The top lot of the Andrew Wyeth watercolors was “Gable End.” Shown here with auctioneer Robert Brunk, the piece sold for $204,000.

“The phrase fresh to the market applies,” stated auctioneer Robert Brunk in regard to the impressive and extensive collections that Bob Timberlake had consigned for a two-day, single-owner sale at Brunk Auctions over the weekend of July 15-16. None of the more than 2,000 items of primarily North Carolina antiques have “ever been offered at auction,” commented Brunk, just prior to the start of the sale.

Timberlake, an artist and consummate collector of antiques, had assembled what could be in some cases considered vast quantities of stuff, while other areas of his collections could easily recognized as focused and exuding a great degree of quality. Brunk explained Timberlake and his collections in the forward of the catalog by describing him as a “thoroughly North Carolina man” whose “native state has been fertile ground for his search for interesting objects, many of which he has used in his paintings. He has always been on the lookout for objects which speak to the unique history of the three regions of North Carolina; the mountains, the Piedmont and the coast.”

Timberlake’s collections included a host of regional quilts, handmade musical instruments, Civil War drums, Jugtown and Southern folk pottery, twig furniture, graniteware and an extensive collection of miniatures. An avid sportsman, Timberlake had accumulated perhaps a thousand decoys, a plethora of firearms, fishing equipment ranging from fly-rods to creels, canoes and all sorts of other related materials.

The star of Timberlake’s collections, however, was the art that he had collected over his career – not necessarily things he had created himself, but things that his friends and mentors had created. The list of his friends and acquaintances included names such as Andrew Wyeth, with whom Timberlake exhibited alongside at Hammer Galleries in the early days of their careers. His collection included prints, drawings and watercolors by Wyeth, along with a variety of artwork by other artists such as Norman Rockwell, Grandma Moses, Charles Post, Frank Schoonover, Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, as well as the remainder of the Wyeth clan, including Jamie and N.C.

The Andrew Wyeth watercolor landscape titled “Road to the Mill” sold for $138,000.

The Timberlake collections attracted a huge amount of interest from buyers throughout the world, many of whom bid via the Internet and the telephones. “We mailed over 20,000 flyers to people in all 50 states and also 35 countries,” commented Brunk. The main interest, however, seemed to be among the standing-room-only crowd that filled the spacious auction gallery each day. The auction house reported more than 2,000 absentee bids registered for the auction as well as a host of phone bids. The final tally for the sale was reported at slightly more than $2 million.

The Wyeth artwork attracted the greatest amount of interest and it was regularly dispersed throughout the first session.

The first of the lots to be offered was an illustrated letter with the top half of the first page bearing a pencil drawing of a hay wagon. Estimated at $1,5/3,000, the lot opened for bidding at $1,000 and took off, finally selling for $10,350. A collotype print titled “Cider Barrel” was offered next with it also surpassing estimates bringing $2,875.

It was not long before one of the highly coveted lots of Wyeth artwork crossed the auction block and it would establish a trend that routinely saw estimates thrown by the wayside as bidders battled for the lots. More than 20 telephone bidders were being handled by Brunk’s staff, most from desks with land lines, but numerous others with cellphones pressed to their ears were also involved.

Offered immediately after the collotype was the original study for “Cider Barrel” that carried a presale estimate of $6/12,000. The lot opened to the floor for bidding at $4,000 and quickly sold for $26,450.

The first true indication of where the prices for the Wyeth family artwork came as a Jamie Wyeth gouache of a goose in a basket was offered. Two gentlemen standing in the rear of the room established themselves as the major players for all the Wyeth artwork as the piece was offered. Opening at $10,000, the two battled it out with Beaufort, S.C., dealer Michael Rainey claiming the lot at more than double the presale estimates at $74,750.

The Andrew Wyeth letter was written to a friend who had given him a small Maine-style fishing boat. The top half of the first page was a watercolor depicting the boat on shore with what must have been Wyeth’s cabin in the background. The presale estimate of $5/10,000, had a lot of people thinking that they might be able to own it; once things got going, however, the lot soared to a selling price of $92,000.

A couple lots later the first of the Andrew Wyeth watercolors would be offered. Interest in the lot, titled “Road to the Mill,” had been widespread according to the auction house. Depicting a bright green field of grass and a two lane rutted path meandering towards the distant mill, the watercolor was the most colorful of the offerings. Estimates once again fell by the wayside. Brunk asked for an opening bid of $20,000 and was quickly jumped to $45,000. A bidder in the front row seemed determined to take the lot home, but he dropped out at $90,000 and let the two in the rear of the room finish things up. Atlanta dealer Randy Shaw seemed determined to get the lot as he held his bid number high in the air and never took it down, until eclipsed by Rainey who paid $138,000 for the piece.

“A lot of people examined them carefully and I was pleased that it was not just a case of buying a name,” stated Brunk after the auction. “People were really attracted to the works and bought accordingly, which I think is good; we are always encouraging and hoping for informed buyers and the people that were interested in the Wyeths were an intelligent and informed group of people,” he said.

A while later a second group of Wyeth works were offered and once again Shaw and Rainey battled for the pieces. A colorful watercolor titled “Port Clyde Harbor, 1939” was the next lot to take off with it bringing $97,750, once again going Rainey’s way.

One of the lots that attracted a great deal of attention was a letter that Wyeth had written to a friend that had given him a small Maine-style fishing boat, that he had aptly named the Edward in honor of the donor. The top half of the first page was a watercolor depicting the boat on shore with what must have been Wyeth’s cabin in the background.

