January 6, 2015 - Auction Central News

Purple Heart awarded to war hero earns $5,100 at Mohawk Arms

Purple Heart awarded to Cpl. Joseph E. Oleskiewicz – a member of the ‘Filthy Thirteen’ in World War II. Price realized: $5,100. Mohawk Arms Inc. image

BOUCKVILLE, N.Y. – The Purple Heart awarded to U.S. Cpl. Joseph E. Oleskiewicz, a member of the “Filthy Thirteen,” the 1st Demolition Section of the Regimental Headquarters Company, 101st Airborne Division, that dropped into Normandy on June 6, 1944 in World War II, sold for $5,100 at Mohawk Arms’ Auction #72, a live and Internet auction that ended Dec. 5-6.

The ‘Filthy Thirteen” had orders to secure or destroy bridges over the Douve River in France. About half of the men in the unit were killed, wounded or captured during the mission. Oleskiewicz survived, but was killed in battle just a few months later, in September 1944, during Operation Market Garden. He appeared in a Stars and Stripes magazine photo taken on the night of June 5, 1944.

The auction, featuring 1,900 lots of military items from multiple wars and generations, was held in Mohawk Arms’ Bouckville, N.Y., as well as online.

LiveAuctioneers.com provided Intenet live bidding services.

The auction was packed with awards and medals, ethnographic weapons, bayonets and swords, Third Reich and other German memorabilia, reference books, American Civil War and Revolutionary War canteens, Imperial German helmets, British Napoleonic-era spontoons, American World War I uniforms, vintage firearms, Civil War leather goods, photos, letters, Nazi peaked caps and more.

Overall, the auction was a success, but not without some surprises.

“Areas I thought would do well fell flat, while some others far exceeded our expectations,” said Ray Zyla of Mohawk Arms Inc. “Categories that were somewhat disappointing included German steel helmets and Civil War swords and equipment, although Confederate canteens did do well and were the exception.”

Categories that held their own or surpassed expectations, according to Zyla, included swords (German Imperial, Third Reich and Samurai especially), Civil War handguns and revolvers, American combat knives, German Third Reich daggers, reference books and medals and badges. He added, “World War I items are coming on strong, but just in interest, not prices.”

The following are additional highlights from the auction. All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium, which ranged from between 16 to 22 percent, depending on how the bid was placed.

The top lot of the auction was a German Luftwaffe silver pokal, a silver footed cup, awarded to the Nazi flying ace Karl Nordmann, showing eagles in combat and a 1939 Iron Cross. The pokal brought $9,912. Also, a German World War II convex Maltese Cross award, with swords and an eagle/cutout swastika on the swords between the arms, with pin, fetched $1,068.

A cache of eight books from Adolf Hitler’s personal library, seized by an American major with the 713th MP Battalion and his French counterpart and containing Hitler’s hand-penciled notes and directives, were sold as single lots. An example, Das Saarbuch by Friedrich Heiss, sailed past its estimate of $450 to realize $2,200. Also, two items from Hitler’s mistress Eva Braun’s dressing table – a crystal square decanter and matching powder jar – went for $2,135.

A U.S. World War II 1st Ranger Battalion special combat knife with a 9¼-inch Bowie blade and engraved “Old Faithful” and “Australia – Aug. 20, 1943,” changed hands for $1,220. Also, a U.S. World War I 50th Aero Squadron camouflage helmet, with a painted insignia of the Third Army, the 7th Corps and the 50th Aero Squadron (a Dutch girl carrying a stick) garnered $1,525.

A Confederate wood drum canteen with iron bands and strap loops of irregular workmanship but in very good-plus condition, easily topped its estimate of $1,200 by hitting $4,200, while a Colt Army M1860 percussion revolver, a four-screw type (to accommodate a shoulder stock), with a worn but visible cylinder scene and matching numbers (“17452”), hit the mark at $1,708.

A German World War II TN (Technical Corps) officer’s dress dagger, with nickeled crossguard bearing a relief eagle/swastika/gear wheel and an 11-inch blade, in excellent condition, rose to $5,050; and a German World War II “Prinz Eugen” model dress sword (favored by Waffen-SS officers), bearing a single back strap, eagle/swastika pommel and relief oak leaves, made $1,037.

