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George Nakashima (Japanese-American, 1905-1990) Minguren I table, original owner collection (est. $10,000-$20,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.

Leland Little: ‘One of our finest offerings,’ June 18

George Nakashima (Japanese-American, 1905-1990) Minguren I table, original owner collection (est. $10,000-$20,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
George Nakashima (Japanese-American, 1905-1990) Minguren I table, original owner collection (est. $10,000-$20,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. – More than 700 lots of fine and decorative arts will be offered at Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.’s major summer catalog auction on Saturday, June 18. Starting promptly at 9 a.m., the event will be held at the firm’s state of the art gallery.

LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding.

Representing several major estates, Leland Little said, “This is one of our finest offerings in a single catalog auction to date.”

The auction will feature national and international level silver, fine art, furniture, mid-century modern, Asian art, militaria, fine jewelry, and other choice decorative arts. Little elaborates, “With internet bidding by LiveAuctioneers.com and in-house bidding, combined with telephone and absentee bidding, we expect to receive a great deal of interest in this important sale.”

The sale will begin with fine silver, in particular an outstanding Georg Jensen sterling silver “Grape” pitcher (est. $3,000-$5,000). The silver department at LLAES Ltd. consistently brings exceedingly fine offerings to market. Over 100 lots of fine silver will be offered at this sale and are sure to draw international attention. Offerings include an exuberant hand-chased Art Nouveau Whiting sterling silver tea and coffee service (est. $8,000-$12,000) and a George V English sterling silver epergne by Stewart Dawson Ltd. and retailed at their Regent Street address (est. $1,000-$2,000).

LLAES Ltd. continues to bring fresh Asian art offerings to market. This sale is no exception. One exciting lot of note is a Qing Dynasty Chinese ivory doctor’s model, complete with small bound feet (est. $600-$1,000). A 19th-century carved jade censer with cover (est. $500-$1,000) carved from a single piece of chloromelanite jade, ranging in color from a semi-translucent milky white to deep green to tan to an opaque almost black, will garner much interest. Other lots of note include a pair of 19th-century Chinese porcelain “chicken skin” vases (est. $1,000-$1,500) and an important watercolor on paper by Bunsai Loki (Japanese, 1863-1906) titled Rinno-ji Temple (est. $6,000-$9,000).

American Art offerings will be confidently led by a Grandma Moses (New York/Virginia, 1860-1961) oil on cardboard titled The Red Bridge (est. $10,000-$20,000). This lot retains the original card from the artist dating the painting to circa 1940 and titling the work The Red Bridge, Cambridge, New York. Also offered are a pair of portraits attributed to Sheldon Peck (est. $10,000-$20,000) and three Adele Williams (Virginia, 1868-1952) works, two oil on canvases, Provincetown (est. $3,000-$5,000) and The Garden Hat (est. $2,000-$4,000) and one still life watercolor (est. $800-$1,200).

English and Continental Art offerings will certainly be a highlight of the sale. An Edouard Cortes (French, 1882-1969) titled Porte St. Denis (est. $15,000-$25,000) will undoubtedly cause excitement. Other strong lots include and oil on canvas by Antoine Bouvard (French, 1912-1972) titled Doge’s Palace (est. $6,000-$9,000) and an oil on canvas by Carlo Grubacs (Italian, 1802-1878) entitled, View of Venice (est. $10,000-$20,000).

The Mid-Century Modern Department at LLAES Ltd. offers five important fresh to the market lots of furniture crafted by George Nakashima (Japanese-American 1905-1990), who is known for his balance between art-form, everyday use and respect for the beauty in nature. These five lots include the Minguren I table (est. $10,000-$20,000), trestle table (est. $8,000-$12,000), six grass seat chairs (est. $5,000-$10,000), two grass seat stools (est. $2,000-$4,000), and a George Nakashima hanging wall case (est. $3,000-$6,000), all from an original owner collection. A letter of provenance accompanies each lot. Another lot to watch is an original Arne Jacobsen Egg Chair (est. $5,000-$8,000).

American Furniture will be led by an outstanding circa 1840 paint decorated blanket chest (est. $10,000-$15,000) from Chatham County, N.C. Another important lot is a Philadelphia armchair (est. $10,000-$15,000) attributed to William Savery (1721-1787). Other fine offerings include a North Carolina inlaid sugar chest on stand (est. $4,000-$8,000), circa 1820-30, with a Western Piedmont origin, a 19th-century North Carolina corner cupboard (est. $2,000-$4,000) attributed to Yadkin County, and a 19th-century North Carolina child’s tiger maple chest of drawers (est. $800-$1,500).

The jewelry department at LLAES, Ltd. again brings exceedingly fine estate jewelry and watches to market. Highlighted by an untreated natural blue sapphire pendant (ext. $7,000-$14,000), weighing 5.01 carats, the jewelry offerings will create excitement on sale day. Other pieces of note include a pair of circa 1930 platinum and diamond floral spray design clips/brooches (est. 3,000-$5,000), an Art Deco diamond and sapphire brooch/pendant (est. $3,500-$6,500), a French Art Deco 14kt gold and sapphire compact (est. $2,000-$4,000), and a platinum and Royal Asscher cut diamond ring (est. $3,000-$6,000).

A highlight of note includes two important military collections, one a U.S. Civil War collection including a Pennsylvania Civil War regimental history (est. $600-$900) and a 19th-century Eastern North Carolina archive and sword from Beaufort and Hyde counties (est. $200-$400), the other a Napoleonic collection including a French cuirass and helmet ($1,200-$1,800) and a Napoleon first consul document (est. $600-$900), signed, “Bonaparte,” Paris, Aug. 22, 1800.

Rounding out the sale will be exciting art glass offerings highlighted by a piece by Dale Chihuly (b. 1941) entitled, “Five-Piece Seaforms Set” (est. $8,000-$12,000), a strong collection of lighting led by an early 20th-century Tiffany Favrile Fabrique glass table lamp (est. $8,000-$12,000), and according to Leland Little, “one of the finest collection of 15th- to 18th-century brass candlesticks we have ever had.”

For details about Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.’s auction go to the auctioneer’s new website www.llauctions.com or phone 919-644-1243.

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


Whiting sterling silver tea and coffee service in a hand-chased Art Nouveau design (est. $8,000-$12,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Whiting sterling silver tea and coffee service in a hand-chased Art Nouveau design (est. $8,000-$12,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Grandma Moses (New York/Virginia, 1860-1961), ‘The Red Bridge,’ retaining original card from the artist (est. $10,000-$20,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Grandma Moses (New York/Virginia, 1860-1961), ‘The Red Bridge,’ retaining original card from the artist (est. $10,000-$20,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Mary Jane Pearson's paint-decorated blanket chest, Chatham County, N.C., 1840s (est. $10,000- $15,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Mary Jane Pearson’s paint-decorated blanket chest, Chatham County, N.C., 1840s (est. $10,000- $15,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Philadelphia armchair attributed to William Savery (1721-1787), Philadelphia, circa 1760-1770 (est. $10,000-$15,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Philadelphia armchair attributed to William Savery (1721-1787), Philadelphia, circa 1760-1770 (est. $10,000-$15,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Natural blue sapphire pendant, untreated, weighing 5.01 carats (est. $7,000-$14,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.
Natural blue sapphire pendant, untreated, weighing 5.01 carats (est. $7,000-$14,000). Image courtesy of Leland Little Auction & Estate Sales Ltd.