estates and collections including an institutional collection of Native American objects, Asian antiques, and Case’s standard fare of fine Southern regional art and antiques.

The Simon Willard tall case clock with Roxbury case is notable for its Isaiah Thomas engraved and printed label, retained inside the waist door, and its original French-style feet. Purchased by Connor out of a Middle Tennessee estate in the 1960s, it is the first time the clock has ever been on the auction market. It is estimated at $35,000-$45,000. Also originating from the Boston area is an Impressionist oil on canvas painting of a young brunette with enigmatic smile, peering out from behind black lace draperies. The work is by Philip Leslie Hale (1865-1931), who studied and later taught at the Boston Museum School and wrote several books on art. The painting is estimated at $25,000-$35,000.

The Connor estate also includes a collection of New England furniture, early Worcester (Dr. Wall period) porcelain, Chinese Export porcelain, 17th and 18th century brass candlesticks, English and American sterling silver hollowware and flatware, and American coin silver from New Orleans, Mobile and Tennessee.

Also expected to draw attention is a 17th century portrait of Sir Willoughby Aston by John Michael Wright (British, 1617-1694), formerly in the collection of the Dulin family, whose collection later formed the basis for the Knoxville Museum of Art. There is also also an early 19th century charcoal portrait, possibly an early image of President James K. Polk, attributed to artist Charles Burton, and a rare family trio of portraits depicting William Spencer Hungerford, his wife, Louisa, and their daughter Sarah, who resided in Litchfield and Hartford, Conn., in the early 19th century.

Other American art highlights include a canine portrait titled Champion Jersey JoJo by Frank Leonard Stick (1884-1966), a seascape by Prosper Louis Senat (1852-1925), a view of the Grand Canal in Venice by Warren Sheppard (1858-1937), an abstract floral by Mizue Sawano (Japanese, b. 1941), a Lucite sculpture Lovers by Fred Hart (1943-1999), outsider artworks by Howard Finster (1916-2001) and Sibyl Gibson (Alabama, 1908-1995), and landscapes by William McKendree Snyder (Indiana, 1848-1930), Louis E. Jones (Tennessee, 1878-1958) and Harry D. Fluhart Williams (1861-1938). European works include a still life with lilacs by Raoul Maucherat De Longpre (French, 1859-1911), a Parisian street scene by Edouard Cortes (1882-1969), two pastoral landscapes by Anthony Oberman (Dutch, 1781-1845), a horse portrait by George Paice (British, 1854-1925), a large scale depiction of The Dice Players after Murillo, an oversized landscape with cattle by Jean Aime St. Cyr-Girier (French, 1837-1912), and four Erte bronze sculptures. Prints include an Andy Warhol signed Colorado State University screenprint and two Leroy Neiman signed serigraphs, F.X. McCrory’s Bar and Lake Placid, 1980.

A collection of Native American pottery and utilitarian artifacts being deaccessioned by an East Tennessee institution is featured in this auction, along with a large San Ildefonso blackware jar by Maria and Santana Martinez; Pima, Apache and Papago baskets, and Navajo rugs acquired in the Southwest in the 1930s.

Several of the furniture highlights come from the Connor collection, including a Southern Federal inlaid cherry sideboard attributed to Western Virginia or Eastern Kentucky, an early Southern Chippendale chest with prospect door and documentation label from the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, a Federal inlaid card table attributed to New Hampshire, a Philadelphia Chippendale card table, a diminutive Queen Anne tea table from possibly Rhode Island, and a pair of Federal tiger maple canopy beds. There is also a vine-inlaid Tennessee corner cupboard and a rare hunt table having the height of a huntboard but the width of a small worktand, both in desirable old surfaces.

Adding an extra sparkle to this auction is an especially strong selection of jewelry. Several of the expected top sellers are rings, including a 3.04-carat brilliant diamond ring; an Art Deco diamond, platinum and sapphire ring; an Art Deco platinum, diamond and onyx stickpin; and an antique diamond brooch/pendant decorated with an image of the Virgin Mary. A silver and tortoiseshell necklace designed as two hands by William Spratling and a silver necklace by Frederick W. Davis are featured, along with a vintage Movado 14K white gold diamond and sapphire wristwatch, and vintage costume jewelry.

Leading the silver category is an ivory elephant tusk tankard decorated with Gorham silver mounts including a figural elephant head handle. There is also a large Art Nouveau sterling loving cup weighing 70 ounces troy, a George III sterling tankard with engraved coat of arms, a Tiffany Art Nouveau book cover, a 120-piece set of Reed & Barton Francis I flatware, a set of Tiffany “Clinton” flatware, and two coin silver spoons by early 19th century New Orleans silversmith Anthony Rasch, along with other assorted English and American sterling silver and coin silver.

