ATLANTA – At the start of each month, ACN columnist Ken Hall gathers top auction highlights from around the United States and beyond. Here’s what made headlines since last month’s report:
Gorham silver tea service, $17,000, William Bunch
A modern design Gorham “Circa 70” tea service with ebony handles sold for $17,000 at a catalog sale held Dec. 8 by William Bunch Auctions in Chadds Ford, Pa. Also, a large oil on pastel by the Armenian-American artist Yuroz, titled Supporting Her Dreams, went for $4,000; an oil on canvas of a mother and child by Korean artist Hang Sub Park realized $7,000; a two-piece cherry Dutch cupboard brought $2,200; and a 19th century German bisque head doll with Victorian accessories hit $1,100. Prices are hammer, exclusive of the buyer’s premium.
Howard Christy charcoal, $40,000, Swann Auction
A 1941 charcoal and pastel on board by Howard Chandler Christy, titled I Am an American!, sold for $40,000 at an Illustration Art Auction held Jan. 28 by Swann Auction Galleries in New York City. Also, a 1915 pen, ink and watercolor rendering from Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, by Arthur Rackham, titled Scrooge and the Ghost of Marley, earned $32,500; and the cover art for the April 1962 issue of Show: The Magazine of the Arts, by Charles Addams, titled The Dark Side of ‘Little Annie,’ made $17,500. Prices include a 25 percent buyer’s premium.
Patek Philippe wristwatch, $10,455, Cowan’s Auctions
A Patek Philippe Calatrava wristwatch with a Tiffany & Co. band in 18K yellow gold sold for $10,455 at a fine jewelry and timepieces auction held Dec. 6 by Cowan’s Auctions in Cincinnati. Also, a set of 18K yellow gold parure with pietra dura mosaics hammered for $5,100; a Georgian-era silver and rose cut diamond aigrette and earrings brought $4,800; a Cartier 18K went forr $3,990; and a circa 1971 Rolex GMT Master II wristwatch reached $6,960. Prices include a 17.5 percent buyer’s premium.
Michael Jordan jersey, $80,520, Goldin Auctions
A Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls game-worn road jersey from his final championship season sold for $80,520 at an auction held Jan. 29-Feb. 2 by Goldin Auctions based in Runnemede, N.J. Also, John Havlicek’s personal NBA’s 50 Greatest Players signed lithograph (1/1) realized $74,420; a 2012 Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl championship player’s ring from LaQuan Williams hit $62,220; and a letter written by Lee Harvey Oswald to his mother from the Soviet Union made $51,520. Prices include a 21 percent buyer’s premium.
Pair, English wine glasses, $10,925, Jeffrey S. Evans
A pair of mid-18th century engraved English air-twist wine glasses, engraved with “Success To The Harwich Cap IOS Rowley,” sold for $10,925 at a glass auction held Jan. 29-30 by Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates in Mt. Crawford, Va. Also, an 18th century Russian half-post blown and engraved Imperial glass case bottle, featuring an Imperial Eagle and the cipher for Empress Catherine II, rose to $8,625; and an American brilliant peacock blue free-blown trumpet vase with witch-ball cover gaveled for $3,900. Prices include a 15 percent buyer’s premium.
Chinese white jade bowl, $40,920, Case Antiques Inc.
A Chinese white jade bowl, Ch’ien Lung, sold for $40,920 at a Winter Auction held Jan. 23 by Case Antiques Inc., in Knoxville, Tenn. Also, a Qing white jade Ruyi scepter hammered for $26,040; a large oil on canvas rendering of Mt. LeConte by Charles Krutch climbed to $24,780; an oil on board by Paul Sawyier titled Vale of Cashmere, Prospect Park rose to $28,980; an oil on canvas Paris street scene by French artist Edouard Cortes hit $15,930;and an antique Kentucky cherry sugar desk bureau made $21,830. Prices include the buyer’s premium.
Fortune teller machine, $213,500, Morphy’s
A 1-cent Mlle. Zita fortune teller machine by Roovers Brothers sold for $213,500 at a coin-op and advertising auction held Jan. 30-31 by Morphy Auctions in Las Vegas. Also, a 25-cent Mills Roulette floor model slot machine soared to $158,600; a 1-cent Roovers Puss In Boots fortune teller machine went for $97,600; a 5-cent Watling Cupid counter wheel trade stimulator fetched $79,300; a 1-cent All-American Baseball game rose to $73,200; and a Dr. Swett’s root beer syrup dispenser garnered $18,300. Prices include a 22 percent buyer’s premium.
1929 Steinway grand piano, $25,200, Selkirk Auctioneers
A 1929 Steinway Model B grand piano with a restored ebony case, soundboard and bench, sold for $25,200 at an auction held Jan. 23 by Selkirk Auctioneers & Appraisers in St. Louis. Also, a pair of Charleston Glass decanters with the monogram “T.W.B.” (for Capt. Thomas Wright Bacot, appointed in 1791 as U.S. Postmaster of Charleston by Pres. George Washington) commanded $7,200; and a pair of 1901 $10 Liberty Eagle 22K gold coins, reverse mounted in 14K gold cuff links, hit $6,250. Prices are inclusive of the buyer’s premium.
