Elusive Kandinsky Painting at Auction, Faked Heisman Trophy, and More Fresh News

Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944), Rigide et courbe, signed with monogram and dated ‘35’ (lower left), oil and sand on canvas, 44 7/9 x 63 7/8 in. (114 x 162.4 cm.). Estimate $18,000,000-$25,000,000. Image courtesy of Christie’s Images Limited 2016
Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944), Rigide et courbe, signed with monogram and dated ‘35’ (lower left), oil and sand on canvas, 44 7/9 x 63 7/8 in. (114 x 162.4 cm.). Estimate $18,000,000-$25,000,000. Image courtesy of Christie’s Images Limited 2016

 

News and updates from around the arts and auction community:

  • The most important Paris-period Kandinsky painting ever to appear on the market will be auctioned by Christie’s on Nov. 16. Its first owner was Solomon R. Guggenheim, who acquired the artwork from the artist himself in 1936. [Read more from The Art Newspaper]
  • Federal prosecutors in Chicago allege that an Arkansas sports memorabilia collector used a phony Heisman Trophy as collateral for a $100,000 loan. They say a faked nameplate was affixed to an awards emcee’s trophy. [Read more from the Associated Press]
  • You hire a moving company to move a priceless antique. They drop it face down onto the street. What sort of compensation are you entitled to? A Texas woman whose movers dropped an antique piano found out. [Read more from NBC5 Dallas Ft. Worth]
  • Leave it to the great minds at MIT and Georgia Tech to figure out a way to read a book without actually opening it. How’d they do that? [Read more from the Associated Press via ABC News]

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US D-Day flag flown to Dutch military museum

The U.S. flag that flew from a landing craft during the D-Day invasion sold for more than a half-million dollars. Heritage Auctions image
The U.S. flag that flew from a landing craft during the D-Day invasion sold for more than a half-million dollars. Heritage Auctions image

 

SOESTERBERG, Netherlands (AP) – An American flag that flew on the stern of the boat that carried the first U.S. troops to Utah Beach on D-Day traveled by Chinook helicopter on Thursday to its new temporary home at the Netherlands’ National Military Museum.

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US government sues Michigan man over stolen lighthouse lenses

Vandals broke into William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse on Belle Isle in July 1980 and stole two of its four from the lantern room. Image by Gth874m. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Vandals broke into William Livingstone Memorial Lighthouse on Belle Isle in July 1980 and stole two of its four lenses from the lantern room. Image by Gth874m. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

 

DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department has sued a hunter of maritime antiques in hopes of recovering a pair of 2-foot-tall glass lenses worth an estimated $600,000 that disappeared decades ago from lighthouses in Michigan and Maine.

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When Forrest Fenn treasure hunters hit a dead end

Don Dickens was convinced he would find the Fenn treasure near the Grand Canon on the Yellowstone. Brocken Inaglory image. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Don Dickens was convinced he would find the Fenn treasure near the Grand Canon of the Yellowstone. Brocken Inaglory image. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

 

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) – Don Dickens reached a peak on The Promontory at Yellowstone National Park, certain he would saunter down a few hundred feet and find the 40-pound chest of treasures that Santa Fe author and artifacts collector Forrest Fenn says he hid six years ago, somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.

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Sioux beaded war shirts lead Allard Auctions’ Best of Santa Fe sale

Late 1800s sinew sewn hide Sioux war shirt with lazy stitched beaded geometrics, arm and shoulder strips and several American flags. Price realized: $27,500 (prices do not include buyer’s primium). Allard Auctions Inc. image
Late 1800s sinew sewn hide Sioux war shirt with lazy stitched beaded geometrics, arm and shoulder strips and several American flags. Price realized: $27,500 (prices do not include buyer’s primium). Allard Auctions Inc. image

 

SANTA FE, N.M. – A pair of Sioux beaded war shirts combined to sell for $50,000 and were the top two lots at Best of Santa Fe, an annual auction hosted by Allard Auctions Inc. of St. Ignatius, Mont. Over 800 lots came up for bid in the Aug. 12-14 sale that grossed just under $500,000.

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Wristwatches, fine jewelry featured in Don Presley auction Oct. 2

Bueche Girod wristwatch of 18K white gold. Estimate: $6,000-$7,000. Don Presley Auction image
Bueche Girod wristwatch of 18K white gold. Estimate: $6,000-$7,000. Don Presley Auction image

 

SANTA ANA, Calif. – Don Presley Auction will present great merchandise from upscale California estates at his sale on Sunday, Oct. 2. The auction, which begins at noon Pacific, will feature more than 450 lots of personal luxury items, works of art and valuable antiques.

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