The historical category includes several Civil War photographs and archives including a Pennsylvania soldier’s letters graphically detailing the Battle of Antietam; a Matthew Brady portrait of Thomas Terry of the 117th Ohio; a daguerreotype of a Mexican War soldier; documents signed by Sam Houston, James K. Polk and John Sevier, and ephemera related to the Titanic and Buffalo Bill.

Other interesting lots include a collection of early colored glass Christmas globes; several folk art walking sticks; dolls; Southern pottery including a collection of miniature whiskey jugs; Southern quilts; an Alabama sampler; rare books, 164 pieces of Herend porcelain in the Queen Victoria pattern, and a number of Asian antiques including Chinese porcelain, Imari, ivory and jade.

The auction will take place at the company’s gallery in the Cherokee Mills Building, 2240 Sutherland Ave. in Knoxville, on Saturday, May 18, at 9:30 a.m. Online, absentee and phone bids will also be accepted. The catalog for the auction, with price estimates, photos, and descriptions for items in the order in which they will be sold can be viewed online at www.caseantiques.com. For more information, call the gallery in Knoxville at (865) 558-3033 or the company’s Nashville office at 615-812-6096 or email info@caseantiques.com.

To view the fully illustrated catalog and sign up to bid absentee or live via the Internet, visit www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

A Simon Willard tall case clock with original Isaiah Thomas paper label inside the waist door is estimated at $35,000-45,000. Case Antiques image.

A Nashville estate yielded this painting of a young woman behind black lace curtains by Boston Impressionist Philip Leslie Hale, est. $25,000-$35,000. Case Antiques image.

The auction features a strong selection of jewelry including this 3.04-carat brilliant diamond ring, est. $25,000-$35,000. Case Antiques image.

French artist Raoul De Longpre is known for his lush floral still life paintings. This one is estimated at $4,000-$6,000. Case Antiques image.

The auction features a number of pieces of New England furniture from the Margaret Wemyss Connor estate including this diminutive drop-leaf Queen Anne tea table, est. $2,000-2,500. Case Antiques image.

Keen interest shown in Calif. artists at John Moran auction

The gorgeous watercolor 'Sunday Morning, Moorea' by Millard Sheets brought $54,000 at the block, setting a new auction record for Sheets’ work (estimate: $20,000 - $25,000). John Moran Auctioneers image.

PASADENA, Calif. – Bidders seeking more affordable, smaller works by classic California and American artists at John Moran Auctioneers’ April 23 auction may have been surprised to find that the normally approachable price points for such works were rather elevated. LiveAuctioneers.com provided Internet live bidding.

Paintings estimated to bring between $1,000 and $20,000 consistently sold near or above the high end of their estimates, while larger works with higher estimates met with more selective buyers. Nevertheless, prices at Moran’s April 23 sale were good overall, and a few records were set. Overall the sale achieved a sell-through rate of 80 percent, with 550 bidders participating.

Perhaps most notably, a large watercolor by Millard Sheets, originally estimated to bring between $20,000 and $25,000, achieved the artist’s world record, selling for $54,000 (all prices include 20 percent or 22.5 percent buyer’s premium). Executed in the later part of Sheets’ career, using transparent but rich jewel tones that evoke light filtering through stained glass, Sunday Morning, Moorea depicts a group of women in their Sunday best outside a chapel.

Moran’s also achieved records for works by Arthur J. Stephens and Cornelis Botke. The Stephens, a charming cityscape titled Villa Riviera, shows a view of historic downtown Long Beach, the artist’s hometown. Facing intense competition from prospective buyers on the floor, a phone bidder won the painting for $2,280 (estimate: $800 – $1,200). The Botke, a superb etching titled Mount Teewinot, Grand Tetons, realized $4,500, which is the highest price achieved for the artist in that medium.

Colin Campbell Cooper’s painting of the San Francisco Palace of Fine Arts and reflecting pool was another runaway highlight. One of a series of studies Cooper made of the Palace of Fine Arts under different lighting conditions, this work was completed shortly after construction on the Palace was completed in 1915. The structure was built to house artworks submitted to the Panama Pacific International Exposition, and Cooper coincidentally won the gold medal in the category of oil paintings and the silver for a watercolor during the exposition. Its location hitherto unknown, this particular work resurfaced as a part of the aforementioned series when it was brought to Moran’s by a private collector. Assigned a conservative estimate of $15,000 – $25,000, it achieved a price of $90,000, with every available phone agent bidding.

