Mourners at Lee Harvey Oswald’s funeral included his wife, Marina; a brother, Earl; and mother, Marguerite. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers Archive and Alexander Autographs Inc. FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) – Lee Harvey Oswald’s brother is suing a Texas funeral home and California auction house after the presidential assassin’s original coffin was sold at an auction.
Robert Edward Lee Oswald said he thought the water-damaged wooden coffin had been destroyed after Lee Harvey Oswald’s body was exhumed from a Fort Worth cemetery in 1981 amid conspiracy theories surrounding the death of President John F. Kennedy. Another coffin was used for the reburial.
The lawsuit filed last week in Fort Worth accuses Baumgardner Funeral Home of invasion of privacy, negligence, gross negligence and breach of contract. Robert Oswald, 76, of Wichita Falls, is seeking unspecified damages, including the proceeds of last month’s auction that raked in at least $160,000 for various items, including Lee Harvey Oswald’s death certificate and porcelain embalming table.
Oswald was shot to death at a Dallas police station two days after Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. Oswald was never put on trial, but authorities concluded he was the killer.
An anonymous bidder bought the coffin for nearly $87,500 after a spirited round of bidding that Nate D. Sanders Auctions of Santa Monica, Calif., said continued two hours past the original closing deadline.
Neither the Fort Worth funeral home nor Nate D. Sanders Auctions immediately returned calls Tuesday. Oswald referred questions to his attorney, who did not immediately return calls.
Robert Oswald told The Associated Press last month that he had no plans to sell the coffin. Oswald also gave the AP a copy of his original funeral home receipt, showing he paid $710 – including $300 for the casket and $25 for flowers in 1963.
“The funeral items sold were of a personal and sentimental value. The damages suffered by (Robert Oswald) as a result of the circulation of these confidential items far outweighs the market value brought at auction,” Oswald said in the lawsuit. “(The funeral home) purposefully concealed their possession and the very existence of the funeral home items for many years . . . and kept the casket so as to profit from it at a later date.”
Oswald tried to stop the sale after learning about it through media reports, according to the lawsuit. He gave the auction house’s attorneys a copy of documents showing he owned the items, but the sale was held anyway, the suit says. Oswald also is upset that pictures of his brother’s body in the casket were shown as part of the auction’s publicity.
Allen Baumgardner, the funeral home’s owner, previously told the AP that he kept the coffin in a storage room at the mortuary, saying he hoped someone interested in its historical significance would buy it.
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Associated Press writer John Rogers in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-CS-01-18-11 2052EST
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Mourners at Lee Harvey Oswald’s funeral included his wife, Marina; a brother, Earl; and mother, Marguerite. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers Archive and Alexander Autographs Inc.
EWING, N.J. (AP) – A $1.1 million archaeological dig that has been under way for months as part of the proposed Scudder Falls Bridge replacement project has turned up evidence that Native Americans lived at the site as long ago as 500 B.C. and as recently as 1500 A.D.
“The most intriguing evidence (in Ewing) are the physical remains of a large number of hearths,” said John Lawrence, a senior archaeologist with AECOM, the Trenton-based engineering firm hired by the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission, which owns and operates the Scudder Falls Bridge and is paying for the dig.
“They are the remains of where the Native Americans would have been cooking food for storage and for daily meals,” Lawrence said of the hearths.
AECOM is conducting the dig with the New Jersey and Pennsylvania historic preservation offices to determine if any artifacts might be affected by the proposed bridge project, said Joe Donnelly, a spokesman for the commission.
The dig started in October, with 10 people in the field and two in the laboratory working 40-hour weeks in all kinds of weather.
Lawrence said archeologists should be done digging in Ewing this week. A dig across the Delaware River in Yardley is projected to take three or four months once it begins, which could happen within a month, Lawrence said.
In Ewing two weeks ago, the archaeological team found the charred remains of nutshells that might be evidence of the Native Americans’ diet.
Other artifacts found so far include chips of stone that the Native Americans might have used to create a tool, such as an arrowhead.
“Many of the artifacts would just be a piece of stone to a layman, but information about the technology being employed by Native Americans to make their tools tells us about their ways of life,” Lawrence said.
About 10 percent of the artifacts are tools, including projectile points, pottery, markers used for drawings, and hammer stones, Lawrence said.
