: The renowned bottle collection of the late Fred Weck was offered
recently at Glass Works Auctions, with hefty prices paid for the
select examples.
Fueled by a highly sought-after grouping of 119 historical flasks
in a wide variety of desirable colors, the 257-lot absentee
auction grossed $520,800.
Weck had been a collector of flasks and bottles since the early
1970s that "put together a very well orchestrated collection,"
according to Glass Works principal Jim Hagenbuch. "The overall
quality was very good, you could see that he knew what he was
doing," he said. The collection was well rounded with Weck
accumulating an "excellent assortment of flasks in a mix of
scarce to rare molds and rare colors."
More than 850 registered bidders competed for items from the Weck
collection with 110 being successful bidders claiming the
250-plus lots. Asked about how the sale was received by
collectors, Hagenbuch commented, "As the English would say, 'It
went over the moon.'"
The top lot of the sale came as a quart-sized Corn for the World
flask in a medium yellow topaz with vibrant puce striations
swirled throughout was offered. Estimated at $4/5,000, it sold to
Alabama collector Tom Lines for $22,400, including the 12 percent
buyer's premium.
The Drake's in a medium emerald green color went for $17,920.
A rare American System/riverboat pint flask in aqua with
strong impression sold between estimates at $20,160, while a pint
Zanesville eagle/Masonic arch in a bright yellow green color went
well above the $4/6,000 selling to Ohio collector Ray Klingensmith
for $17,920.
A rare pint flask from the Monongahela or Pittsburgh glass
houses, a GII-9 embossed with an eagle/eagle with snake in
colorless glass with amethystine tint, did well at $15,680.
Other top flasks included a half-pint hour glass Masonic, GIV-29,
in olive green, ex-Blaske collection, that was knocked down at
$14,560, an Albany Glass Works Washington/ship in sapphire blue
$13,440, while a half-pint Pittsburgh eagle/eagle in deep cobalt
realized $12,320.
Several scroll flasks in good color also commanded premium prices
with a quart sized GIX-2 flask in deep cobalt selling at $15,680,
while a yellow-green GIX-11 example brought $5,040. A rare GIX-40
miniature scroll flask in a deep blue-green color, 25/8 inches
tall, one of three ever seen by Hagenbuch, sold well beyond
estimates bringing $8,960.
Proving once again that color is everything, a Jenny Lind
calabash in a deep blue-green sold at more than three times
estimate at $11,200, in stark comparison to similar Jenny Lind
calabash in aqua that realized $40. Another example was a
Kossuth/frigate in a dark olive green that sold for $15,680, the
same bottle in aqua brought $235.
Other calabash bottles in unusual colors included a yellow-green
Jenny Lind at $4,480, an aqua sheaf of grain calabash with lots
of copper striations selling at $3,080, a Jenny Lind in sapphire
$3,080 and a hunter/fisherman in teal sold at $1,792.
A nice selection of cornucopia flasks also demonstrated the value
of color as they soared well above the average $150 price for an
amber example. A light sapphire blue cornucopia flask sold at
$4,760, a yellow-green example $2,576 and a blue-green flask
realized $1,680.
A pint Zanesville eagle/Masonic arch in a bright yellow-green
color sold at $17,920.
Three Pike's Peak flasks in a rare yellow-olive color were
sold with a smooth base GXI-2 traveler/plain reverse flask selling
at $4,480, a GXI-50 traveler/hunter $3,920, and a GXI-9
traveler/eagle realizing $3,250.
The selection of good colored bitters was impressive, especially
in the log cabins. Leading the large group was Drake's six-log in
a medium emerald green color that carried a presale estimate of
$7/9,000. The lot received substantial interest with it selling
to a Houston collector for $17,920. Other Drakes to do well
included a light yellow-green six-log example at $6,720, and a
medium yellow green four-log example at $4,200.
Another highpoint of the bitters collection was a Kelley's Old
Cabin in a dark olive green that sold for $8,960, while a Warner
German Hops bitters bottle with intact label sold well above the
$400/600 presale estimate at $5,600.
All prices include the buyer's premium.