Other works by familiar names in California plein air painting—Maurice Braun, Edgar Alwin Payne and Clarence Hinkle (all of whom also submitted works to the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition—also did very well at the block. Early in the sale, a small landscape of yellow flowers in a hilly California landscape by Braun brought $6,737.50, well above the estimate of $3,000 – $5,000. Payne’s Sycamores Near Santa Paula, an excellent example of the artist’s mastery of deep-set compositions, found a buyer at $39,000 (estimate: $20,000 – $30,000). Hinkle’s Clam Hunters – Laguna, Low Tide received a good deal of interest prior to the sale date, and a number of phone lines were already reserved shortly after catalog was published. While originally estimated to bring $1,000 – $2,000, this painting went to an absentee bidder for $4,200.

Select works by New York artists also brought excellent prices. Ukrainian-born Simka Simkhovitch’s work The Ringmaster, dated 1929, five years after the artist’s immigration to the United States, is an interesting example of his thoughtful composition and the ethereal palette he favored after his arrival in this country. The estimate of $4,000 – $6,000 was handily outstripped within a few short seconds, the selling price landing at $11,637.50. Max Arthur Cohn’s charming New York Street Scene quietly gained attention prior to the sale date, shooting to a selling price of $4,500 after intense competition between phone bidders (estimate: $2,000 to $3,000). A striking terra-cotta sculpture of the head of a young African American woman by celebrated Harlem Renaissance artist William Ellsworth Artis was originally expected to bring $15,000 – $25,000 at the block, but sold for $33,000, another world auction record for Moran’s.

Additional highlights include:

The frenzied Moulin Rouge, a 1924 watercolor by Frans Masereel, found a European buyer at $23,275 after a well-fought battle between phone, Internet and multiple absentee bidders (estimate: $1,500 – $2,500).
A large, unframed oil of Taos Canyon in winter by Ernest Leonard Blumenschein exceeded expectations with a final price tag of $12,000, above the estimate of $6,000 – $8,000.
Stephen Seymour Thomas’s charming composition titled The Old Dove Cote, featuring a figure before a ramshackle dovecote in a verdant, newly sprouted spring landscape was estimated to bring $2,500 – $3,500, but bidding did not top out until $7,200.
Camilla, by Pal Fried, is a playful example of the artist’s figural works portraying beautiful young women and earned $8,575 at the block, more than twice the high estimate of $2,000 – $3,000.

Consignment inquiries are always welcome at John Moran Auctioneers. Interested parties are encouraged to contact John Moran Auctioneers directly at info@johnmoran.com or 626-793-1833. John Moran Auctioneers is currently seeking items for their July 30 Antiques Auction and the Oct. 22 California and American Fine Art Auction.

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

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

The substantial preauction interest in this painting of the San Francisco Palace of Fine Arts by Colin Campbell Cooper, one of a series set at different times of day, resulted in a final selling price of $90,000, well over the estimated $15,000 - $25,000. John Moran Auctioneers image. — The substantial preauction interest in this painting of the San Francisco Palace of Fine Arts by Colin Campbell Cooper, one of a series set at different times of day, resulted in a final selling price of $90,000, well over the estimated $15,000 – $25,000. John Moran Auctioneers image.

This classic Maurice Braun plein air landscape, originally estimated to bring $3,000 - $5,000, found a new home for $6,737.50. John Moran Auctioneers image. — This classic Maurice Braun plein air landscape, originally estimated to bring $3,000 – $5,000, found a new home for $6,737.50. John Moran Auctioneers image.

One in his series of terra-cotta busts of African American youths, this work by William Ellsworth Artis realized a record $33,000 at Moran’s April 23 Fine Art Auction (estimate: $15,000 - $25,000). John Moran Auctioneers image. — One in his series of terra-cotta busts of African American youths, this work by William Ellsworth Artis realized a record $33,000 at Moran’s April 23 Fine Art Auction (estimate: $15,000 – $25,000). John Moran Auctioneers image.

Following heavily competitive bidding, Frans Masereel’s moody and energetic depiction in watercolor of the raucous interior of the Moulin Rouge in Paris earned a price tag of $23,275 (estimate: $1,500 - $2,500). John Moran Auctioneers image. — Following heavily competitive bidding, Frans Masereel’s moody and energetic depiction in watercolor of the raucous interior of the Moulin Rouge in Paris earned a price tag of $23,275 (estimate: $1,500 – $2,500). John Moran Auctioneers image.

