Notable lots that crossed the block in our December 31, 2021 issue begin with a 13.89 carat platinum and diamond ring that exceeded its $60/80,000 estimate to sell for $120,000. The Genesis issue Of Walt Disney Comics, dating back to 1940, originally cost 10 cents and sold for $4,130. In Mount Kisco, N.Y, an Asian-style stone double inkwell with metal feet and rim brought $9,600. These and more promise an interesting read.

Platinum & Diamond Ring Of 13.89 Carats Leads At Abell Auction

COMMERCE, CALIF. – Abell Auction presented a fine art, antiques, Twentieth Century design and jewelry auction on December 5. The sale featured property from prominent California estates and was highlighted by a collection of French Impressionist paintings and drawings and a selection of choice jewelry and luxury goods, including items from the estate of television and radio personalities Jack Benny and Mary Livingstone. Topping the sale was a platinum and fancy yellow diamond ring (13.89 carats, SI1 clarity), which outperformed its $60/80,000 estimate to sell for $120,000. The ring centered one cut-corner rectangular modified brilliant-cut fancy yellow diamond with two trillion cut diamonds. For information, www.abell.com or 800-404-2235.

Birds Of A Feather Gather In Robin Hill Triptych At Weschler’s

ROCKVILLE, MD. – Robin Hill (American, b 1932), an active artist, is known for bird-ornithology painting, some portraits, animals and still life. His “Birds of the Chesapeake Bay,” a triptych watercolor and gouache on paper board, with each signed and dated 83 lower center features blue herons, cattle egrets, great egrets and green herons. The triptych was bid to $21,984 in Weschler’s December 10 sale. This work was commissioned by the current owner directly from the artist in 1983. For information, www.weschlers.com or 202-628-1281.

Genesis Issue Of ‘Walt Disney Comics’ Flies In Maryland

TIMONIUM, MD. – The first issue of the first volume of Walt Disney Comics sold for $4,130 in Richard Opfer Auctioneering’s December 16 sale. The issue was dated for October 1940 and originally cost 10 cents. The copy was loose and ungraded. Walt Disney Comics serves as an anthology comic book for the company and is still in production today – it is the longest running Disney comic book in the United States and one of the best-selling comic books of all time. For information, www.opferauction.com or 410-252-5035.

Bidders Say ‘I Do’ To 1831 Marriage Fraktur At Rachel Davis Fine Arts

CLEVELAND, OHIO – The December 4 sale at Rachel Davis Fine Arts featured a Nineteenth Century Ohio/Kentucky marriage fraktur commemorating the marriage of Robert McCain and Susan Fisher in 1831. It was painted by W.L. Williams and sold for $21,600 despite some staining and discoloration. Framed, it measured 14 by 18 inches. For information, www.racheldavisfinearts.com or 216-939-1190.

Rococo-Style Porcelain Sets The Table At Winter Associates

PLAINVILLE, CONN. – Winter Associates’ December 13 auction was filled with paintings, prints, antiquities, silver, porcelain and more. Leading the lineup was a set of 20 pieces of rococo-style porcelain that nearly doubled its $1,200 high estimate to sell for $3,120. There were two-tier tazzas, each with a polychrome decoration figure in Eighteenth Century dress over a splayed standard connecting two graduated round dishes with reticulated rims, hand painted floral and figural cartouches on a turquoise ground with gilding, both with crossed sword marks in underglaze blue. Fifteen matching round plates, a square bowl, pentagonal bowl and a round bowl from a two-piece tazza completed the lot. For information, 860-793-0288 or www.auctionsappraisers.com.

Asian-Style Stone Inkwell A Signature Lot At Benefit Shop Foundation

MOUNT KISCO, N.Y. – “The piece was unsigned, so we had no information and were blown away by the result,” said the Benefit Shop Foundation’s Anna Graziosi about a highlight from the firm’s December 15 Red Carpet sale. An Asian-style stone double inkwell with no apparent inscriptions or mark, with metal feet and rim, measuring 3½ by 5½ by 3½ inches, sold for $9,600. For information, www.thebenefitshop.org or 914-864-0707.

Wilkinson Maritime Scene Leads At Elder’s Fine Art Winter Sale

NOKOMIS, FLA. – Ships in harbor at the Pool of London drew bidders at Elder’s fine art winter auction on December 18 as an oil on canvas by Norman Wilkinson (British, 1878-1971) doubled its high estimate to sell for $10,000. It was the firm’s final auction for the year and included Asian antiques, continental furniture, fine art, jade and jewelry. Wilkinson was born in Cambridge, England, and attended Berkhamsted School in Hertfordshire and St Paul’s Cathedral Choir School in London. His early artistic training occurred in the vicinity of Portsmouth and Cornwall, and at the Southsea School of Art, where he would also later teach. He also studied with seascape painter Louis Grier. At age 21 he studied academic figure painting in Paris, but was already interested in maritime subjects. For information, 941-488-1005 or www.eldersantiques.com.

Louis XV Armoire Carves Nice Price In 5th Avenue Sale

STAMFORD, CONN. – An Eighteenth Century Louis XV armoire, wonderfully carved with all original hardware, was a standout at 5th Avenue Auctions December 11, going out at $1,900. “This exquisite period armoire is simply stunning with the finest of carvings, having double doors that open to a fitted shelved interior,” said the auction house. It was 104½ inches high, 68½ inches wide and 28½ inches deep. For information, www.5thavenueNY.com or 212-247-1097.

Fire Engine Carriage Lanterns Light Up Flannery’s Winter Wonderland Estate Auction

PINE BUSH, N.Y. – A pair of brass and painted glass fire engine carriage lanterns, made by Gleason & Bailey Ltd., of New York, rode to the front of Flannery’s Estate Services’ December 13 Winter Wonderland Estate Antiques auction. Measuring 25 inches in length and each featuring a reverse painted image of a hand holding a flame aloft, with the number 1 painted on other panels, the pair had been estimated at $800-$1,200 but they generated enough heat among bidders to close at $5,700. For information, www.flanneryestateservices.com or 845-744-2233.