ATLANTA – At the beginning of every month, ACN columnist Ken Hall delivers top auction highlights from around the United States and the world at large. Here’s his September 2021 edition of Gallery Report. All prices include the buyer’s premium, except where noted.
Honus Wagner T206 card, $6.6 million, Robert Edward Auctions
A 1909 T206 Honus Wagner baseball card sold for $6.6 million at an auction held August 15 by Robert Edward Auctions in Los Angeles. It was the most ever paid for a sports card, eclipsing the $5.2 million sum recorded for a Mickey Mantle card. Fewer than 60 of the T206 Honus Wagner cards are known to exist, and only four are graded higher than the one just sold. According to legend, Wagner insisted the cards be pulled from distribution because they were in cigarette packs, and he didn’t smoke.
Whiting flatware service, $9,225, Neue Auctions
An 112-piece Whiting sterling flatware service in the Lily pattern, weighing a total of 129.90 troy ounces, sold for $9,225 in an online-only Summer Estates auction held July 24 by Neue Auctions, based in Beachwood, Ohio. Also, a Bernhard Rohne for Mastercraft bronze etched credenza hit $5,228, and a Reed and Barton sterling tea service with matching sterling silver tray finished at $6,765.
Early Levi jeans from the 1880s, $10,312, Holabird Western Americana Collections
Fragments of the upper parts of two pairs of early Levi jeans from the 1880s, unearthed in Eureka, Nevada, sold for $10,312 at a Sizzling Summer Western Americana Auction held August 5-9 by Holabird Western Americana Collections in Reno, Nevada. Also, period copies of two photographs of the Apache leader Geronimo surrendering in Arizona in the 1880s sold for $5,125, and an 1830s one-dollar U.S. gold coin struck by Christoph Bechtler in North Carolina brought $7,500.
American Flyer boxcar, $18,975, Weiss Auctions
An American Flyer G. Fox & Co. S gauge toy boxcar train, from a limited production set made in 1946, sold for $18,975 in a two-day, online-only Toy & Train auction held August 11-12 by Weiss Auctions in Lynbrook, New York. Also, a boxed AC Gilbert 1951 Atomic Energy Lab, an iconic Cold War-era toy packed in a suitcase-style box, sold for $3,600, and a 1982 mint-on-card GI Joe Commando Snake Eyes action figure by Hasbro made $7,200.
Camel-form tables, $22,680, Doyle New York
Two Anglo-Indian teak camel-form occasional tables sold as single lots for $11,340 each ($22,680 total) at a Doyle at Home auction held July 29 by Doyle in New York. Also, a 1960 painting by the American artist Paul Georges, titled Lisette Nursing, brought $5,355, and a portrait of Sylvia Sidney by Fletcher Martin went for $10,080.
Elvis Presley photograph signed and inscribed to Ed Sullivan, $19,445, RR Auction
A color photograph of Elvis Presley, which the singer inscribed, “To Mr. Ed Sullivan, My sincere thanks to a great guy, Thanks, Elvis Presley,” sold for $19,445 in an online auction held June 25-July 14 by RR Auction in Boston. It was the same photo that was seen on the September 1956 front cover of TV Guide. Presley appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in September and October 1956, and in January 1957 (waist-up only).
1959 Gibson Les Paul guitar, property of Journey guitarist Neal Schon, $350,000, Heritage Auctions
A 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard Sunburst guitar realized $350,000 at the sale of the Neal Schon vintage guitars collection held July 31 by Heritage Auctions in Dallas. Also, a six-string Ferrari guitar gaveled for $300,000; a 1959 Gibson ES-335 natural semi-hollow body went for $137,500; a 1957 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop solid body achieved $131,250; and a 1958 Gibson Les Paul Standard Goldtop solid body garnered $125,000. Schohn is a member of the rock group Journey.
Beauford Delaney painting, $348,000, Case Antiques, Inc. Auctions & Appraisals
A vivid abstract oil-on-canvas painting by Tennessee-born artist Beauford Delaney sold for $348,000 at a Summer Auction held July 24-25 by Case Antiques, Inc. Auctions & Appraisals in Knoxville, Tennessee. Also, a small limestone sculpture by William Edmondson went for $120,000; a bronze sculpture of an embracing man, woman and child by Elizabeth Catlett, titled The Family, hit $33,600; and a “Blue Dog” painting by Louisiana artist George Rodrigue rose to $90,000.