A meditative oil-on-canvas rendering of Taos Canyon in winter by New Mexico native Ernest Leonard Blumenschein piqued the interest of multiple bidders. The work brought $12,000 (estimate: $6,000 -$8,000). John Moran Auctioneers image.

Gandhi’s handwritten will and leather sandals up for auction in Britain

Viceroy of India, Lord and Lady Mountbatten with Mahatma Gandhi in 1947. Imperial War Museum photo, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

LONDON (AFP) – A pair of sandals formerly owned by India’s independence hero Mahatma Gandhi is to go under the hammer in Britain later this month.

Auction house Mullock’s said the battered leather shoes, due to be sold on May 21, were expected to fetch up to £15,000 ($23,000, 18,000 euros) despite being “in a bad state.”

The scandals are among the star lots in “one of the largest collections of memorabilia relating to Mahatma Gandhi ever to be offered,” the auction house in Shropshire, central England, said.

The collection also includes Gandhi’s will—written “in a neat secretarial hand” and signed by him in Gujerati—which is expected to sell for up to £40,000, as well as a shawl hand-woven from thread that he spun himself.

Other items up for sale include letters, paintings, prints, audio recordings of Gandhi’s speeches, and a fragment of his blood on a microscope slide.

The auction house said the sandals had come from Gandhi’s home in Juhu, western India, where he lived between 1917 and 1934.

Gandhi’s sandals were an instantly recognizable part of his image along with his glasses, loin-cloth, shawl and staff.

Sandals also feature in a story that is often used to illustrate the independence icon’s personal philosophy.

Running to catch a train, Gandhi supposedly lost one of his sandals. Unableto snatch it from the platform as he sped away on the train, he decided to throw the other one after it so that someone could use them—a classic example of his practical generosity.

A pair of Gandhi’s sandals and also a pocket watch, a bowl and a plate that belonged to him were bought for $1.8 million by an Indian businessman at an auction in New York in 2009.

India has in the past fretted about private auctions of Gandhi’s belongings, saying that they insult the memory of a man who rejected material wealth.

Auctions of his personal items often raise an uproar at home, where many feel the items are part of their cultural legacy.

Known as Mahatma or Great Soul, Mohanchand Karamdas Gandhi spearheaded a nonviolent campaign against the British Raj which finally saw India gain itsfreedom from colonial rule in 1947.

He was shot dead by a Hindu hardliner in New Delhi in 1948.

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Kovels Antiques & Collecting: Week of May 13, 2013

This Speaking Dog bank sold last year for more than pennies at RSL Auctions of Oldwick, N.J. The price was $14,280. It was the rare blue-dress variety.

BEACHWOOD, Ohio – Children’s toys often tell us how times have changed. Canada stopped making pennies last year, so saving money a penny at a time will soon be a problem in Canada. The United States also may stop making pennies, since the cost of the copper in a single coin is more than one cent.

But, ironically, the cost of a 19th-century mechanical bank has gone up. A Speaking Dog bank set a record at $63,250 a few years ago. The girl with the dog on that bank was wearing a blue dress. Most of these banks have a girl with a red dress. The bank was sold at Morphy Auctions in Pennsylvania in 2007, before the economic downturn in 2008. And the record bank had almost perfect paint. But the Speaking Dog bank still is very popular. It sells today for prices that range from $150 for one with worn paint and rust to over $14,500 for an excellent example. But watch out; copies have been made.

The cast-iron mechanical bank was made by the J. & E. Stevens Co. of Cromwell, Conn., in about 1895. Place a penny on the tray in the girl’s hand. When the lever is pushed down, the dog opens its mouth, swallows the penny and wags its tail.

Q: I have an electric clock that pictures the Trylon and Perisphere and the words “New York World’s Fair 1939” in gold on the face. The clock is in the shape of a ship’s wheel and is about 11 inches tall. It was made by Sessions Clock Corp. and keeps perfect time. Does it have any value?

A: The New York World’s Fair opened on April 30, 1939, the 150th anniversary of George Washington’s inauguration as president of the United States. It ran until the end of October that year, reopened in May 1940 and closed on Oct. 27, 1940. Many souvenirs were made for the fair. Items that picture the Trylon and Perisphere are especially wanted by collectors. The three-sided Trylon and spherical Perisphere, symbols of the fair, were temporary structures made of plasterboard over steel frames. Check the website 1939NYWorldsFair.com for more information on the 1939 fair. Value of your clock: about $100.

Q: I inherited an antique Chippendale maple dresser with four drawers. There’s a large tag inside one drawer that’s titled “Florian Papp.” Handwritten information on the card says the dresser is a “genuine antique” made in New England and that it was sold by Florian Papp in 1927. I would like to learn more.

