A William Luscomb slant front desk signed by Jacob and Elijah Saunderson, Salem, Mass., 1794, sold to a collector at $14,950.
:Hudson Valley Auctioneers had a whopping good sale on September 21 when Neil Vaughn, auctioneer, opened the bidding at 6 pm. "We had a full house and every phone was in service; we even had to use cellphones on some lots," Theo de Haas, manager, said.
With some 150 bidders, the country auction house had many collectors and dealers on hand and the results were "a really good auction. With bidders from as far away as Washington [D.C.], the competition was very strong," de Haas reported.
One reason for all the interest was a slant front desk signed by Jacob and Elijah Saunderson, Salem, Mass. The 1794 desk was in remarkable condition, and de Haas said they had numerous calls on it, as well as many who showed up to inspect it in person. Originally made for William Luscomb, the desk sold to a collector on the phone for $14,950.
Also recalling American Revolutionary times were two finely carved wooden folk art figures, quite clearly Ben Franklin and John Adams, that sold for $9,200 to a dealer/collector in the room.
"Furniture has to be good or the door is still closed," de Haas said. "It has to be Eighteenth Century with impeccable provenance, and then it moves." Case in point, a New Hampshire dealer in the room went to $14,950 for an outstanding Eighteenth Century drop leaf table. It had ball and claw feet and the drop leaves were full-sized and with a pretty curve, making the fully opened table an oval.
From the same estate as the William Luscomb desk, an Eighteenth Century cherry highboy sold at $8,625. "The consignor thought the two pieces had been acquired at the same time and they were very similar in construction, but it was finding the signature that made the desk so special," de Haas said.
An outstanding Eighteenth Century drop leaf table with ball and claw feet sold to a New Hampshire dealer in the room for $14,950.
Other furniture highlights were an English table with stretcher base, Eighteenth Century, that realized $5,750; an Italian table from a private estate went out at $4,600; another drop leaf table, this one with square leaves and ball and class feet, brought $3,450; an early, probably late Seventeenth or early Eighteenth Century, French three-drawer chest, with later paint decoration, sold at $3,680 (de Haas said the construction was "all there"); and a charming bowfront period chest sold for $1,150.
One of the most interesting pieces of art was a glass sculpture signed by Picasso. Titled "Centauro Verde Scritte Bleu," 1960, it was one of only three known to have been made; it had been broken, however, but was complete. A New Jersey collector found it irresistible and bought it for $5,462, a "good buy" according to de Hass, despite the condition issues. A seven-piece Tiffany desk set in the Venetian pattern realized $3,335, and a Tiffany bronze hall mirror with candelabra on either side went to $1,380.
A 30-by-30-inch, oil on canvas street scene of a village by Antonio Pietro Martino (1902–1988), a Pennsylvania Impressionist, sold to a collector for $9,200. Then a gouache signed by Gilbert Atencio (1930–1995) of an Indian with a drum went to $1,092. The 16-by-25-inch "Indian Drummer" sold to an art gallery in Santa Fe, N.M., which is where the Native American artist lived most of his life.
This pair of finely carved wood folk art figures of Ben Franklin and John Adams realized $9,200.
The auction house had two large collections of Fitzhugh and Canton china. The Fitzhugh Chinese Export ware sold to a collector for $6,900, rounding out a strong sale.
"This was a sale that had some great things and the market has loosened up — the good stuff is moving," de Haas concluded.
All prices reported include the 15 percent buyer's premium.
Hudson Valley is at 432 Main Street. For more information, 845-838-3049 or
www.hudsonvalleyauctioneers.com
.
