By R. Scudder Smith
OSSIPEE, N.H. -- There could be no better description than "fresh
to the market" for the pair of paintings sold by Gary R. Wallace
on Monday evening, August 5. The oil portraits on wood panels by
Asahel Powers were not hung at the time they were consigned, but
were fully protected, tucked away in a closet.
"We did an auction for a family in New London," Gary said, "and
that family referred us to people who were selling a Civil War
collection that had been stored in an attic." That sale brought
in more than $250,000 and thus Gary Wallace Auctioneers was the
obvious choice when it came to selling the paintings.
The panels measure 26½ by 39 inches each and the sitters are
Captain Daniel Cobb and Lucy Stevens Cobb, Windham, Vt., 1831.
They were consigned from a direct descendent and were offered for
the first time. The works have a strong provenance and have been
exhibited at the museum in Springfield, Vt., and at Colonial
Williamsburg, in addition to having been published.
The presale estimate for the pair was $100/150,000, "and that may
be conservative," Gary said three days before the sale. He
indicated that the estimate was based on what research could be
done on Powers' works. The pair of paintings sold for $275,000
including the buyer's premium. The buyer was Bill Samaha.
He noted that there had been great interest in the paintings,
especially following the first advertisement. "However, we were
still getting calls right up until the sale; one dealer flew in
to have a look at them, and many dealers and collectors stopped
by," he said. All six lines coming into the auction gallery were
reserved well in advance of the sale and a good number of
would-be buyers were in attendance.
Gary Wallace generally runs his sales on Saturday nights, but
held this one on Monday so as not to conflict with the sale
Northeast Auctions was running in Manchester. And why were the
paintings the first lot sold at 6 pm? "I am a country auctioneer,
you might say a 5 and 10 dollar guy, and I would be too nervous
if I held them off till later in the sale," Gary said.