The artifacts are taken from the site to an offsite lab where they are cleaned, processed and cataloged.
Some objects, such as ceramics that might contain plant or animal residue, are sent to a specialized lab for analysis, Lawrence said.
When the project is done, the artifacts will be taken to the New Jersey State Museum, where researchers and others who are interested can analyze them.
Donnelly said archaeological digs like this one are standard procedure when large-scale public projects such as bridges or highways are proposed.
If the site has been determined to contain significant information about the past, the archeologists will recover that information before the project moves ahead and affects the site, Donnelly said.
The Scudder Falls Bridge carries Interstate 95 across the Delaware River between Mercer County, N.J., and Bucks County, Pa.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission is working with transportation departments in New Jersey and Pennsylvania to advance a $310 million I-95/Scudder Falls Bridge improvement.
Construction is set to begin in 2013.
Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
One lot comprising antique album leaves from China sold for $1.23 million at a sale of Asian Works of Art & Fine Jewelry held in December by Skinner Inc., in Marlborough, Mass. Also, a Zhang Daqian modern painting achieved $424,000; a platinum and diamond solitaire hammered for $207,375; an 18kt gold colored diamond and diamond ring coasted to $165,900; a painting album went for $154,050; a Zhang Ruocheng handscroll made $130,350; and a Harry Winston platinum and diamond solitaire hit $100,725. Prices include a 10 percent buyer’s premium.
Federal inlaid tall case clock, circa 1810. Estimate: $3,000-$4,000. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc. EPHRATA, Pa. – Collections from several local estates comprise T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.’s auction Saturday, Jan. 22, which will begin at 9 a.m. Eastern with two dozen lots of early imprints.
LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding.
Also featured throughout the sale will be furniture, clocks, art, early lighting, quilts and other textiles, pottery, china and glass.
Tops among the clocks is a Federal tall-case clock from the early 1800s, which features a broken arch bonnet, an eight-day time and bell strike, weight driven movement, and a mahogany inlaid case on French feet. It has a $3,000-$4,000 estimate.
Furniture highlights include a late 18th-century Chippendale cherry slant-front desk with a 10-drawer interior with a prospect door over a case of four graduated drawers and reeded quarter columns on ogee bracket feet. The desk is 39 1/2 inches x 44 inches x 21 1/2 inches with the height to writing board at 32 1/2 inches. The estimate is $2,000-$2,500.
Several Luigi Rist (American, 1888-1959) prints will be offered. One is his circa 1940 Roses #2 woodcut numbered 138/150. The 7 1/4-inch x 9-inch work has an estimate of $800-$1,000.
A fine selection of quilts is led by a Starburst pattern attributed to Katherine Keller (Mrs. Abraham B.) Hess (1856-1929), Ephrata Township, Lancaster County, Pa. This standout quilt made around the turn of the 20th century has a $1,200-$1,400 estimate.
Four graduated earthenware Napoleon Toby jugs, which will be sold as a single lot, hold a curious storyline. The set was intended to lampoon President William McKinley’s imperialistic policy by satirizing him as a potbellied Napoleon. The jugs are marked “pat apl for Alfred H. Evans, Phila, PA.” The set has a $250-$500 estimate.
The auction will be conducted at the Horst Auction Center, 50 Durlach Road at U.S. 322.
For details visit the Horst Auction website at www.horstauction.com or phone 717-738-3080.
Starburst pattern quilt, circa 1900, pieced with large central star and small stars surrounding, attributed to Katherine Keller (Mrs. Abraham B.) Hess (1856-1929), Ephrata Township, Lancaster County, Pa., cotton front and printed cotton back, 82 inches x 81 inches. Estimate: $1,200-$1,400. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.Four earthenware Napoleon Toby jugs, circa 1900, marked ‘pat apl for Alfred H. Evans, Phila, PA,’ largest 9 3/4 inches high, smallest: 4 1/4 inches high. Estimate: $250-$500. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.Joseph’s Coat quilt, circa 1900, Lancaster County, Pa., inner sawtooth border, plain pieced cotton front, printed cotton back, 78 inches x 76 inches. Estimate: $1,500-$1,700. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.A sampling of the early lighting. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.More than a dozen lots of blue decorated stoneware will be offered in the auction. Image courtesy of T. Glenn Horst & Son Inc.