A German World War II Gau Sudetenland commemorative badge, with large detailed eagle and swastika mounted within an aged, blackened, open silver oak leaf wreath bearing the date (1938) commanded $5,100, while a rare German World War II army parachutist’s badge, unmarked but resembling a Juncker construction, with an eagle/swastika and open oak leaf wreath, hit $1,586.

A Prussian 6th Kurassier Regiment EM helmet, having a Tombak body with German silver visor trim and a matching “football” base with a short brass spike and convex gilt brass chin scales, went for $3,840. Also, an Imperial German 89th Regiment, 2nd Battalion, Mecklenburg Grenadier one-year volunteer helmet with brown leather sweatband and “split” tan silk liner, made $3,120.

Rounding out just some of the auction’s major highlights, a wooden suitcase containing 20 Japanese model warships from around World War II, made by the Comets Metal Co., Richmond Hill, N.Y., each one mounted on a board, brought $793; and an early German World War II Army M1918 “cutout” helmet with painted eagle-swastika and a Prussian shield, hit $2,640.

For more information contact Mohawk Arms Inc. at 315-893-7888 or email Mohawk@MilitaryRelics.com.

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U.S. World War II 1st Ranger Battalion special combat knife with a 9¼-inch Bowie blade ($1,220). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Well-made Confederate wood drum canteen with iron bands and strap loops ($4,200). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Luftwaffe silver pokal, or silver footed chalice, awarded to the Nazi flying ace Karl Nordmann ($9,912). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Two items from Hitler’s mistress Eva Braun’s dressing table: a crystal square decanter and matching powder jar ($2,135). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Colt Army M1860 percussion revolver, a four-screw type to accommodate a shoulder stock ($1,708). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Imperial German 89th Regiment, 2nd Battalion, Mecklenburg Grenadier one-year volunteer helmet ($3,120). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Wooden case containing 20 Japanese model ships from around World War II, made by the Comets Metal Co. ($793). Mohawk Arms Inc. image

Paris Louvre retains title as world’s most-visited museum

Circa-190 B.C. (?) parian marble sculpture known as 'La Victoire de Samothrace' or 'Winged Nike of Samothrace.' Discovered in the Greek island of Samothrace in 1863. From the Louvre Collection. 2007 photo by Marie-Lan Nguyen.

PARIS (AFP) – The famous Louvre in France received 9.3 million visitors last year, retaining its title as the most-visited museum in the world, the Paris attraction announced Tuesday.

Foreign visitors represented 70 percent of ticket sales, with Americans, Chinese, Italians, British and Brazilians visiting in strong numbers over 2014, the Louvre said in a statement.

The total number of tourists who came in to admire works of art and antiquities including Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, was up 100,000 on 2013.

Another star attraction at the arts and antiquities museum in the heart of Paris was the ancient Greek marble sculpture Winged Victory of Samothrace, which was back on display after restoration.

More than half of all visitors to the Louvre last year were under 30, according to the museum.

Boston museum opens time capsule from 1795

A statue of Samuel Adams stands in front of historic Faneuil Hall in Boston. Adams was governor of Massachusetts when he and Paul Revere placed the time capsule in the cornerstone of the statehouse in 1795. Image by IlliniGradResearch. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 Generic license.

NEW YORK (AFP) – It dates back to 1795, and has been dubbed the oldest time capsule in America. On Tuesday, a museum in Boston reopened the relic, last seen over a century and a half ago.

The Museum of Fine Arts opened the time capsule at a press conference. It was originally placed under the State House cornerstone in 1795 by then Gov. Samuel Adams, one of the founding fathers of the United States, and American Revolution patriot Paul Revere.

It was a custom of the time thought to bring good luck.

The capsule, together with miscellaneous coins and newspapers, was removed last month, weighed and x-rayed, officials said.

It last had been unearthed in 1855, when its contents were documented and cleaned.

Additional items were added before it was plastered into the underside of a massive granite cornerstone.