Chinese Qianlong vase, $625,400, Brunk Auctions
A carved enameled celadon porcelain Chinese Qianliong period (1711-1799) vase, with two panels of famille rose landscapes of Western figures, sold for $625,400 at an auction held Jan. 15-16 by Brunk Auctions in Asheville, N.C. Also, a finely carved hardwood jade-inset Ruyi scepter hammered for $40,120; a painting by Hubert Shuptrine, titled Sharecroppers in Marion, Alabama, also gaveled for $140,120; and a lovely pair of antique Chinese open hardwood armchairs went to a determined bidder for $22,240. Prices include an 18 percent buyer’s premium.
Russ Moffett painting, $14,400, James R. Bakker
A painting by Ross Moffett, titled Fishing Boats, Wellfleet, sold for $14,400 at a Fine Arts Auction held Nov. 28 by James R. Bakker Antiques in Provincetown, Mass. Also, Nancy Whorf’s Going to Bryant’s Again fetched $6,600; Karl Knaths’ Cape Landscape topped out at $5,700; Ted Lindenmuth’s The Fog Hound Harbor went for $2,280; an untitled still life by Charles W. Hawthorne hit $6,000; Henry Hensche’s Provincetown Street Scene made $3,480; and Steve Toomey’s Fishermen went for $5,700. Prices include a 20 percent buyer’s premium.
Paul Frankl table, $7,475, William Jenack
A table crafted by Paul Frankl sold for $4,715 at an auction held Nov. 22 by William Jenack Auction in Chester, N.Y. Also, an ablution bowl from the 12th or 13th century garnered $977; a small bust of Emperor Franz Joseph finished at $575; a scene on the Thames River by Frederick Judd Waugh was sold to an Internet bidder for $4,255; a portrait of a young woman by Raphael Soyer went to a bidder on the phone for $2,185; and a British School painting of a lion, unsigned, changed hands for $1,725. Prices include a 15 percent buyer’s premium.
Navajo chief’s blanket, $90,000, John Moran
A Navajo second phase chief’s blanket sold for $90,000 at an auction held Feb. 23 by John Moran Auctioneers in Monrovia, Calif. Also, a painting by Tucker Smith (b. 1940, Wyoming), titled Gathering the Quarter Circle Five, finished at $26,400; a pair of whimsical relief-decorated porcelain urns by Richard Klemm realized $6,600; a work by Michael Coleman (b. 1946, Utah), titled Omach-Ku-Kyalo, Four Shots, went for $13,200; and a delicate art pottery gravy boat by George E. Orr made $2,160. Prices include a 20 percent buyer’s premium.
Pair of canvasback decoys, $35,650, Guyette & Deeter
A pair of canvasback duck decoys by the Ward Brothers sold for $35,650 at the fourth annual auction held in Charleston, S.C., by Guyette & Deeter Inc. in partnership with the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition. Also, a rare robin snipe by Daniel Lake Leeds hammered for $24,150; a pintail hen by Jeff Brunet changed hands for $15,525, a new world auction record for a Jett Brunet decorative; and a full-size decorative semi-palmated plover by Elmer Crowell topped out at $18,400. Prices include a 15 percent buyer’s premium.
Richard E. Miller oil, $245,000, Keno Auctions
An oil on canvas portrait painting by Richard Edward Miller, (American, 1875-1943), titled Woman at her Vanity with Earring, 36 1/4 inches by 28 1/2 inches, sold for $245,000 at an auction held Jan. 31 by Keno Auctions in New York City. Also, an oil on canvas painting of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart (American, 1755-1828), circa 1795, measuring 28 1/2 inches by 24 3/4 inches, rose to $185,000; and a paint-decorated pine and poplar dome-top box, made circa 1810-1840 in Lancaster, Pa., went for $18,750. Prices are inclusive of the buyer’s premium.
Chauncey B. Ives sculpture, $105,300, Thomaston Place
A marble sculpture by Chauncey Bradley Ives (New York/Connecticut, 1810-1894), titled Undine Rising From the Water, sold for $105,300 at a sale held Feb. 13-14 by Thomaston Place Auction Galleries in Thomaston, Maine. Also, an Indian bronze sculpture from the Choala period (A.D. 880-1279), depicting Parvati, daughter of the Himalayan Mountains, breezed to $45,630; and a colored engraving by John J. Audubon (New York, 1785-1851) titled Fish Hawk, Male, Falco Hallaetus, made $35,100. Prices include a 17 percent buyer’s premium.
Copy of ‘Amazing Fantasy #15,’ $454,100, Heritage Auctions
A copy of Amazing Fantasy #15, the 1962 first appearance of Spider-Man, graded near-mint at 9.4 CGC, sold for $454,100 at a comics auction held Feb. 18 by Heritage Auctions in Dallas. Also, a 1963 copy of Spider-Man #1 soared to $110,537; a copy of Detective Comics #27, the first appearance of “The Batman,” graded 4.5 CBCS, hit $167,300; a near-mint 9.4 CGC copy of The Avengers #1 made $98,587; and John Romita Sr.’s original cover art for The Amazing Spider-Man #62 rose to $179,250. Prices include a 19.5 percent buyer’s premium.