Fine and rare Chinese carved jadeite statue of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, 18th century or later, 11 inches high. Estimate: $50,000-$80,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.
NEW ORLEANS – Two unusual and outstanding pieces from opposite sides of the globe are expected to be the highlights of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery Inc.’s two-day estates auction Jan. 22-23. Saturday’s highlight is a rare Chinese serpentine cong (zhong), Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 220), which carries a $150,000-$300,000 estimate. Sunday’s stellar piece is an important Rococo Revival oak sideboard that was exhibited at the London International Exhibition of 1862. This unique piece is expected to sell for $300,000-$500,000.
LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding for the 1,325-lot auction.
The carved stone cong, 34 1/4 inches long, is believed to have been used as a ritualistic item. It is slightly mottled dark and pale brown stone with incised designs of stylized human faces.
Garrard Robinson (1834-1891) created the Rococo Revival oak sideboard, which is decorated with relief carved scenes from Daniel Defoe’s acclaimed novel Robinson Crusoe. The massive piece is considered by experts to be an icon of Victorian furniture. The son of a blacksmith, Robinson attended the Newcastle School of Design. At the age of 14 he apprenticed to Thomas Hall Tweedy, then the most famous wood carver in all Great Britain. It is widely accepted that a majority of Tweedy’s finest works were from the hand of the talented young Robinson. Tweedy showed four examples of Robinson’s work at the London International Exhibition of 1862 under T.H. Tweedy of Newcastle-on-Tyne, which included this remarkable sideboard. This masterwork proved to be among the most spectacular works showcased at the event.
Also to be sold Saturday is a rare Chinese carved jadeite statue of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, 18th century or later. The 11-inch-tall statue of mainly bright apple-green stone with white mottling has a $50,000-$80,000 estimate. The statue is supported by an elaborate ivory base of Indian inspiration in creamy ivory with black veining, which is most often associated with stocks of ivory held in the Imperial Palace workshops.
A choice example of Americana in Sunday’s session is a carved cigar store Indian attributed to Samuel A. Robb of New York. The 70-inch-tall figure in polychrome stands on a base that is stenciled “Tobacco.” The nicely detailed wooden figure has a $30,000-$50,000 estimate.
Additional highlights Sunday include a grand pair of Continental electroplate candelabra adorned with putti and a rare early Newcomb College pottery teapot potted by Joseph Fortune Meyer and decorated by Anna Frances Simpson.
For details visit the company’s website at www.stcharlesgallery.com or phone 504-586-8733.
Grand and opulent pair of Continental electroplate 10-light candelabra, early 20th century, 37 1/2 inches high. Estimate: $25,000-$40,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.Important Rococo Revival ‘Robinson Crusoe’ oak sideboard, third quarter 19th century, 84 inches high, 109 inches wide, 34 inches deep. Estimate: $300,000-$500,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.Rare Chinese serpentine cong (zhong), Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 220) or later, carved stone, 34 1/4 inches high. Estimate: $150,000 -$300,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.Early Newcomb College Pottery high-glaze ‘Solitaire’ teapot, 1908, in Lily decor, potted by Joseph Fortune Meyer (1848-1931) and decorated by Anna Frances Simpson (d. 1930), 3 1/2 inches high, 4 inches wide, 7 inches long. Estimate: $2,000-$4,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.Rare carved and polychromed American Indian cigar store figure, third quarter 19th century, attributed to Samuel A. Robb, New York, front stenciled ‘Tobacco,’ 70 inches high. Estimate: $30,000-$50,000. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction, St. Charles Gallery.
DALLAS—A Fort Worth foundation is selling four Henri Matisse sculptures known as The Backs that were once on display at a downtown park.
The large relief sculptures by Matisse that depict a woman’s backside progressing from realistic to abstract were acquired by the Burnett Foundation in 1982 and later put on display at Fort Worth’s Burnett Park. When the park was renovated in 2000, they were moved to Fort Worth’s Kimbell Art Museum.
Neils Agather, executive director of the foundation, said the value of the sculptures now far exceeds anything that could justify owning them. He said the main mission of the foundation, which focuses on supporting health, education, human services and arts initiatives, mostly in the Fort Worth area, is to support community activities, not own art.
A Back IV sold at auction at Christie’s in November for more than $48 million.
“They’ve just gotten to a value now that it doesn’t fit the mission anymore,” Agather said Tuesday.