A: Florian Papp (1883-1965) was born in Hungary and immigrated to the United States in about 1900. He worked as a cabinetmaker and furniture restorer before opening a gallery in New York City, where he specialized in selling European antiques. The Florian Papp antiques and art gallery is still in business, now operated by the third generation of the Papp family. It has always been an important gallery, and the provenance on the card is a guarantee that the dresser was made in New England and is not a reproduction.

Q: I found a platter in my mother’s china cupboard that doesn’t match anything else she had, and I have no idea where it came from. The mark on the bottom is a circle with a crown on top. The word “Celebrate” is inside the circle, and “Made in Germany” is written below. Is this platter old and valuable?

A: The mark you describe was used by Geo. Borgfeldt & Co., a New York City importer. The company was in business from 1881 until about 1976. Geo. Borgfeldt & Co. imported china and earthenware, dolls, toys, glassware, novelty goods and other items from Europe and sold them to retailers in the United States. The mark was used beginning in 1936. “Celebrate” is one of the trademarks owned by Borgfeldt. Your platter probably was made in the late 1930s, before the outbreak of World War II. It is difficult to sell a piece that probably was part of a set. Value: about $40.

Q: I have six issues of Ladies’ Home Journal from 1898. They’re in pretty good condition. I was thinking they might be worth something to a collector. What do you think?

A: The Ladies’ Home Journal was first published in 1883. It’s still on newsstands today. Issues as old as yours are especially interesting to collectors because of their old ads and photos. In general, 1898 Ladies’ Home Journals sell online and at shows for $40 to $45 each.

Q: I have a small set of Candlewick glass, but three of them are cloudy. I believe this is from being washed in a dishwasher. Is there any way to make them clear again?

A: Cloudiness is caused by deposits of calcium carbonate left by new phosphate-free dishwasher detergents, especially if they’re used with hard water. Manufacturers removed phosphate from their dishwashing products in 2010, after several states banned the ingredient because it contributes to the growth of algae in the environment. To clear up cloudy glasses, put a cup of white vinegar on the top rack of the dishwasher and run the glasses through the cleaning cycle without detergent. To prevent it from recurring, clean your dishwasher every six months and use less detergent when you run the dishwasher. You also can add a little citric acid to the detergent.

Tip: Never scrub threaded coral beads. The edges of the coral are so sharp they may cut the bead string.

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.

Glass fedora candy container, clear, 4 1/2 x 2 x 4 inches, $25.
Peters & Reed vase, Moss Aztec, Vestal Virgins, 6 3/4 inches, $35.
Still bank, cast iron, child in boat, holding fish, mermaid, gold paint, 4 5/8 x 4 3/8 inches, $210.
Student lamp, brass, green glass shade, etched dragons, 24 inches, $235.
Roseville vase, Iris pattern, pink, handles, 9 x 15 inches, $305.
George Nelson wall clock, “Ball,” birch, brass spokes, red second hand, round, Howard Miller, 13 1/4 inches, $425.
Match holder, shovel and bucket shape, metal, hanging, 9 x 3 inches, $440.
Architectural bracket, eagle, spread wings, giltwood, pinecone finial, serpentine shelf, c. 1885, 18 x 20 inches, pair, $1,600.
Renaissance Revival library table, walnut, marble top, demilune ends, drawer, trestle base, 29 x 53 inches, $1,845.
Sterling silver water pitcher, mermaid, pearls, flowing hair, repousse, Whiting Mfg. Co., c. 1888, 8 5/8 inches, 4,480.

Contemporary, modern and mid-century ceramics made since 1950 are among the hottest collectibles today. Our special report, “Kovels’ Buyers’ Guide to Modern Ceramics: Mid-Century to Contemporary,” identifies important pottery by American and European makers. Includes more than 65 factories and 70 studio artists, each with a mark and dates. Works by major makers, including Claude Conover, Guido Gambone, Lucie Rie, as well as potteries like Gustavsberg, Metlox and Sascha Brastoff, are shown in color photos. Find the “sleepers” at house sales and flea markets. Special Report, 2010, 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches, 64 pp. Available only from Kovels. Order by phone at 800-303-1996; online at Kovels.com; or send $19.95 plus $4.95 postage and handling to Kovels, Box 22900, Beachwood, OH 44122.

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Family album of last czar surfaces in Russian museum

The Romanovs visiting a regiment during World War I. From left to right, Grand Duchess Anastasia, Grand Duchess Olga, Czar Nicholas II, Czarevich Alexei, Grand Duchess Tatiana and Grand Duchess Maria and Kuban Cossacks. Copyright Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.

