MARLBOROUGH, MASS. You knew what sort of a day it would be at day one of Skinner’s two-day August 14–15 Americana sale when the first lot sold, an Eighteenth Century miniature paint-decorated box, brought over 12 times its high estimate, finishing at $30,750.
The top lot of the day was a superb pair of fan-back Windsor side chairs, circa 1795, that sold for $55,350 against an estimate of $12,000. The experts in the room agreed the pair of chairs was exceptional. When Arthur Liverant was asked “What makes these chairs great?” he had a simple one word answer — “Everything.”
The chairs had concave crest rails, eight spindles, carved saddle seats, boldly turned legs and original surface of green paint. Several phone lines competed with bidders in the room and they went to one of the phone bidders.
The sale included several pieces of Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century furniture from a collection assembled in the 1930s, a collection of early sealed bottles, several pieces of needlework, delft, Wallace Nutting furniture, other early furniture, paint-decorated boxes, mocha, and more. And if it was great, it brought a very strong price.
A full review of the auction will follow in an upcoming edition.
