An arresting Nineteenth Century folk art portrait of Henriette Josepha Myers signed "J.B. Gregory/ artist” sold for $184,000.
:Busy previews and a full house signaled a strong sale for John McInnis Auctioneers' November 7 sale, where the focus was on fine paintings fresh from area collections.
The star was the compelling Nineteenth Century folk art portrait of Henriette Josepha Myers signed "J.B. Gregory/ artist" in untouched condition that came off the bedroom wall in Newburyport and sold for $184,000 to a collector-dealer on the phone. The painting, estimated at $30/50,000, was remarkable for its rendering of the child's face and skin and for the detail and vibrant color of her basket of fruit and the rug on which she sat. The picture had been reframed with a 1970s frame, which was removed to better display the painting. To date, no information on Gregory, presumed to be an itinerant artist, or the sitter has appeared.
It was a very good day for paintings. A signed Venetian view of a back canal with gondoliers by Rubens Santoro eclipsed its $30/50,000 estimate when it sold on the phone for $80,500. The painting drew international interest and is headed back to Italy. Auctioneer John McInnis said the New Hampshire consignor thought she might buy a new car if the picture did well. She may be able to afford several now as she was the source of several paintings that sold well.
A Connecticut oil on canvas portrait of Stonington whaling captain John P. Rice, known in his day as Bony Rice, was unsigned. It was thought to be by itinerant artist Isaac Sheffield (1798-1845), who painted a number of portraits of New London captains. The painting opened at $22,000 and ended when it went to a phone bidder for $66,125. The New London County Historical Society, which owns several sea captain portraits by Sheffield, had hoped to acquire it for its collection, but the estimate alone ($10/15,000) was too rich for the group's purse. The portrait came from a Hampton, N.H., collection and went to a Southern collector.
The Venetian view with gondoliers by Rubens Santoro went to an Italian buyer on the phone for $80,500.
Alfred T. Bricher's evocative signed watercolor "Land's End at Dusk" came from a Chelmsford, Mass., collection and sold in the room to Newton, Mass., sculptor, painter and dealer David Kasman for $17,825. Kasman, whose work is esteemed highly and exhibited extensively, also bought two paintings by William Trost Richards, a misty coastal view that came from an Ipswich collection, for $14,950 and "Near Grey Cliff" for $10,350.
As he offered the winning bid of $9,200 on the signed "Winter in Vermont" by Aldro Thompson Hibbard, Kasman observed that this is a good time to buy Hibbard's work. He said this picture is his first Hibbard.
"Hills," thought to be a Marin County, Calif., scene, by San Francisco artist Thaddeus Welch, sold for $6,275. It is headed back to California. The artist's work was the subject of an 1879 exhibit at the Doll and Richards Gallery in Boston.
"Paris," a 1910 oil on panel view by William Emile Schumacher, brought $6,900. The painting came from the same New Hampshire home as the Santoro and a Barbizon landscape by Leon Richet that sold for $4,600.
The Orientalist painting, "The Carpet Vendor" by Italian artist Federico Bartolini, opened at $6,100, just above the high estimate, and realized $8,050, while another Orientalist painting, "Mosque Interior" by Italian artist Pietro Pavesi, drew $4,600.
John McInnis Auctioneers is a family enterprise. Pictured with his father is Joseph McInnis, who handles Internet bidding and some phones.
A bookend pair of Continental oil on canvas still lifes, thought to be from the Seventeenth Century, realized $4,313. A still life of raspberries in a glass bowl by Carducius Plantagenet Ream was signed and sold for $4,025, while a signed Ream still life with fruit and a knife brought $1,725.
Bryant Chapin's signed still life with fruit realized $4,025. It was fruity all around as an oil on canvas still life with a basket of peaches by the Rhineland-born August Laux sold for $2,300.
Fresh material from Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts homes kept bidders in their seats to the end of the auction.
A Nineteenth Century iron boneshaker by G.H. Mercer and Monod of New York and bearing the metal label of the makers that identified it as "The Monod" brought $6,325 from an absentee bidder. It came from a Haverhill, Mass., home.
A Nineteenth Century Chinese silk lady's robe embroidered with sprays of wisteria and butterflies on a vivid red ground was highly sought after and brought $10,350 against the estimated $800–$1,200. A Nineteenth Century Imperial Chinese man's robe embroidered with five claw dragons sold for $1,295. Speaking after the sale, auctioneer McInnis said the last time he offered the lady's robe, it could not garner even half the money. Both sold online and are headed to China. A Twentieth Century Chinese pair of green jade table screens with gilt highlights brought $1,150.
The portrait of Stonington, Conn., sea captain John P. Rice by itinerant artist Isaac Sheffield went to a Southern collector for $66,125.
A Handel table lamp with a shade decorated by daisy-like flowers sold for $2,300. A Japanese bronze articulated crab was $1,610, and an Austrian cold painted bronze of two spiders and two aloe plants attracted $690.
An American Aesthetic Movement five-piece tea and coffee service marked "Tiffany and Co. / Union Square" in the original mahogany silk lined case sold for $4,600. A Nineteenth Century Irish silver dish ring with figures, animals and scrolling by Charles Lamb for Waterhouse and Company had a cobalt insert and sold for $1,610.
A group of Nineteenth Century Japanese samurai iron mempo, or facial armor, included an example with detailed facial features, a lacquered neck guard and a hinged nose piece. It had been purchased at Christie's in 2003 and realized $2,415 from a buyer who bought all six examples offered, including another with a black and red lacquered and hinged nose piece and a two-part neck guard, that was purchased at Eldred's in 2003 and sold for $2,070, and yet another with a stiff bristle mustache and a red lacquered interior that was $1,955.
A classical Empire mahogany sideboard with a white marble top and four marble columns with gilt wood capitals flanking cupboard doors sold for $4,140. It came from the Fuller house in North Hampton, N.H. A classical Empire center table that was found with a wood top but was reunited with the original marble top sold for $2,415.
The handsome Nineteenth Century Chinese lady's robe sold online for a handsome $10,350.
An Eighteenth Century Massachusetts Chippendale mahogany dining table on ball and claw feet sold for $3,738, and a Sheraton mahogany four-tier music stand was $1,150.
In a "what is this world coming to" comparison, a large (71½ inches) Hepplewhite serving table with a serpentine top drew $2,013, and a 1920s Hepplewhite-style bowfront server that was 67 inches was $1,955.
A Mid-Century Modern round "Chan" coffee table by Philip and Kelvin Laverne with an acid etched bronze and pewter top on an octagonal base brought $3,220 from an absentee bidder, while an Eighteenth Century French Provincial fruitwood cabinet with two arched doors sold for $1,725.
An E. Howard wall regulator clock in an oak case sold for $2,875, but bidders passed on an Aaron Willard tall clock. A Nineteenth Century 19½-inch carved wood articulated artist's figure sold for $1,825.
A group of Nineteenth Century Rose Medallion porcelain pieces attracted attention: a 16-inch punch bowl was $2,588 on the phone. A bough pot tureen with a scene of women playing a board game attracted no small presale interest and brought $2,588, and a serving platter was $1,150 from the same buyer.
All prices reported include the 15 percent buyer's premium. For information, 800-822-1417 or
www.mcinnisauctions.com
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