Case Antiques Summer Fine Art & Antiques Auction
July 9 (9am) & 10 (1pm) – ET
Knoxville, TN
www.caseantiques.com
info@caseantiques.com
Knoxville: (865) 558-3033
Nashville: (615) 812-6096
Previews by Appointment.

KNOXVILLE, TENN. — A veritable time capsule of treasures from two old Southern families — ranging from a rare 1830 Native American portrait to Civil War generals’ letters and Georgian jewelry — will cross the block July 9-10 at Case Auctions, in a two-day sale that also includes an original Leroy Neiman painting, a rare Swiss automaton watch and an important African American quilt.

The auction features objects from multiple estates and private and museum collections. Several are from the estate of Mary Bright Wilson, a former middle Tennessee resident whose family moved from North Carolina and Virginia to settle the area in the late 1700s, and from the Kentucky collection of Peggy Mahoney and Michael Mahoney, whose family tree includes breeders of well-known thoroughbreds and a Confederate general.

One of the key highlights of the Wilson collection is a rare miniature portrait of a Native American brave named Kinheche or Kin-hi-chee, painted in 1830 during a historic summit between Chickasaw leaders and President Andrew Jackson in Franklin, Tenn. Among the observers at the event were a prominent local gentleman, Guilford Dudley, and his 22-year-old daughter Caroline. According to family history, Miss Dudley (who may have been an art teacher at a nearby Female Academy) was so intrigued by Kinheche’s appearance in his tribal garb that she painted his likeness, intending to give it to him, but was advised by the chief not to do. She died two years later,

The Wilson collection also includes miniature portraits of North Carolina Revolutionary War general Thomas Eaton and his daughter Harriet, as well as an archive of Civil War letters saved by members of the Fulton family of Fayetteville, Tenn., which sent four sons into battle on the Confederate side. The Wilson collection also includes antique diamond and gold jewelry worn by women in the family, Chinese paintings brought back from the Far East by naval officer James Fulton in 1860 and dating from the Civil War through World War I are war mementos.

The Mahoney collection features several examples of Kentucky furniture, such as a rare Windsor settee attributed to William Challen of Lexington, a petite blockfront Sheraton hunt board and a sugar chest with unusual serpentine skirt, all of which originally graced family homes. The Mahoney collection also includes a Confederate Thomas Griswold foot officer’s sword and scabbard, three vintage Rolex watches, a collection of Georgian, Art Deco and other jewelry and a collection of silver, including a Gorham Martele tray.

The auction also features a diverse selection of art. A large Leroy Neiman oil on canvas depicting a glittering dinner party from the estate of Palm Beach and Chattanooga publishing executive Margaret Harold Roberts, leads the American paintings. There is also a tonalist watercolor by South Carolina artist Alice Ravenel Huger Smith and a Ralph Blakelock landscape; marine paintings by Earl Collins, Lester Chadbourne and Alex Breede; a collection of regional landscapes by Pennsylvania/New Jersey artist Jeanne Davies; and a collection of Twentieth Century sporting art by David Maas, Chet Reneson, Brett James Smith and Dwayne Harty.

European art standouts include a Flemish School triptych after Quentin Matsys (1466-1530), depicting scenes of Christ’s infancy, and two Rembrandt etchings, “Jan Lutman, Goldsmith,” (state II/III) and “The Return of the Prodigal Son” (state II/III).

Landscapes by two Florida “Highwaymen” artists, Robert Butler and Sam Newton, are available for sale, along with two works by “Memory Painter” Helen LaFrance: one of a tiger and the other depicting the Woolridge Cemetery monuments in her hometown of Mayfield, Ky.

Contemporary works on paper include a Picasso signed collotype, “Le Peintre” (published by Guy Spitzer, circa 1960) and a Lyonel Feininger abstract woodcut, “Dorf.”

A rare Swiss automaton pocket watch attributed to Pierre-Simon Gounouilhou (French/Swiss, 1779-1857) tells both the time, and a story. The double open face watch features a Dutch kitchen scene on one side with various movements that bring it to life, including a woman grinding a mortar and pestle, a crackling fire and chicken rotating on a rotisserie, all in an 18K gold surround.

There are more than 150 lots of silver in the auction, including multiple tea sets. One of the most unusual is a rare Nineteenth Century coin silver repousse tea service chased with scenes of New Orleans’ Jackson Square on one side and images of pelicans on the reverse, reminiscent of those on the Louisiana state seal. There is also a coin silver tea set by Alexander Morin of Philadelphia and a collection of Kentucky coin silver that includes several mint julep cups, two Asa Blanchard ladles and numerous pieces of flatware from rural Kentucky makers.

A well-documented and exhibited African American quilt leads the textile offerings. The applique quilt was made by Josie Covington (1869-1909) of Triune, Tenn., and features a number of applique motifs, including star-shaped flowers, pinwheels, scissors and a central hand. It was included in a traveling exhibition sponsored by the Cleveland Museum of Art and was the cover image for the accompanying catalog. The auction also includes a bright pink Hawaiian Quilt, a Bourbon County, Ky., needlework sampler dating from 1815 and two rare Tennessee samplers, along with an Eighteenth Century Flemish Verdure tapestry and several Persian carpets.

Case’s gallery is at 4310 Papermill Drive. For information, www.caseantiques.com or 865-558-3033.

Alice Ravenel Huger Smith
Ralph Blakelock Oil
Eliz. Rebecca Coffin (NY/MA, 1850-1930)
Follower of Quentin Matsys
Jeanne Davies, “Nantucket,” 1 of 6
1830 Miniature Portrait of Chickasaw, Kinheche
David Maas O/B, 24” x 36”
Dwayne Harty Oil, 40” x 60”
J. Clayton Adams, “Silver Dart,” Exhibited Royal Academy 1893
Leroy Neiman Oil, 36” x 48”
Sonia Delaunay Sgd.
Pierre-Simon Gounouilhou Automaton Watch
100+ Lots of Estate Jewelry
Signed Picasso Collotype, pub. Guy Spitzer c. 1960
Picasso Madoura Charger
Art Deco, 9.38 ct t.w.
Estate Luxury Handbags including Chanel
Stephen R. Powell, 31”
Georgian, 3.22 ct t.w.
Attr. Castellani
Chinese Famille Rose Jardinieres
Rare Large Staffordshire Dog
Qing Charger
Stebbins & Co. NY Coin Silver Tea Set
Tiffany Studios “Ninth Century” Pattern Desk Set w/Favrile cabochons, includes 2 Frames
Attr. Quervelle
COMPLETE CATALOG: WWW.CASEANTIQUES.COM
2 Days, 1200+ Lots, featuring property from fine Southern estates and private and museum collections. Previews by Appointment.
20% Buyer’s Premium for Cash, Check, or Certified Funds. Credit Cards also accepted. TN#6045