: It was classified as "the best pottery auction" ever held at the
Lambertville Auction house and indeed the Craftsman Auction
presented by David Rago, Jerry Cohen and Suzanne Perrault was the
place to be March 11 and 12. The auction surpassed all
expectations, not only on pottery but in all classifications
across the board. Five hundred online bidders, $1.5 million left
in absentee bids and a standing-room-only audience competed for
almost 1,000 lots of high end Arts and Crafts pottery, furniture,
tiles, accessories and collectibles.
Many notable private collectors and museums were aggressive
bidders in the once-in-a-lifetime auction. David Rago stated,
"I've never seen anything like it. This sale did about $600,000
more than any other Arts and Crafts auction held by us." Prior to
the auction Rago said that he hoped to realize $2.5 million but
felt that it was an ambitious figure not likely to be achieved.
In fact, that figure was nearly reached on the first day alone
with a total tally of approximately $3.318 million for both days.
Ninety-three percent of the lots sold; most went well beyond
their estimates and many skyrocketed.
The collection was diverse and well represented by all key
artists; there was also a substantial number of items that were
thoroughly unique or never before seen. Integral to the success
of the auction was the prestigious Reingold pottery collection
that comprised the first 54 lots. As stated on the catalog cover,
"Dr Martin and Eileen Reingold have been collecting American
decorative ceramics since the mid-1970s and amassed an
encyclopedic collection, including work by some of the rarest and
most important companies and studios."
They were offered for the first time in a generation and records
were set for Brush Guild, Denaura, Ohr, Shearwater, Shawsheen and
others, yielding approximately $150,000 over the low estimate for
that single consignor with a grand total in excess of $370,000.
A price of $84,000 was paid for this George Ohr vase that was
considered a major piece for size, color and condition.
As anticipated, pottery ruled the day and brought the top two
selling lots of the sale. An important Newcomb College 15 1/4-by-7
1/2-inch-tall vase was an early 1909 work carved by Sadie Irvine
depicting pine trees with green needles on bright blue trunks
against a blue-green and ivory ground. This extraordinary piece,
estimated at $45/65,000, topped the sale at $96,000. A price of
$84,000 was paid for a George Ohr 8 1/2-by-5 3/4-inch-tall vase
with two ribbon handles that was covered in a spectacular red and
green mottled glaze and stamped "G.E. OHR, Biloxi, Miss." The vase
was estimated at $45/55,000 and considered a major piece for size,
color and condition. It was featured in a period trick photograph
of the potter standing on his head with the vase balanced on his
foot and was published in Robert Blasberg's George E. Ohr and
his Biloxi Art Pottery, 1973. The trick photo added to its
appeal and was used for the cover of the catalog, also in trick
form, as it was set horizontally across the page with a foldout of
Ohr's foot supporting the vase.
Another pottery item of note was a Marblehead corseted vase
incised by Arthur Baggs with a geometric pattern of long vertical
stems and small squares in browns, indigo and green (ship
mark/AB/T; 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 inches). Rago sold this item for
$36,000 eight years earlier at the Lambertville auction and was
hoping to do as well this time around: the piece brought $72,000.
Grueby is always in demand but a vase by Ruth Erickson that had
crisply tooled full-height leaves alternating with amber buds
against a matte green ground was touted as one of the best in the
opinion of experts. It was rare in form, size and color and the
best view of the article was from top as is often the case with
Grueby. This attractive piece brought $20,400. A price of $31,200
was paid for a 1903 Van Briggle early bulbous vase embossed with
irises under a dark blue-green and bright green glaze, 15 by 8
inches. This was one of two Van Briggles that achieved $31,200.
An exceedingly rare 3 1/2-by-9 1/2-inch footed bowl stamped
"Frederick Rhead/Santa Barbara" was decorated in wax-resist with
a band of carp in polychrome against a jet black ground was
uncharacteristically "perfectly fired." This piece was
exceptional in that it was from the Santa Barbara studio and was
well executed with a spectacular glaze according to Rago.
Estimated at $6/9,000, it sold for $15,600.
Other pottery pieces of interest included a 1913 Newcomb College
transitional vase that was carved by Sadie Irvine with oak trees
and Spanish moss in a sunlit landscape, 8 1/4 by 10 3/4 inches.
This item had been found in a back yard in San Diego, Calif., and
yielded $11,400.
An item of particular note was an 11-by-5 1/2-inch Denver Denaura
vase described as "the best known example of Denaura, and the
only hand-signed piece by Long." William Long never signed his
pieces except for this extraordinary squat vase carved with fish,
underwater flora, and cresting waves and covered in a dark green
vellum glaze. It sold for $9,600 in spite of two chips on the
inside rim and some minor nicks to decoration.
A Handel table lamp with a slag-glass shade that was cataloged
as an "excellent example in marvelous condition" commanded a
price of $51,000.
An especially pleasing Redlands spherical vessel that sold
for $13,200 was embossed with three small toads and curled leaves
and had a superior burnished glaze. A group of pottery from the
North Dakota School of Mines did well across the board with every
piece doubling or tripling its high estimate. Chief among them was
a 6 3/4-by-6-inch bulbous vase carved by Margaret Cable and Flora
Huckfield, entitled "Indian Travois," depicting Native Americans on
horseback in matte browns and greens, which sold for $5,700 against
a presale estimate of $1,4/1,900.