MOSCOW (AFP) Held a virtual prisoner by the Bolsheviks months before his execution, Russia’s last czar, Nicholas I,I pasted informal snapshots of his family into an album which has now come to light in a Russian provincial museum.

The photographs, most of which have never been seen before, show the last of the Romanov rulers of Russia without pomp and in unguarded moments. Many were taken by Nicholas II himself.

Since the 1920s, the album has been held in the Urals in the local history museum of Zlatoust, a small city in western Russia dominated by foundries.

It is now on show at a museum in Yekaterinburg, formerly Sverdlovsk, where the family was brutishly murdered along with their servants in 1918 in a crime that still raises raw emotions in Russia.

The exhibition marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Romanov dynasty.

Without any gold crests or monograms, the album has simple pages with the photographs posted thematically rather than in chronological order. On the back of the pictures are penciled names.

The exhibition has caused excitement in Russia with national daily Komsomlskaya Pravda serializing the photographs. The album has never previously been shown outside the museum where it is held.

“We don’t know for sure how the album turned up in our museum, but it has been in our holdings since the end of the 1920s. Where it came from though is not recorded,” the deputy head of the history department of the Zlatoust museum, Yury Okuntsov, told AFP by telephone.

“Most likely before that it was in the possession of someone who had something to do with guarding or executing the tsar’s family.”

Zlatoust is around 300 kilometres (186 miles) from Yekaterinburg, where the czar and his family were shot in a cellar.

The album contains just one photograph taken after the tsar’s abdication in 1917.

The others date from 1914, 1915 and 1916 and it seems likely that the tsar compiled the album to pass the time while in exile with his family in Tobolsk in western Siberia between 1917 and 1918.

Nicholas II and his family initially lived in a degree of comfort in a mansion in Tobolsk. But following the Bolshevik revolution in October 1917, conditions worsened and they were held as virtual prisoners.

They were then transferred to Yekaterinburg in late April 1918 ahead of their execution.

“It’s possible that the czar compiled this album after he arrived in exile” in Tobolsk, Okuntsov said.

“It seems likely that in 1916 he would not have time for this: he was almost constantly at the general headquarters of the armed forces. But then he found himself with nothing to do and got to work on the album in Tobolsk, this is possible.”

Okuntsov said he first came across the album in the museum’s archives in the 1980s when it would have been unthinkable to exhibit the photographs.

Since the 1990s, with the wave of interest in the czar’s family, he said he had followed publications but only seen a handful of the photographs replicated elsewhere. When Tsar Nicholas’s diaries were published, he used them to pinpoint the chronology and locations.

“Altogether there are 210 photographs, in good condition. Only one was taken in 1917, where the Duchesses have closely cropped hair” after suffering from illness, said Okuntsov.

The daughters Tatyana and Olga have shaven heads in the photograph taken at Tsarskoye Selo with their father and brother.

These are not formal, technically perfect photographs but appear to have been taken by the czar and his family, who were keen amateur photographers and who look open and relaxed in front of the camera.

In one, Nicholas II jokingly gives his youngest daughter Anastasia a puff on his cigarette holder.

In another, his son Alexei, clad in a stripy bathing suit, stands in a hole on a riverbank as Nicholas II wields a spade in a shabby army uniform.

The most exotic photograph shows Nicholas II and Alexei with an elephant which was taken out of the royal family’s private zoo to swim in a pond during a heat wave—an incident recorded in Nicholas II’s diary.

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Banksy ‘Slave Labour’ up for sale again, this time in UK

Banksy, 'Slave Labour (Bunting Boy),' stencil and spray paint on render with additional Golden Jubilee bunting, 48 x 60 in. Unique street work. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com and Fine Art Auctions Miami.

Banksy's 'Slave Labour (Bunting Boy),' is being offered again in London, say auctioneers. The mural measures 48 by 60 inches. Image courtesy of LiveAucitoneers.com and Fine Art Auctions Miami. — Banksy’s ‘Slave Labour (Bunting Boy),’ is being offered again in London, say auctioneers. The mural measures 48 by 60 inches. Image courtesy of LiveAucitoneers.com and Fine Art Auctions Miami.

LONDON (AFP) – A work by renowned British graffiti artist Banksy that was withdrawn from a controversial U.S. auction is being put up for sale again in London, auctioneers said Saturday.

The mural, called Slave Labour, mysteriously vanished from its original site on a wall in north London in February before appearing on an auction list in Miami later that month.

