Notable sales in our February 19, 2021 issue include an array of lots for every fancy. Standing tall at 100 inches in Heritage Auctions’ Design Signature Sale was “28 Tacoma V” by François Stahly, which sold in the five figures. Not quite as tall but equal in stature was an iron shooting gallery target featuring a drummer at Milestone Auctions. Two framed abstracts by Earl Horter attained a bid of almost 30-times their high estimate at Nadeau’s Auction Gallery. Read on for results for the first patented lethal mousetrap at Roberson’s, a pile of silver Roosevelt dimes at Boyd’s and more.
‘Burnt Tacoma’ Heats Up Heritage Design Signature Sale
DALLAS – Standing tallest in Heritage Auctions’ January 28 Design Signature Sale was “28 Tacoma V” by François Stahly (French/Italian, 1911-2006), which sold for a tidy $45,000. The piece, which measured 100 inches tall and had provenance to the Magen H. Gallery in New York City, William Stewart and a private collection, was the best of a nearly 150-lot sale that totaled $750,706 and included works by George Nakashima (American, 1905-1990), Thomas Molesworth (American, 1877-1977), and Norman Bel Geddes (American, 1893-1958). For information, www.ha.com.
Buddha Rises At Bruneau’s January Sale
CRANSTON, R.I. – Featuring three Buddhas seated on lotus thrones, a Chinese embroidered silk textile sold for $12,500 at Bruneau & Co’s January 28 sale. The auction house said it was from the Qing dynasty or earlier and measured 27¼ by 20¼ inches. The Buddha at top center sits on a floating throne in the sky and has his hands in a dhyana mudra position. For information, www.bruneauandco.com or 401-533-9980.
Allen Stringfellow Works Jam At William A Smith
PLAINFIELD, N.H. – Two works by American artist Allen Stringfellow (1923-2004) featured nicely at William A. Smith’s January 29 sale. The 2001 work “Circus Band,” pictured, was executed in mixed media on paper and measured 16½ by 17½ inches. It sold for $3,540. The circa 2002 “Happy House,” in the same medium brought $3,383. Stringfellow ran the Walls of Art gallery in the Chicago area for many years, his work often features images of jazz and religion. For information, www.wsmithauction.com or 603-675-2549.
First Patented Lethal Mousetrap Snaps For Roberson’s
PINE BUSH, N.Y. – A rare early mouse trap was snapped up for $3,813 at Roberson’s January 30 sale. The auction house noted that the spring-loaded iron example was marked Royal No 1 with a November 4 1879 patent date. Also patented on this date was Edison’s basic carbon-filament lamp and the world’s first cash register by Jacob Ritty. The Royal No 1 was patented by James M. Keep of New York and is credited as the first patented lethal mousetrap. For more information, www.robersonsauctions.com or 845-744-3388.
Bull’s-eye: Complete Drummer Boy Target Leads At Milestone
WILLOUGHBY, OHIO – Measuring 33 inches tall, an iron shooting gallery target featuring a drummer sold for $27,000 in Milestone Auctions’ January 30 sale. The female figure featured carved wood hands and a three-dimensional metal drum. When a bull’s-eye was hit over her right shoulder, she would play the drum. The auction house said most of the paint on it was original and that it had purportedly been on display at the Frazier History Museum in Louisville, Ky. For information, 440-527-8060 or www.milestoneauctions.com.
Mid-Hudson Bidders Wig Out For Wiggins
NEW WINDSOR, N.Y. – Topping Mid-Hudson Auction Galleries’ January 30 auction was a seasonally appropriate painting of New York’s City Hall Park in winter by Guy Wiggins (1883-1962), which brought $10,000 from a private collector. The oil on canvasboard work, which measured 16 by 12 inches, came from a Brooklyn, N.Y., estate and had been estimated at $4/6,000. It was underbid by online bidders. For information, www.midhudsongalleries.com or 914-882-7356.
Horter Abstracts Exhort Enthusiasm From Nadeau’s Bidders
WINDSOR, CONN. – Two framed abstracts, both done in oil on board by Earl Horter (American, 1881-1940), shot to the top of Nadeau’s Auction Gallery’s January 30 Contemporary, Mahogany, Victorian, Art and Decorative Accessories sale. The two, each measuring 8 by 10 inches, dated 1932 and marked Madame Rivas on the reverse, had been estimated at $200/400, but a local collector, bidding on the phone, saw some potential in the works and prevailed against all comers, taking the two for $11,400. For information, 860-246-2444 or www.nadeausauction.com.
Lewitt’s ‘Irregular Form’ Reaches Out At Shannon’s
MILFORD, CONN. – “Irregular Form,” a 1991 painting by Sol Lewitt (American, 1928-2007) sold for $17,500 at Shannon’s January 28 sale. The gouache on paper measured 29-7/8 by 22½ inches and had provenance to the Chester Gallery in Chester, Conn., a town where Lewitt worked, lived out his final years and held a warehouse full of art. For more information, www.shannons.com or 203-877-1711.
Dimes Add Up At Boyd’s Auctions
ELIOT, MAINE- A lot of 459 silver Roosevelt dimes rose to $888 at Boyd’s Auctions’ February 2 sale. The estate lot had a face value of $45.90, the auction house said. Released between 1946 and 1963, Roosevelt dimes hold value largely for their 90 percent silver content today, with collectors prizing uncirculated examples more. For more information, 207-439-6641.
