No Midwinter Blues in Cincinnati: A 600-Lot Sale at Cowan's Totals $500,000

CINCINNATI, OHIO

:Cowan's midwinter auction on February 4 generated sales of $500,000 from 600 lots of fine art, furniture, decorative arts and antiques.

With a price of $19,550, an oil painting depicting an arctic scene of the Graf Zeppelin by Alexander Kirchner was the auction's top seller.

The firm's furniture and decorative arts specialist, Andrew Richmond, commented, "It's a fantastic scene with remarkable detail. I couldn't find much on Kirchner, but I had a feeling that the subject matter would be appealing."

Other items of note were a Royal Satsuma vase that sold for $8,625, more than 20 times the original estimate; a set of six Chinese watercolors that fetched $14,950; and two landscapes by Cincinnati artist T.C. Lindsay.

"Prices were generally strong across the board, and I was particularly pleased with how well the art did," said Mr Richmond.

Folk art also fared well. A signed and dated Cincinnati sampler fetched $5,175, and an early alphabet board that retains its original painted surface brought $3,910, nearly four times its high estimate. A pair of American carved frames with eagle crests sold for $5,175. The inlaid Ohio double rocker that was recently featured on Antiques Roadshow FYI failed to meet its reserve.

"I was disappointed," Mr Richmond remarked. "It's a really unique piece, but I guess it doesn't appeal to everyone."

As usual, the sale featured a number of examples of early Ohio Valley and Midwestern art and decorative arts. A folksy riverscape of the Ohio River at Louisville, Ky., more than doubled its high estimate, realizing $2,645. A miniature mahogany chest of drawers that had a few condition issues still bested its estimate and brought $2,070. It descended in the family until consigned for the sale.

Family tradition indicates that the father of Eliza Reed, who wrought the Cincinnati sampler in the sale, made the chest. A three-piece tea set by Samuel Kirk that descended in the same family brought $5,100.

"A solid provenance can make a good object great on today's market," commented Mr Richmond.

"We had some great stuff that realized great prices," concluded Mr Richmond. "This is our first midwinter decorative arts sale, and I'm very pleased."

Other highlights of the sale included a Kentucky landscape by Charles Meurer, which doubled its original estimate, garnering $4,025. The oil on canvas, signed in the lower right, and titled on verso "Spring Time In The Kentucky Hills," was taken from Covington, Ky., toward Cincinnati, with the Roebling suspension bridge visible in the background.

A very unusual subject matter for Meurer, the painting measured 181/4 by 221/4 inches in a modern frame.

A Pennsylvania inlaid corner cupboard tripled the original estimate, finishing at $6,325. Walnut with poplar secondary, with one piece, four paneled doors, the circa 1810-1830 piece measured 853/4 by 45 by 231/4 inches.

An early alphabet single pine board in a tombstone shape with a hole for hanging retained its original paint, consisting of the alphabet and numbers in yellow paint on a red ground. The Nineteenth Century American board sold for $3,910.

A total of $5,175 was paid for a pair of carved eagle frames of poplar, both with nearly identical carved eagle surmounts, leaf-carved sides and bottoms and chip-carved interiors.

A Kentucky floral appliquéd quilt sold for $2,760, double its original estimate. The mid-Nineteenth Century quilt, attributed to Beaver Dam, Ky., area, had large floral designs in yellow, pink, red and green calico prints, trimmed in pink, fine checkered quilting, all handsewn, approximately 81 inches square.

All prices include 15 percent buyer's premium.