Matisse, who died in 1954, created a series of four plaster casts for The Backs, numbered I through IV. Twelve bronze casts were made from each plaster original. Several major museums have sets.
Sotheby’s is organizing a private sale for the Burnett Foundation’s set.
Sotheby’s spokeswoman Diana Phillips said Tuesday that the auction house would not comment on the estimated value or disclose the eventual sale price of the foundation’s sculptures, because the sale is private. She did say, though, that “there is an enormous interest and appetite for great sculptural works and recent prices will naturally be a guide.”
Agather said that whether the foundation discloses the sale price will depend on the buyer and whether they wish to release any information.
For the Kimbell’s stewardship of The Backs over the past 10 years, the foundation said it will give them Henry Moore’s Figure in Shelter and Fernand Leger’s La Fleur qui Marche. Both have been on loan to the Fort Worth museum for the past 21 years.
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Information from: Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
http://www.star-telegram.com
Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Tiffany lily lamp from Philip Chasen Antiques, at the Pier Show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co. NEW YORK – Americana & Antiques at the Pier, Jan. 22-23, on Pier 92 is being billed “The freshest show of Antiques Week” by Stella Show Management Co.’s director Jeanne Stella.
This event offers the youngest and newest dealers in antiques selling the newest, innovative and trendy styles in decorating and collecting. The Pier show is a “smidge less polished” than other shows in New York for Antiques Week, but it makes up for that with spectacular buys that are ripe for picking, said Stella.
Many of the 200 dealers will have industrial furniture and design – considered by many the new Americana. Also included this January is a special section of antiquarian, art and collectible books: Book Alley.
Antiques at the Armory, Jan. 21-23, at the Armory on 26th Street is “The hub of Antiques Week,” with free shuttles to and from the venerable Winter Antiques Show uptown and the pier show on the West Side.
The Armory event offers 100 dealers with compelling and affordable antiques from many eras. Although Americana, folk art and American furniture are well represented at the event there is also a great selection of 20th-century modern, and international art, silver, ceramics and furnishings.
In addition to free shuttles between the two Stella shows, there is a combination ticket available for $20 (each show is $15 alone).
Antiques at the Armory show times are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday. Regular admission is $15.
Americana & Antiques at the Pier (12th Avenue at West 52nd Street) times are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Regular admission is $15.
Both Americana & Antiques at the Pier and Antiques at the Armory are presented by Stella Show Management Co. The company offers combination tickets ($20 for both shows) and free shuttle service between the two shows.
Show details and exhibitor information are available at www.stellashows.com.
Download Antiques Week at a Glance <http://www.stellashows.com/showmgr_imgs/ZJD1463_otherarmory20030117_7.pdf> to see a full antiques week calendar and map.
ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE
Victorian pillow top from Odds & Ads. It is one of a few dozen circa 1902-1910 printed textiles they will be exhibiting at the Pier Show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.Carved eagle sternboard from a 19th-century sailing ship named the Little Eagle out of the island of Ossawba, N.C. Firehouse Antiques will have it at the Pier Show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.Rare bottle doll, late 19th century, from South Road Antiques, at the Pier Show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.Exquisite extra-illustrated set of the ‘Life of Napoleon’ with Bonaparte’s signature, sumptuously bound for presentation from Mosher Books, ABAA, at the Pier show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.George Jensen ‘Rose’ bonbonniere No. 262, 1920s, to be exhibited at Armory Show by Drucker Antiques. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.Set of six woven leather and oak armchairs designed by Stewart Ross James, Winchester, N.H., circa 1955. Andrew Spindler will have the set at the Armory Show. Image courtesy of Stella Show Management Co.
Noted studio glass artist and teacher Harvey Littleon created this glass crown sculpture in 1984. The selling price of $50,600 marks a new record for Littleton. The 12-piece crown measures 6 1/4 inches high x 21 1/2 inches in diameter. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Antiques “Made in Asia” led off Brunk Auctions’ sale on Jan. 8-9. Objects from Japan, Tibet, Korea, Nepal, India and Thailand were all represented in the early hours of the 882-lot sale. But, as was typical of the past three years, Chinese antiquities succeeded in stealing the show.