“Everyone was attracted to the letter and a lot of people took the time to read it,” stated Brunk. “It was a thank you note for a boat that Wyeth had been given, but someone said, take the writing away and just look at the work itself, and it was a painting; it was a beautifully done rendition of the boat.”

The blue painted cupboard sold at $2,690.

The presale estimate of $5/10,000, had a lot of people thinking that they might be able to own it; once things got going, however, the lot soared to a selling price of $92,000.

The top lot of the Andrew Wyeth watercolors came as a scene of a Pennsylvania farm house was offered. Titled “Gable End,” the stark watercolor was a signature piece for the artist with a snow covered foreground and shadow ladened structure with trees in the background. “Many people felt that was the strongest of all the Wyeth material,” stated Brunk. “A number of people walked up to it and said ‘that’s the one. That’s the best of all of the Wyeth material.'”

Their sentiment rang true and as the lot opened at $50,000 all eyes were on the two in the rear of the room. Shaw was in the action from the start bidding against an absentee bidder to $75,000, at that point Rainey jumped in and the two methodically pushed the price to $204,000 with it finally selling Shaw’s way.

“I was prepared to go to $150,000,” stated Shaw after he had purchased the lot, “but after looking at it, I realized that it was a special work and was able to justify the higher price.” Moments after executing the successful bid, Shaw was approached by Frank Fowler, Wyeth’s representative for the past 35 years, who congratulated the buyer and he commented that “it was the best piece in the auction.” Both Rainey and Shaw stated that they were representing clients.

Several works by N.C. Wyeth were offered with two graphite studies, the first of a fishing boat in rough seas selling at $28,750, while a scene titled “Thoureau Fishing,” a study for a painting used in Thoreau’s book Men of Concord, sold for $52,900. An oil on canvas of a Pennsylvania barn by N.C. did well, as it more than doubled estimates selling to an Internet buyer for $204,000.

The Civil War drum marked The Old North State was captured in the battle at New Bern, N.C. It sold for $32,200 going to Tryon Palace in New Bern, an Eighteenth Century palatial estate that was home to the governor and is now a museum. The boy’s Confederate coat sold for $2,415, and the yellow pine cupboard realized $1,495.

“Exceptional pieces do exceptionally well,” stated Brunk, who further commented, “All in all, the Wyeth family pieces, prints, drawings, watercolors and the oil, brought in just over $1 million.”

Timberlake’s collections were eclectic, yet somehow focused with a North Carolina/Smokey Mountains theme running through them. His collection of folk pottery included face jugs and Jugtown wares with prices ranging from a low of $250 to a high of $800. A large collection of graniteware was well received. Pieces included rare funnels, pots and pans, bowls and coffee services. The top lot from the grouping was a lot of four colorful coffee pots and a lidded canister in greens, reds and blues that sold for $1,610.

Timberlake had also amassed a large collection of painted furniture with a step back cupboard selling at four times the presale estimate, bringing $4,830. Another blue painted cupboard sold at $2,690. Yellow pine pieces were popular with a cupboard selling at $1,495, a table with built-in “lazy Susan” $1,495, and a step-back cupboard at $1,840.

There was a large collection of quilts, many of which had labels from the North Carolina quilt project, a documentation project conducted several years ago. “Southern quilts that are documented are real scarce. They weren’t necessarily the best quilts in design, but they had that region appeal,” stated Brunk. Among the quilts with the project labels was a colorful Tree of Life quilt that sold for $690, and a crib quilt at $575. A nice appliqué quilt with blocks of floral decoration sold for $1,150, and a whitework bride’s quilt made $2,645.

A small collection of Civil War material proved to be popular, with the top lot coming as a drum marked “The Old North State” was offered. The drum, which had been documented as having been made in Asheville and carried into battle by Levi Lamb, a Union soldier listed as a musician with the 21st Massachusetts Infantry, was captured in the battle at New Bern, N.C. The drum, which Timberlake bought in an antiques shop in Massachusetts, captured the interest of numerous people in the crowd, both Civil War collectors and local historians. Bidding on the lot was brisk with it finally selling for $32,200 and going to Tryon Palace, an Eighteenth Century palatial estate in New Bern that was home to the governor and is now a museum.

Other Civil War items included a boy’s Confederate coat that sold for $2,415, and a host of other drums that ranged in price from $125 to $1,150.

Auctioneer Robert Brunk and consignor Bob Timberlake chat before the auction.

Sporting items were offered on the second day of the auction and there were perhaps in excess of a thousand decoys sold, many in large lots. Leading the group of decoys was a lot that consisted of nine Ned Burgess canvasback decoys that sold well above estimates at $9,430.

Eighteen Mason canvasbacks and redheads from the rig of Joe Lewark, Knotts Island, N.C., were offered. Bidding on the lot was spirited, although they ultimately fell short of the estimates selling at $6,670.

An Alvin Wright canvasback decoy did well selling at $6,900, a root-head brant attributed to Walter O’Neal sold at $6,900, and a rig of 18 redhead decoys brought $4,830.

A collection of shotguns attracted a lot of attention with two Parkers bringing the top prices. Leading the group was a 410 gauge Parker by Del Grego with a finely figured stock and exquisite engraving that sold for $19,550. A rare Parker 28 gauge attracted the most attention with the auction gallery reporting calls from throughout the country. Active bidding on this lot saw a price of $11,500 realized. Other 410 gauge shotguns that did well included a W.J. Jeffery that sold at $6,440, a Holland and Holland brought $7,130, and an Armstrong and Co. realized $5,060.

Prices include the 15 percent buyer’s premium charged. The next auction at Brunk’s will take place in early September. For information, 828-254-6846 or www.brunkauctions.com.