The tile section of the auction brought unprecedented prices.
Perrault remarked prior to the sale that the bar has been raised
for tile because they now only have room for the most exceptional
items. An extremely rare Marblehead vertical plaque incised with
a landscape of evergreens in ochre, green and turquoise on an
indigo ground and mounted in a period Arts and Crafts frame (two
ship medallions, plaque, 9 3/4 by 6 inches) sold for an
astounding $66,000. According to Perrault, Marblehead is not
known for tile and this one was especially large and had a rare
design.
One of the rarest items in the sale was an appealing Flint tile
with the image of Hazford Bocaldo 3d, a handsome Hereford bull
who was a national prize-winner in the early 1930s. The 12-inch
tile was one of two mirror-image gatepost tiles from the Crapo
Farm in Swartz Creek, Mich., which is now part of the C.S. Mark
College. The other tile is now in the library of the Flint campus
of the University of Michigan. Hazford was decorated in cuenca
and sold for $1,560, likely due to restoration to two cracks and
to a few chips (stamped "Flint Faience").
A price of $22,800 was achieved for a rare tile panel consisting
of 45 tiles depicting a landscape of a moonlit wooded lake. It
was done in matte glazes and surrounded by 14 molding tiles and
was mounted with two sconce brackets (stamped "RP," 40 1/4 by 76
inches).
Many rare and important items were also offered in the furniture
section and they too commanded high prices. A final figure of
$78,000 was paid for a Gustav Stickley Harvey Ellis-designed
library table with single drawer, arched aprons and shoe feet.
The table had its original finish and was unusual in that its
sides had delicate inlay of pewter, brass and copper and
medallions inlaid with galleons in various fruitwood. This piece,
created in 1904, was an unusual style for Stickley and was never
part of regular production.
An extremely rare Gustav Stickley early cellaret with a design
attributed to Harvey Ellis, circa 1903, had a hinged, expandable
top and paneled door with iron hardware (2-'04 decal under
drawer). Estimated at $8/12,000, it sold for $22,800. Another
unusual Gustav Stickley circular lamp table with trumpeted
cross-stretchers and legs mortised through the top had an
excellent original finish and condition carried a presale
estimate of $13/15,000 but climbed with ease to $30,000. Cohen
speculated that the reason for the high price was that a similar
piece that had a bit more quality recently sold in a leading
auction gallery for $55,000 thus raising the bar for Gustav
Stickley table lamps.
One of the crown jewels of the auction was a stately Roycroft
sideboard with leaded-glass cabinet doors over a mirrored back
that had three small drawers flanked by cupboard doors over a
linen drawer all having original copper hardware. It retained the
rich original finish and patina with appropriate wear to the
drawers (carved orb and cross mark on center stile, 75 1/2 by 65
1/2 by 21 inches). This remarkable one-of-a-kind piece that was
made for a family member sold for $42,000 to Doug McFarland, a
prominent collector of Roycroft who has approximately 500 pieces.
A Roycroft one-of-a-kind sideboard sold for $42,000 to Doug
McFarland, a prominent collec-tor of Roycroft.
McFarland has been collecting for more than 12 years and came
in person to the auction house to bid on his choice lots. He stated
that he was "very pleased to be taking the piece back to its home
in East Aurora."
Another impressive Roycroft item was an 1897 handmade book,
The Book of Job, 8 by 5 1/2 inches, bound in full Levant,
incised and gilded, lined in marbleized paper, and featuring
several unique watercolors and illuminations. It was number 2 of
150, complete with lined sleeve, in pristine condition and signed
by Elbert Hubbard; it yielded $4,200 and was one of the
highlights of the sale.
Lamps of particular interest included a Handel table lamp with a
large 28-by-22-inch faceted slag-glass shade with brown and green
cattails over a bronzed base. It was cataloged as an "excellent
example in marvelous condition" and was estimated at $12/16,000
but commanded a monumental sum of $51,000. A price of $22,800 was
paid for a Tiffany Studios table lamp with a green leaded glass
geometric shade on a three-socket bronze urn base that had a fine
original patina and was in excellent condition.
One of the thrills of the auction occurred when a set of 28
Tiffany gold Favrile glass, 9-by-1- inch pendant prisms,
estimated at $1,6/2,200, wowed the audience when it climbed to
$15,600. Whistles and yelps erupted from the crowd, followed by
an extended period of applause. Rago made a note to his clerk to
"get more Tiffany prisms."
This auction was a high point in the Arts and Crafts arena; even
the second day, usually reserved for the B-rated items, had a
strong representation of rare and desirable lots. The catalog was
excellent and the cover was original and a refreshing departure
from the norm. While there is no explanation why George Ohr would
be standing on his head with a vase balanced on one foot, there
is also no explanation for why everyone seemed to find it so
enjoyable - some things just are what they are and this catalog
cover was a perfect introduction to a thoroughly unique auction.
Rago Auctions is at 333 North Main Street. For information,
609-397-1802 or www.ragoarts.com. Prices reflect a 20 percent
buyer's premium.