The lot with the highest presale estimate lived up to expectations. Around 1855, View of the Bund at Shanghai, a large unsigned oil on canvas was purchased in Hong Kong and transported to the United States. The consignor purchased the painting, attributed to Chow Kwa (Chinese, active 1850-1885), in the early 1990s at Sotheby’s New York. The painting is a finely detailed and accurate depiction of the Shanghai skyline and ships in the harbor including an American steamer. The View opened at $50,000, its reserve, and then soared to a record-high $483,000 (est. $60,000/$90,000) All selling prices include a 15 percent buyer’s premium. A similar view by Chow Kwa was featured in the 1986 exhibition, The China Trade: 1600-1860 at the Royal Pavilion Art Gallery and Museum, Brighton, England.
The second record was for Chinese carpets with silk and metal thread. There were two of these circa 1900 Imperial carpets in the sale. Both were in excellent condition and probably purchased in China. Seventeen phone bidders were on the line when they came up for sale. The first to sell depicts Imperial dragons in the scalloped central medallion and in the four corners. An inscription at one end cites the Ning Shou Palace, a Ming Dynasty structure renovated in 1689. The carpet opened at $10,000 and sold to bidder on the Internet for a record $207,000 (est. $12,000/$18,000).
In a large central lozenge and in the corners and ends of the second carpet were cranes, sea serpents, waves and clouds. All were surrounded by a double Greek key border. It too had an inscription at one end referring to its use in an unnamed palace. It opened at $12,000 with multiple phone and Internet bidders and sold for $161,000 (est. $15,000/$20,000) to the same Internet bidder who purchased the Ning Shou Palace carpet.
The Chow Kwa painting and the silk and metal thread carpets were consigned by a grandchild of Elizabeth Russell of Connecticut. They came from a larger collection that originated with Samuel Wadsworth Russell, the founder of Russell & Co. That enterprise was the largest trading house in China from 1842 until its close in 1891.
The sale’s third record was a signed glass crown sculpture by Harvey Littleton (American, b. 1922). The 12 parts of the crown were blown, cut and polished by Littleton, a man widely regarded as the father of American studio glass. While at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he taught noted glass artists, Dale Chihuly and Martin Lipofsky. Littleton retired to North Carolina and received the North Carolina Living Treasure Award in 1993. The crown more than doubled its estimate and set a new record for the artist when it sold for $50,600 (est. $10,000/$20,000). It came from the collection of Philip and Charlotte Hanes of Winston-Salem, N.C. Philip Hanes was CEO of Hanes Dye and Finishing from 1964 to his retirement in 1976. He and his wife are noted for their leadership and generous support of the arts in Winston-Salem.
Chinese jade did well. Two lots from the 29-lot Bridge to Heaven collection acquired by the late Pauline McCord Bishop were clear standouts. The first is a ceremonial ruyi (scepter) from the Qing Dynasty with gray green celadon coloration. The fine detailed openwork on the ruyi, a presentation piece meant to bestow good fortune, is paper thin in places. It sold within estimate for $27,600. The other jade leader is a burnt “chicken bone” mountain from the Ming Dynasty. Colors are white with pink spots from manganese inclusions. There are conifers on the mountain with a river at its base. The jade mountain rose from a humble $3,000/$6,000 estimate to $34,500.
Closer to home was an important North Carolina cherry and poplar two-piece secretary-with-bookcase from around the turn of the 19th century from the Hanes collection. The upper and lower cases are extensively inlaid including three drawers with elaborate flourishes. The pilasters are also inlaid, a distinctive characteristic of the later work of the Catawba Valley furniture-makers known as the “fluted pilaster group.” The secretary-with-bookcase sold to Colonial Williamsburg for $55,200 (est. $25,000/$35,000) making it the top lot of the 41-lot Hanes consignment.
After the sale, Tara Chicarda, curator of Furniture for Colonial Williamsburg, remarked as to where the secretary-with-bookcase fit in their collection. “We are very strong in Southern furniture, but one area needing augmentation was Piedmont, North Carolina. This piece is a great example of Neo-Classical furniture from the North Carolina Piedmont. It filled a hole in that area.” After conservation, the secretary-with-bookcase will be on exhibit in the Dewitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum.
