A diverse array of antiques were really on the move in a spate of recent auctions that saw a ship sailing off the coast of Gloucester take top lot status at Eldred’s Marine Sale at $50,400 while an early Lionel model train chugged down the auction block at Cordier for $24,000 and a Mobil Pegasus child’s coin-op ride-on toy galloped to $109,250. Highlights across the board were diverse, ranging from a Leica M3 rangefinder at Clarke Auction Gallery, $15,360, to a Seth Thomas fashion calendar clock that brought $4,466 at Antique American Clocks. For these highlights and others, keep reading.
Early Leica Picture-Perfect For Clarke
LARCHMONT, N.Y. — A Leica M3 “One Corner” double-stroke rangefinder camera, manufactured in 1954, was a notable highlight in Clarke Auction Gallery’s Summer Sizzler Estates auction on July 26. One of the earliest M3 cameras that Leica produced, this example featured the desirable long strap lugs and no “L” seal. The lens accompanying the camera was a Leica Summicron 50mm f/2 from 1955, one of about 5,000 examples made. An online buyer snapped it up for $15,360 ($2/3,000). For information, www.clarkeny.com or 914-833-8336.
French Cabinet Displays Well At Burd Street
SHIPPENSBURG, PENN. — Burd Street Auctions’ July 31 sale was led by a Louis XIV ebonized and brass-inlaid display cabinet on stand that was bid to $2,500. Inside its double doors was a mirrored interior with two glass shelves that were added in the Twentieth Century. Against ebonized ground, the cabinet’s façade was decorated with intricate brass inlay and had ormolu escutcheons. Altogether it stood 68⅞ inches tall. For information, www.burdst.com or 717-216-0152.
Nautical Painting Sails Off At Eldreds
EAST DENNIS. MASS.— Eldred’s Auction Gallery Marine Sale August 6-7 saw a fine and well-known nautical painting take top-lot status on day two. The work, “Off Eastern Point Light, Gloucester, 1874,” an oil on canvas by Francis Augustus Silva (New York, 1835-1886), attained $50,400 from a buyer bidding on Eldred’s online platform. The painting had provenance to Nathaniel Harris of Dedham, Mass., Vose Galleries, Boston, and a private collection in Vermont and then a Seattle collection. It appeared on a Season 17 episode of PBS’s Antiques Roadshow that aired May 13, 2013. For information, www.eldreds.com or 508-385-3116.
Lowboy Brings High Price At Americana Auctions
REHOBOTH, MASS.— Leading Americana Auctions’ Fine & Diverse August Estates Auction August 8 was a period Philadelphia Chippendale lowboy that sold over estimate to take $7,700. The circa 1760 mahogany lowboy (or possibly highboy base) had ball and claw feet, carved knees, fluted quarter columns and a shell-carved center drawer. Measuring 35½ inches tall by 45½ inches long by 23½ inches deep, it had a single-piece top with shaped corners. For information, www.americanaauctions.com or 508-771-1722.
Pegasus Rider Takes Off At Matthews
NOKOMIS, ILL. — A rare Mobil Pegasus coin operated kiddy rider sold for $109,250 at Matthews Auction July 31 on the second day of a two-day auction of the Bonenberger Estate. This sale was the third for this estate at Matthews and also featured gas pumps, globes, signs and more. Measuring 69 by 67 by 69 inches overall, the Pegasus ride-on was one of five rides originally built for a 1953 World’s Fair that was planned for St Louis, Mo. When the fair was cancelled, Mobil gave the five rider toys to its top-performing sales districts. For information, www.matthewsauctioneers.com or 276-530-1900.
Lionel Train Tops Cordier
HARRISBURG, PENN.— One of the rarest surviving pieces in early Lionel history captivated collectors when a circa 1916 Lionel No. 705 “Hudson Tubes” locomotive realized $24,000 at Cordier Auctions July 23 at a consignment and estate auction. Commissioned around 1916 for the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad, the No. 705 was never offered as a cataloged Lionel production toy. Instead, it was created as an exact-scale reproduction of one of the railroad’s electric trains for exhibition in New York. For information, www.cordierauction.com or 717-731-8662.
Italian Majolica Plates Glisten With Cornell
BELLPORT, N.Y. — At Cornell Auctions, Objects & Trade on August 1, a pair of Italian Umbrian Deruta majolica wall plates led the firm’s August August Auction. These antique lusterware ceramic plates measured 9⅛ inches in diameter each and were marked to the reverse, though the maker was unknown. After a tough bidding war, an online buyer brought them home for $5,313 ($1,5/5,000). For information, www.cornellauctions.com or 631-289-9505.
Rare Document Engraving Declares Victory For Wooten
CAMDEN, S.C. — Summer Collections at Auction was the title of Wooten & Wooten Auctioneers’ August 1 sale that featured 619 lots across all collecting categories. Topping the list at the sale’s close was an engraving of Thomas Jefferson’s original rough draft of the Declaration of Independence. Printed in 1829 in Charlottesville, Va., by Charles Toppan of Philadelphia Excellent, the four-page document was from a steel engraving commissioned to be included in the first edition of Jefferson’s Writings, edited by the third president’s grandson Thomas Jefferson Randolph. This first-edition example was stored professionally and brought $20,000 ($10/15,000). For information, www.wootenandwooten.com or 866-570-0144.
Seth Thomas Calendar Clock At Antique American Clocks
LEXINGTON, KY. — A sealed bid sale of antique clocks conducted by Antique American Clocks that ended August 2 realized $111,368 overall and was led by a rare Seth Thomas fashion calendar clock that took $4,466 (pictured). Other notable sales included a Foster Campos diamond-head banjo clock at $3,190 and three Seth Thomas off-center pillar and scroll clocks, all selling to the same Boston collector for a combined total of $7,103. For information, www.antiqueamericanclocks.com or 859-312-9012.
