Old West comes alive in Jasper52 auction Aug. 1

NEW YORK – Relics of the Old West conjure up the dreams and visions of America in the second half of the 19th century. A Jasper52 auction on Wednesday, Aug. 1, is loaded with artifacts used by ranchers, miners, lawmen, outlaws and Native Americans of that era. Absentee and Internet live bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.

Presented in this 100-lot auction is a broad range of items – guns, saddles, badges, photographs – many of which accurately reflect what it was like on the frontier.

The top gun in the auction is a nickel-plated Merwin Hulbert single-auction revolver paired with an S.D. Meyres, El Paso, Texas, rig. This iconic six-shooter of the Old West was made by a noted New York City firearms company. The gun in the auction is described as having been well used but well cared for. It is an 1877 .44-40-caliber open-top first model that has a punch-dot factory engraving and engraved stag vignette on the receiver. It has no visible repairs or alterations and retains about 75 percent of the nickel finish.

A unique item in the sale is a miniature prisoner stagecoach that was used likely used in a Wild West show. Judging from its size, this would have probably been pulled by a pony or a goat. The stagecoach in its original red paint bears the name Colfax Jail. Colfax County is located in New Mexico near the Oklahoma border. Prisoners were often transported in stagecoach jails in the Old West.

Cowboy boots and American Indian beaded moccasins are offered in the auction. A men’s pair of Sioux moccasins from the 1880s is in excellent condition; the hide is still soft and pliable.

Also in excellent condition is a 12-inch Apache woven basket decorated with four figures.

Folk art collectors will be intrigued by a double powder horn that features a carved steer head. This unusual accoutrement dates to the turn of the 20th century.

A painted wooden sign, weathered by the elements, comes from a ranch located northwest of San Antonio Texas, that raised Hereford beef cattle.

The Jasper52 auction will be held Wednesday, Aug. 1, starting at 7 p.m. Eastern Time.