Of the 130 paintings in the sale – 39 American, 91 Continental – two far exceeded their estimates. A large oil on canvas painting, Officers at a Military Outpost During the Crimean War, attributed to Pierre-Mathurin Pétraud (French, 1808-1880) opened at the lower end of its $4,000 to $8,000 estimate. It left that far behind and finished at $46,000, the second highest painting after the Chow Kwa. Also finishing strong was Samuel Spode’s Gentleman on a Horse. In a 20th-century giltwood frame, the British equestrian painting with Stonehenge in the distance galloped from an estimate of $3,000/$6,000 to a $36,800 finish.
One silver lot was especially noteworthy. A Francis I sterling tea service with tray sold for $31,050 after a $14,000 opening bid. With marks for the American firm of Reed and Barton between 1951 and 1953, the set consisted of a hot water urn, matching coffee pot, teapot, creamer, waste and water pitcher. There were no monograms.
“It was our biggest sale for several years,” said President Robert Brunk. With buyer’s premium included the auction totaled $3,043,072.
The next sale at Brunk Auctions is March 12-13 when a second group of jade from the Bridge to Heaven collection will be offered.
For more information visit www.brunkauctions.com or call 828-254-6846.
This Imperial Chinese silk and metal thread carpet set a new record for this type, selling for $207,000. The circa 1900 carpet measured 8 feet 1 inch x 9 feet 10 inches. It was probably purchased in China where it had been displayed in the Ning Shou Palace, Beijing. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.The sale’s top lot at $483,000 set a new record for China Trade paintings. Attributed to Chow Kwa (Chinese, active 1850-1885), ‘View of the Bund at Shanghai’ measures 20 3/4 inches x 37 1/4 inches. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.The catalog describes this Qing Dynasty jade ruyi (scepter) as ‘flawless translucent jade with perfect even-toned celadon color of grayish-green.’ At $27,600, the 14 1/4-inch ruyi was the top lot among Pauline McCord Bishop’s Bridge to Heaven jade collection. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.The ‘fluted pilaster group’ consisted of early 19th-century furniture makers from the Catawba River Valley of North Carolina. This secretary-with-bookcase from 1800-1810 is one of their few surviving examples of their later work when they inlaid only the pilasters. The 115-inch-high secretary sold for $55,200. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.Of the sale’s 68-lots of silver, this Reed and Barton sterling tea service and tray was far and away the most expensive. It brought $31,050 (est. $15,000/$25,000). Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.Five paintings either by or attributed to Pierre-Mathurin Pétraud crossed the auction block at the January sale. ‘Officers at a Military Outpost During the Crimean War’ was the largest of the five at 36 inches x 26 1/4 inches. At $46,000, it was also the priciest. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.Samuel Spode (British, 1825-1858) was an equestrian artist who accepted private commissions and rarely exhibited. His ‘Gentleman on Horse’ with Stonehenge in the distance sold for $36,800. The 34 1/8-inch x 44 1/8-inch oil on canvas was the third highest painting in the sale. Image courtesy of Brunk Auctions.
Ringo, Paul, John and George as they appeared on a one-sheet card published circa 1967. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers archive and Alexander Autographs Inc. BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – A brick from the Cavern Club, a check for 11 pounds signed by Ringo Starr, an “authentic” Beatles wig. These and thousands of other objects related to the “Fab Four” are luring Beatles fans to a new museum in Buenos Aires.
The museum is the product of the particular “Beatlemania” obsession of Rodolfo Vazquez, a 53-year-old accountant who became a fan at the age of 10 when he got their Rubber Soul record. “With the song In My Life I fell in love with the Beatles,” he said.
Vazquez scooped up all the memorabilia he could find in Buenos Aires about history’s most famous rock band, an obsession that grew until he made it into Guinness World Records in 2001 as having the planet’s largest collection.
At that point, Guinness noted that he had 5,612 items in the attic of his home in Buenos Aires. His hoard has grown to more than 8,500 records, gadgets, puppets and games since then, more than 2,200 of which are on display in the Beatle Museum that just opened this month on Avenue Corrientes, in an area of the capital where tourists throng.
There are Beatles museums in Liverpool, England and Hamburg, Germany, that display memorabilia along with objects from the band members’ lives, and other private collections as well – Julian Lennon has many that show the more personal side of the four band members, published in the book Beatles Memorabilia. The collection of Julian Lennon, including drawings his late father sent him when the Beatles were on tour.
