PLAINFIELD, N.H.— It’s not often that furniture from the Enfield Shaker community is on the market. The sewing desk retained its original red wash, had six dovetailed drawers and a sliding work surface that extended out both front and back. The provenance was impeccable and known to the community of Shaker dealers and collectors. It had been purchased directly from the Enfield Shakers by Helen Bucklin in 1920 and remained in her family until now. With buyer’s premium, it sold for $330,400 to a collector who termed it a “masterpiece.” A Shaker workstand with multiple drawers, from the same collection, sold for $94,400 and will be going to the Enfield Shaker Museum. Shaker expert John Keith Russell termed both pieces “incredible and untouched.” Numerous other pieces in the sale brought five-figure prices, including an overpowering, large cow copper weathervane that sold for $32,450.
A full report will follow.