The museum says the capsule – a bit smaller than a cigar box – weighs 10 pounds and measures 5.5 inches by 7.5 inches by 1.5 inches.

It contains silver and copper coins dating from 1652 and 1855, an engraved silver plate, a copper medal depicting George Washington, newspapers, cards, the seal of the commonwealth and a title page from the Massachusetts colony records.

A time capsule found in the cornerstone of the Massachusetts Statehouse and undergoing examination and conservation work at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Photograph © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

An x-ray showing the contents of a time capsule found in the cornerstone of the Massachusetts Statehouse and undergoing examination and conservation work at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Photograph © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Jeffrey S. Evans seeking info on shoplifter at Nov. 14 preview

Person of interest seen in video footage taken at the time three pieces were shoplifted from Jeffrey S. Evans' gallery. Image provided by Jeffrey S. Evans

MT. CRAWFORD, Va. – Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates has notified Auction Central News of a theft that occurred during their November 14, 2014 preview. Proprietor Jeffrey Evans is asking the public’s help in identifying a person of interest captured by the company’s security camera. Additionally, Evans hopes anyone who may have information regarding the whereabouts of the stolen goods will contact authorities currently investigating the case.

The three items that were stolen were supposed to have been auctioned in Evans’ November 15 Americana sale. They include:

1. a colorless, blown-molded glass peg lamp (2 7/8 inches in diameter) of paneled globular form with period two-tube whale oil burner, fitted in a metal socket with horizontal and vertical sticks (Lot 365);

2. a carved treen miniature/individual butter print (approximately 4 inches long) featuring a circular-form six-petal florette pattern stamp and a handle with ribbed wedge-form end (part of Lot 806);

3. a diminutive wrought-iron hearth trivet (2 7/8 inches high, 14 inches long) with circular frame enclosing three tines tapered to a point and handle terminating in a rounded end with hanging hole, raised on three straight legs (part of Lot 391).

The alleged thief is seen in video footage lifting the butter print from a showcase after distracting the associate who was assisting him. He is a white male with sandy hair, medium build, approximately 6 feet tall and probably in his late 50s/early 60s.

If the man captured on camera was, indeed, the shoplifter, Evans says he “…must have been experienced, as he stole the print and lamp from a showcase while in the presence of a staff member.” Evans added, “He did not register for the auction, thus avoiding the gallery’s office cameras, but [based on] a conversation with another auction previewer, it is possible that he is from the Columbia, Maryland area.”

Anyone who recognizes the suspect or may have seen any of the stolen items is asked to contact Rockingham County Deputy Ritchie at 540-578-1165 (Case #2014-090876) or Jeffrey S. Evans at 540-434-3939.

Peg lamp. Image provided by Jeffrey S. Evans

Hearth trivet. Image provided by Jeffrey S. Evans

Butter print. Image provided by Jeffrey S. Evans

Tupelo plans events to celebrate Elvis’ 80th birthday

A movie still from Elvis Presley's third film, 'Jailhouse Rock.' (1957). Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

TUPELO, Miss. (AP) – On Thursday, Tupelo launches a birthday celebration fit for the king of rock ’n’ roll.

Seven organizations will participate in a citywide event schedule, culminating with an Elvis Presley-themed concert from the North Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and Richard Marx.

“It was time to step up our game as it relates to Tupelo and Elvis’ birthday,” said Tupelo Convention and Visitors Bureau executive director Neal McCoy.

“We wanted to see what we could involve and incorporate from our community to help celebrate Elvis’ birthday. We feel it’s a pretty good reflection of what our community has to offer, and hopefully things Elvis would be proud of today,” McCoy told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.

The Elvis Presley Birthplace will host their annual birthday party Thursday for the late musician, who would have been 80 this year. Events continue throughout the day with a sing-along version of the film Jailhouse Rock at Link Centre and a theatrical production, aptly named Graceland at Tupelo Community Theatre’s Off Broadway location.

“In years that end in five or zero, we always get bigger crowds,” said CVB spokeswoman Jennie Bradford Curlee. “We wanted to build in more things for people to see and experience around town.”

The schedule for Friday is packed, starting with an exhibit at CVB, topped off with free banana pudding.