But this storefront museum stands out for the sheer quantity of pieces, carefully arranged in display cases and on the walls. There are objects for all tastes: a box of condoms with the name of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, a wig that says it adjusts to any head size, and signed pictures of the four musicians.
“The idea is to show my collection permanently. In a year I would like to rotate the items on display with others from my collection,” Vazquez said. “Otherwise all of it would be closed into boxes and trunks without anyone being able to enjoy them.”
Vazquez also keeps accumulating objects, either buying or trading for them with other collectors around the world.
“In Britain and Spain I found many fans. By mail I’ve received things from Japan, Britain and Brazil, and I’m still doing it,” he said.
The Beatles broke up in 1970, but there’s no letup in interest about the band: When their song list was added to iTunes late last year, more than 2 million individual songs and 450,000 copies of Beatles albums were sold in the first week.
The Beatles never performed in Argentina, but people here seem to have a soft spot for them, ensuring that cover bands have regular gigs. Many such bands play in Vazquez’s The Cavern Club, a bar next to the museum named after the Liverpool nightclub where the band got its start.
Each year, Vazquez organizes a “Beatle Week,” in which cover bands from around Latin America compete to be named the best imitators. The winners travel to a Liverpool music festival.
Vazquez claims he doesn’t know the total value of his private collection, which also includes record covers, autographs, toys, original pictures, concert programs, and cups and plates with Beatle images.
Vazquez said that he has a special fondness for 64 boxes of chewing gum in the form of miniature albums that allude to the 16 Beatles records.
Other rarities are four music boxes with figures of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
Vazquez even has certified copies of their birth certificates.
In one display case, there’s a brick – one of about 5,000 pulled from the demolition in 1983 of the original Cavern Club.
There’s also a hunk of the stage of Hamburg’s Star Club, a strip club where the musicians worked as the house band, at that point with Pete Best as drummer. A pair of drumsticks signed by Best, who was replaced by Ringo Star in 1962, is in the Buenos Aires museum.
There’s also a piece of the floor of Strawberry Fields, a Salvation Army orphanage near Lennon’s boyhood home whose name inspired the 1967 psychedelic rock tune Strawberry Fields Forever.
Vazquez said nearly 2,000 people have visited since the museum opened on Jan. 3. Some have been thrilled.
“This museum is killing me,” said Facundo Gonzalez, an Argentine visitor. “I want to steal everything and scream like a little girl. I am very excited. I find it incredible.”
Dalton Araujo, a Brazilian, said he traveled to Argentina specifically to visit the museum.
Getting the chance to show his treasures to fellow fans is immensely satisfying to Vazquez, but he says there’s one thing he hasn’t been able to do: meet the surviving Beatles themselves.
“What I am missing is to shake hands with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, hug them and chat with them a little bit,” he said.
“It is what would complete me and I would be the happiest collector on earth.”
Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
AP-CS-01-16-11 1341EST
ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE
Ringo, Paul, John and George as they appeared on a one-sheet card published circa 1967. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers archive and Alexander Autographs Inc.
Heywood Hardy (British, 1842-1933), ‘A Hunting Morning,’ oil on canvas, 20 inches by 30 inches. Estimate: $12,000-$18,000. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.
CLEVELAND – Gray’s Auctioneers kicks off 2011 with an eclectic Furniture, Paintings and Decorative Arts Auction on Jan. 25. This auction features paintings and drawings from the 17th century to the 20th century, furniture from Charles II to Mid-Century Modern, antique rugs, and many delightful decorative lots including a collection of Chinese and Japanese bronzes and porcelains.
LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding for the auction, which begins at 1 p.m. Eastern.
Notable items include lot 28, an evocative oil painting, A Hunting Morning, by renowned British sporting artist Heywood Hardy (1842-1933). Capturing the excitement of gathering for the meet this painting is very similar to Hardy’s The First of November, which sold at Christies in London in 2010 for £34,850 ($55,300). Gray’s has conservatively estimated the Hardy at $12,000-$18,000.
Lot 6 is a beautiful, gilt-framed 19th-century oil of Venice, the city of canals, at sunrise by American/Italian artist Nicholas Briganti (1861-1944). Briganti’s views of Venice and its waterways are among his most venerated works. Clearly inspired by the city, he captures the transformative light of sunrise, bathing the lagoon and sky with a majestic glow. This stunning work is estimated at $2,000-$4,000.