The work, which shows a boy making Union Jack bunting on a sewing machine and is an apparent comment on sweat-shop labor, was pulled from sale at the last minute, apparently after pressure by campaigners who wanted it returned to its original home.

The piece had been expected to fetch up to £450,000 ($691,000, 532,000 euros).

The work had first appeared in May last year on the wall of an outlet of thrift store Poundland in the Wood Green district of Haringey shortly before the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

The piece is now set go on sale at the London Film Museum in London’s Covent Garden on June 2, auctioneers The Sincura Group said in a statement.

Sincura said that the mural has “been sensitively restored under a cloak of secrecy” and will be “the centerpiece” of the group’s latest private art exhibition alongside pieces by Damien Hirst, Andy Warhol, Mario Testino and Russell Young.

But Alan Strickland, a councilor for Wood Green who has spearheaded the “Bring Back Banksy” campaign since the piece was removed from its original site, said he would fight to prevent the sale going ahead.

“We feel very strongly that this piece was given freely by Banksy to our area, it belongs to the community and it should be returned to Wood Green,” said Strickland.

“The sale shows complete disregard for the strength of public feeling.

“We were delighted to stop the sale in Miami and we are determined to campaign hard to stop this sale.

“News that the piece is being sold at an exclusive VIP reception is particularly galling for residents who previously enjoyed the artwork for free on a daily basis.”

Strickland said the successful sale of the work would set a dangerous precedent for other pieces of street art in public view.

“People from around the world have got in touch with us about this,” Strickland told AFP. “They are watching this because they know the possible consequences for street art where they live if this sale takes place.

“If it goes ahead every piece of street art will have its price.”

Keith Flett, secretary of the Haringey Trades Union Congress (TUC), said: “The Slave Labour Banksy belongs to the people of Haringey not to a wealthy private client.

“We want the sale stopped and the Banksy back where it belongs in London N22.”

Sincura’s director Tony Baxter said his group does “not condone any acts of wanton vandalism or other illegal activity” and said that they were “entirely satisfied that the mural was legally salvaged.”

He said the current owners of the work preferred to remain anonymous “due to unnecessary and disproportionate criticism,” adding that the piece was now being represented by a group called Bankrobber.

There was suspicion that the mural had been stolen when it first disappeared in February but London’s Metropolitan Police said there were “no reports of any theft.”

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Collector remains loyal to locally made Parker pens

Four vintage Parker fountain pens, all with 18K gold nibs. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Susanin's Auctions.

MILTON, Wis. (AP) – Dave Nelson always carries a Jotter Parker Pen with him at work.

Its ballpoint nib is durable, and he likes the iconic clip and streamlined design.

“I appreciate how it writes,” he said.

In fact, Nelson appreciates just about everything about Parker Pens, The Janesville Gazette reported.

The 48-year-old Milton man has acquired 3,000 pens and accessories over the past two decades. Of those, about 95 percent are Parker Pens, which he said are probably the most highly collectible pens in the world.

Still, Nelson, who is an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, said he only has 10 percent of the pen varieties manufactured at Parker Pen in Janesville, Wis., between 1888 and 1999.

Initially a toy collector, Nelson was at an auction 21 years ago when he bought a box of old toys. Inside were 20 Parker Pens. After calling a local pen collector and asking questions, Nelson decided to keep the pens.

“I just knew they had to be worth something,” he recalled.

But the value of the pens is only part of their appeal for Nelson, who is intrigued by the ingenuity behind them.

“To me, it’s the uniqueness of the designs and how George Parker did what he did,” Nelson said.

He spoke as he ran the tip of his index finger over a pattern of closely spaced parallel lines with regularly spaced circular indentations in the silver stainless steel 75 series “teardrop” pen.

Nelson admires the inventive design behind Parker’s Sonnet Sterling Silver Cisele ballpoint pen.

Its sterling silver was finely chiseled with a crosshatch pattern that received a touch of black lacquer in the grooves and was accented with a gold-plated trim and a top that twists to expose the point, he said.

“It was a heck of a process,” Nelson said.

Nelson, who also does pen appraisals, ships pens all over the world and just mailed a couple old pencils to Russia.

“I have a list of customers. So if I get something unique, I’ll call them,” he said.

He even sold some items last year to the Parker Pen family.

“They bought a Parker Sonnet set that included a fountain pen and a ball point pen,” he said.

Scratches and marks on a pen can drop its value from $100 to $10, Nelson said.

Nelson owns pens that range in value from $2 to $2,000.

He said his most valuable and favorite pen is a Parker 75 series Presidential solid gold pen he stores in a lock box.