Painting by Frank Sinatra, $38,400, Potter & Potter
A framed acrylic-on-canvas painting by Frank Sinatra, a floral-themed work signed “Sinatra/89” at the lower right, sold for $38,400 at a Disneyana & Pop Culture Sale held July 30 by Potter & Potter Auctions in Chicago. Also, a turn-of-the-century style Disneyland Park mailbox from 1980 realized $10,200; a maquette of the purple Figment the Dragon character from the Imagination Pavilion at Epcot climbed to $10,200; and a framed Walt Disney autograph display with a clipped signature made $5,520.
Trae Young rookie card, $400,980, Goldin Auctions
A Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks) rookie basketball card sold for a record $400,980 in a Summer Auction that closed August 7 and 9 at Goldin Auctions in Runnemede, New Jersey. Also, a Conor McGregor UFC Gold Prizm card realized $27,060; a combination Magic Johnson and Larry Bird rookie card, graded PSA GEM MT 10, went for a record $861,000; a Mickey Mantle rookie card, SGC NM+ 7.5, brought $319,800; and a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth card, PSA NM-MT 8, rose to $344,400.
1882 trade dollar, $16,800, Alderfer Auction
An 1882 Proof 66 trade dollar sold for $16,800 at a Coins and Currency auction held July 28 by Alderfer Auction in Hatfield, Pennsylvania. Also, in three auctions held the week of July 19, a Browning Citori superlight over/under grade 6 shotgun realized more than $4,000; a Colt-Sharps Arms Co. Borchardt falling block single shot rifle hit the mark for $3,180; and a Johnson Automatics Model 1941 semi-automatic rifle went for $5,100. The three auctions combined to gross more than $2 million.
Anna Gunter painting, $76,200, Shapiro Auctions
A painting by Anna Gunter, titled Meeting with the Fiance (1962), sold for $76,200 at an International Fine Art, Antiques & Jewelry auction held July 31 by Shapiro Auctions in Mamaroneck, New York. Also, a 5.03-carat emerald-cut diamond ring in a ballerina setting slipped onto a new finger for $50,000; and a painting by Miguel Covarrubias, titled Taylor Gordon, brought $34,925.
Charles M. Russell painting, $1.7 million, Coeur d’Alene Art Auction
A 1904 painting by Charles M. Russell titled Roping a Wolf sold for more than $1.7 million at a Fine Western & American Art auction held July 31 by the Coeur d’Alene Art Auction in Reno, Nevada. Several works by Russell, totaling more than $3.2 million, changed hands. Also, Philip R. Goodwin’s Hitting the Trail (circa 1910-1920) rose to $453,750, a record for the artist; Edmund H. Osthaus’s Two Hunting Dogs (1891) brought $242,000; and Peter Hurd’s The Eve of St. John hit $157,300.
Evinrude porcelain sign, $30,750, Route 32 Auctions
An Evinrude porcelain flange sign with excellent gloss and color sold for $30,750 at the Iowa Gas Auction held August 5-6 by Route 32 Auctions in Des Moines, Iowa. Also, a Red Hat Wey-Co Gasoline milk glass globe made $27,060; a Texaco Motor Oil & Gasoline milk glass chimney with the globe in good condition brought $18,500; and an Aviation Gasoline gas globe hit $19,065.
Nakashima double dresser, $17,500, Leland Little Auctions
A walnut double dresser made in the 1960s by George Nakashima sold for $17,500 at a Modern Art & Design auction held August 19 by Leland Little Auctions in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Also, a large Jerga bronze sculpture by Kieff Antonio Grediaga realized $15,625; a pair of glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly, titled Laguna Persians, achieved $9,062; and a painting by Frank Faulkner made $8,438.
Diane Arbus silver print, $50,000, Swann Auction Galleries
A silver print of a photograph by Diane Arbus, taken in 1970 and printed in 1972, titled Two Men Dancing at a Drag Ball, NYC, sold for $50,000 at an LGBTQ+ Art, Material Culture & History Auction held August 19 by Swann Auction Galleries in New York. Also, a colored pencil on paper by Tom of Finland, titled Home – Secured (1982) soared to $87,500, a record for the artist; and an oil-on-canvas painting by Hugh Steers, titled Gold Fringe (1993), changed hands for $62,500.
Clementine Hunter painting, $11,875, Slotin Folk Art Auction
A painting by the legendary American folk artist Clementine Hunter, titled Large Cotton Harvest, sold for $11,875 at a Fun Folk Art, Pottery, Quilts & Paradise Garden fundraiser held August 7-8 by Slotin Auction in Buford, Georgia. Also, Hunter’s Sunday at the Park earned $8,750; Fairy Belle Smith’s African American Quilt made $11,875; Howard Finster’s Trumpeting Angel realized $5,500; Purvis Young’s Horses finished at $5,500; and Mary T. Smith’s Portraits went for $4,875.
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