The top lot of the auction was this Cartier diamond, emerald and enamel sailboat brooch in platinum that attained $28,800 ($3/5,000).
Review & Onsite Photos by Andrea Valluzzo
FREEHOLD, N.Y. — On what felt like a crisp fall morning, Carlsen Gallery nearly filled its auction hall, welcoming a crowd of about 50 attendees who were players on many of the top lots, for its September 20 auction. Bidding was also bolstered by robust phone and internet action, with staffers manning five phones during the sale. The event, Carlsen’s anniversary auction, celebrated 35 years in this 5,000-square-foot location and 42 years in business altogether.
Auctioneer Russ Carlsen, who runs the firm with his wife, Abby, and whose son, Josh, has grown up in the business and is now taking a leadership role, said the company used to rent space from another auctioneer when they first did auctions but were able to buy this space more than three decades ago.
“Every time I had a good sale, the rent would go up,” he said, explaining what prompted their purchase of this building. “I have to thank them to this day.”
Of this particular auction, which had a mix of furniture, art, silver and jewelry and some statement pieces, Carlsen said he was pleased with its performance. “I was very well satisfied with the results and I thought it was well attended. Good things continue to bring substantial results, and we had some nice results even towards the end of the sale. The crowd was active right to the end, which warmed my heart.”
This 1953 Citroën Familiale Traction Avant with “suicide” doors drove off the block for $10,200 ($10/20,000).
The auction began with a featured lot, a 1953 Citroën Familiale Traction Avant with right-hinged “suicide” doors, that opened at $5,000. It was parked outside the auction gallery and drew lots of presale interest. A phone bidder took the car at $10,200. “It was a great looking car and [the previous owners] did a ground-up restoration on it,” Carlsen said.
Jewelry then carried the auction for the next few dozen lots and mostly came from one estate in Woodstock, N.Y., a woman whose mother originally owned the pieces. The auction’s overall top lot was a Cartier diamond, emerald and enamel sailboat brooch in platinum that attained $28,800. It sold to a phone bidder, and when the hammer came down, the gallery burst into a round of applause. “Cartier is a magic word, and stylistically it was just a beautiful object. We were very happy with how it did,” Carlsen noted. Another standout was a beryllium-treated sapphire set in 14K white gold with green stones and diamond accents that sold for $8,125.
When a Newport, R.I., or Boston blockfront chest-on-chest with a broken-arch bonnet top and bracket feet, circa 1760-90, came across the block, Carlsen described the piece as a “major piece of furniture.” Bidders clearly agreed, driving the chest on chest from its $5,000 opening bid to $18,000, easily pastsing its $4/8,000 estimate.
This Newport or Boston blockfront chest-on-chest with broken-arch bonnet top and bracket feet, circa 1760-90, realized $18,000 ($4/8,000).
Another robust performer in the furniture category was an English Chippendale wake table with beaded Chippendale square legs that made $9,000. A form with strong local interest was an Eighteenth Century American gumwood kas from New York’s Hudson Valley that sold mid-estimate at $7,500.
A set of 12 sterling silver service plates with an 11¼-inch diameter, having an embossed floral and scroll border, also bested its estimate to attain $15,000.
Leading a group of nearly 60 paintings across the block was a signed oil on canvas by Anthony Thieme depicting a New England waterfront that went out at $7,200.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. The firm’s next sale will be its annual post-Thanksgiving auction, either November 29 or the following Sunday, December 6. For information, www.carlsengallery.com or 518-634-2466.