Among some of Nelson’s interesting pens are:

– A 1965 Jotter Parker pen and pencil set with a gold Parker logo that rests in red silk lining of a black case given to Nelson by an Edgerton woman who served in the Wisconsin Legislature.

– A Parker Pen leather attaché case he bought from a Janesville Parker Pen salesman.

– End-of-day pens that had color pallets not found in manufactured pens that resulted from switching out the colors of paint at the end of the manufacturing day.

– A 1909 filigree solid gold fountain pen in its original green velvet case.

In addition to buying and selling pens at shows, Nelson has bought and sold pens as far away as Chicago, on eBay and through word of mouth.

“I’ve probably sold over 2,000 pens on the Internet over the past 12 to 13 years,” he said.

___

Information from: The Janesville Gazette, http://www.gazetteextra.com

AP-WF-05-09-13 1732GMT

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Chihuly glass to be centerpiece of Ind. museum show

Dale Chilhuly's 'Blue Herons.' Image by T. Rishel, courtesy of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) – The Fort Wayne Museum of Art will bring back the work of renowned studio glass artist Dale Chihuly for a show running June 29-Sept. 29.

“Chihuly: Secret Garden” is actually one of three glass shows that will run concurrently at the museum. The others are “The Chihuly Effect: Pushing the Boundaries of Studio Glass” and “Habatat Presents: 41st International Glass Invitational.”

“This is hot new stuff,” said Charles A. Shepard III, the museum’s executive director. “I’m very excited about the future of studio glass. It really is taking off.”

It’s been more than 11 years since the first Chihuly show at the FWMoA. His glass pieces are well known throughout the world, thanks in part to a piece that was a fixture on the set of the TV show Frasier. The spectacular glass ceiling of the Bellagio Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas is another well-known Chihuly installation.

Around 50 Chihuly pieces are coming to the FWMoA on loan from the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, Ohio, The News-Sentinel reported. “They own an incredible collection of Chihuly,” Shepard said, much of which is in storage. The pieces that are out are placed within the conservatory gardens.

Shepard doesn’t intend to try to re-create a garden with potted plants in the FWMoA. For one thing, due to insurance restrictions he can’t have plants being moved around the glass pieces. And aesthetically, he thinks any attempt at creating a real garden “is going to read like a fake garden.”

So he will use theatrical screens and fabrics to create the illusion of a garden. “I don’t really want to pretend to be a literal garden, I’d rather be more of a metaphysical garden,” he said.

Shepard said he can only plan out the exhibit to a certain extent, and then will have to wait for the pieces to arrive. Then FWMoA employees will have 72 hours to prepare the exhibit. Shepard predicts they will “live, eat and sleep in the gallery.”

The pieces in this Chihuly exhibit will be quite different from what was in the last one, which featured chandeliers and smaller wall pieces, Shepard said. This exhibit will focus on simpler shapes—tall, slender cylindrical pieces, round orbs, big open vases. “It’s going to be Chihuly from a different angle,” Shepard said.

The two other glass shows will complement the Chihuly exhibit. “Habatat Presents: 41st International Glass Invitational” features 26 of the best studio glass artists in the world. “The Chihuly Effect: Pushing the Boundaries of Studio Glass” looks at how Chihuly’s success paved the way for other studio glass artists to push the boundaries.

“Most of the sculpture being done today, I feel like I’ve seen it before,” Shepard said. “This glass stuff, it’s fresh.”

Chihuly’s name recognition will bring people in, Shepard said, but the other artists’ work is impressive, too—such as Stan Libensky’s work in the International show, which Shepard described as geometric, big and beautiful, with dense colors.

Although glass is fragile, Shepard said technicians have told him “it’s not any worse than handling anything else.” And yes, it does need to be dusted. The pieces come with instructions on how to clean and dust them.

Shepard said about 160 pieces will be in the three shows.

___

Information from: The News-Sentinel, http://www.news-sentinel.com/ns

AP-WF-05-10-13 1434GMT

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2nd man found guilty in Mich. antiques dealer’s slaying

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) – A jury has found a second man guilty in the robbery and slaying of a 74-year-old Kalamazoo antiques dealer.

A Kalamazoo County jury on Friday delivered its verdict against 52-year-old John Aguilar who was charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery and home invasion.

Robert Medema was beaten to death with a baseball bat in August in his home.

A judge sentenced 21-year-old Antonio Livingston in March to life in prison for his role in the slaying. Prosecutors have said Livingston was present when Aguilar beat Medema to death.

Aguilar will be sentenced June 10. He also faces life in prison without parole.

AP-WF-05-10-13 2142GMT

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