“Elvis’ first appearance was on WELO on Mississippi Slim’s radio show, broadcast from the courthouse,” McCoy said. “So, we’re going to do a Mississippi Slim exhibit here in the lobby, with the local food trucks here and free banana pudding.”

In addition, the Gumtree Museum will be hosting a party with the opening of an Elvis art exhibit from Betty Harper, an officially licensed Graceland artist and music from the Memphis Jones Trio.

Friday concerts will also take place at the birthplace with Elvis tribute artist David Lee and special guest Tara Kay as Reba McEntire, and at the BancorpSouth Arena with Eric Church and the Outsiders.

“It’s good to have so many choices,” McCoy said. “We’re hoping these become annual-type events for the city. It’s a great way to come out of the hibernation of the holidays and get into the ebb and flow of the arts in our community.”

McCoy plans to make Tupelo the place to be for the birthday event.

“So much of Elvis is traced back to Tupelo. It’s a singular event – his birth,” he said. “It’s a great draw for us and we wouldn’t have another chance to do something really big for the birthday until 2020, for the 85th, so we didn’t want this to get away from us. We hope this will invite people to always want to be in town for the birthday.”

Presley was born in Tupelo on Jan. 8, 1935, and moved to Memphis with his parents at age 13. He was 42 when he died Aug. 16, 1977, in Memphis.

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Information from: Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, http://djournal.com

AP-WF-01-05-15 1001GMT

Marble museum to stay open after fundraising effort

Marble busts of U.S. presidents at the Vermont Marble Museum. Image by Kremerbi. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.

PROCTOR, Vt. (AP) – The Vermont Marble Museum in Proctor is going to continue to operate.

There had been concern the museum that traces the history and use of marble in the state would close.

The Preservation Trust of Vermont says it has raised $700,000 to purchase the museum building and its contents.

The museum celebrates the Vermont Marble Co., a global firm that in its prime more than a century ago employed thousands of people. It was largest marble works in the world.

Preservation Trust Executive Director Paul Bruhn says it’s an “important legacy of Vermont.”

In 2012 the owners of the museum announced they would sell the building and contents.

Bruhn tells Vermont Public Radio a newly formed local nonprofit will operate the museum and eventually take ownership of the facility.

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Information from: WVPS-FM, http://www.vpr.net

AP-WF-01-05-15 1457GMT

Smithsonian galleries place Asian art treasures online

Chinese bronze gui ritual vessel on a pedestal, used as a container for grain. Western Zhou Dynasty, circa 1000 BC. From the Freer and Sackler Galleries of Washington D.C. Image by Pericles of Athens. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license.

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Artistic treasures from Asia’s past have found a place online after the Freer and Sackler galleries in Washington released its entire 40,000-piece collection on the Internet.

The museum is the first in the Smithsonian network to digitize and release its entire collection, which also includes a large number of works by the American painter James Whistler.

Dubbed “Open F/S,” the project enables “anyone to explore and create with the collections, from anywhere in the world,” the galleries said in a statement.

Most of the works have never been seen by the public, and more than 90 percent carry no copyright restrictions for noncommercial use, it said.

On the web: open.asia.si.edu

Maine philanthropist’s bronze statue to be restored

Edward Little memorial, circa 1877, Franklin Simmons, sculptor. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

AUBURN, Maine (AP) – Auburn’s statue of Edward Little, one of Maine’s oldest pieces of public artwork, is getting a makeover.

Alan Manoian, the city’s economic development specialist, tells the Sun Journal that more than $17,000 has been raised to return the statue to its original gold-bronze color.

The sculpture was ordered by the city in 1873, cast and sculpted in Rome by Maine native Franklin Simmons, and sent on a ship to New York City. From there, it was sent to Auburn via rail. It was unveiled in 1877.

Little was a local attorney and philanthropist who in 1835 donated the land for the public school, now known as Edward Little High School.

Manoian says the statue has been damaged by the elements but has also been the target of vandals over the years.

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Information from: Sun-Journal, http://www.sunjournal.com

AP-WF-01-05-15 1211GMT

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