Two important drawings offered are lots 29 and 30. Lot 29 is an allegorical scene by Johann Evangelist Holzer (Germany, 1709-1740). This drawing is one of his largest in existence. Primarily known as a fresco painter, few of his works survive. Holzer’s last and largest works are frescos for Münsterschwarzach Abbey. He died when he was 31 on his way to Bavaria where he had been commissioned by Clemens August of Bavaria to paint frescos in the Hofkirche of Clemenswerth.
Lot 30 is a study of birds of prey, unsigned but attributed to the 17th-century Dutch master draughtsman and painter of animals, Melchior de Hondecoeter. His life-like depictions of birds were much in demand by the European nobility. He was patronized by William III (William of Orange), King of England, and his masterpieces are in the Hague, the Wallace Collection, Belton House and the Hermitage in St. Petersburg to name a few. Gray’s has conservatively estimated this magnificent charcoal drawing on paper at $2,000-$4,000.
Also included in this auction is a wonderful selection of decorations including reverse-painted lamps, a Sevres urn, a Tiffany mantel clock set with candelabra and a large Meissen mythological figural group depicting Neptune and Salacia, signed with blue crossed swords. The only thing Neptune is missing is his trident. In very good condition with no chips, nicks or scratches, the estimate is $3,000-$5,000.
Among the collection of Chinese artifacts is Lot 186, a Chinese bronze censor, with silver inlay and wooden lid. This signed piece has an estimate of $100-$150, but presale bidding has been active.
Lot 116 is a 17th-century Charles II carved oak court cupboard. It has a carved vine and flower motif on the upper part of the cabinet, flanking the cupboard doors, within turned columns and above two larger paneled cabinet doors. This fine antique cupboard has extensive 20th-century restorations and as such the estimate is $2,000-$4,000.
Lots 214-217 are a fine collection of Mid-Century Modern custom designed furniture, made from exotic Hawaiian hardwoods. Lot 215A is a vintage Curtis Jeré, copper and brass wall sculpture depicting a fairground Ferris wheel, big tent and stalls. Curtis Jeré is the compound nom de plume of ’60 s artists Curtis Freiler and Jerry Fels. This vintage sculpture is estimated at $150-$250.
Rounding out the auction are a collection of antique rugs, runners and carpets, very reasonably estimated. Most notable is Lot 231, a colorful, geometrically patterned Kazak Caucasian wool rug measuring 8 feet 8 inches by 4 feet 4 inches and estimated at $2,800-$3,000.
Gray’s always has something for every collector. This instance is lot 193A, a Nepalese yak tail ceremonial baton. Somewhat reminiscent of a wig worn in the 1980s by the incomparable Tina Turner, this ceremonial yak tail baton commands an estimate of $80-$120.
In addition to live online bidding provided by LiveAuctioneers.com, there will be telephone bidding and absentee bidding offered directly through Gray’s Auctioneers.
The showrooms will be open for preview Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday by appointment. Gray’s Auctioneers is the only licensed, bonded and insured auction house in Cleveland holding monthly live auctions, and offering complimentary valuations every Friday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Deborah J. Gray, auctioneer, opened her eponymous auction house in 2007 with her partner, Serena Harragin, and together they have transformed an abandoned building that once housed a Citroen dealership into a driving force in the vibrant Cleveland Fine Art and Antiques auction market.
For details visit Gray’s website at www.graysauctioneers.com or to request a printed catalog call 215-458-7695.
Nicholas Briganti (Italian/American, 1861-1944), ‘Venetian Canal,’ oil on canvas, 17 inches x 30 inches. Estimate: $2,000-$4,000. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.Meissen mythological figural group depicting Neptune and Salacia, signed with blue crossed swords, 15 inches x 12 1/2 inches x 9 1/2 inches. Estimate: $3,000-$5,000. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.Curtis Jeré American Fairground copper and brass wall sculpture, signed lower right, 22 inches high x 55 inches wide x 7 inches deep. Estimate: $150-$250. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.Charles II-style carved oak court cupboard, 17th century, 69 inches high x 66 inches wide x 23 inches deep. Condition: 20th century modifications, hinges and lock. $2,000-$4,000. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.Chinese bronze censor, 9 1/2 inches high, together with a porcelain vase (not pictured). Estimate: $100-$150. Image courtesy of Gray’s Auctioneers.
