More than 300 lots of Arts and Crafts furniture and accessories were offered at auction on January 28 at John Fontaine ‘s Auction Gallery. The sale got off to a quick start at 5 pm on Friday evening with a discovery sale that featured a wide assortment of period materials ranging from furniture to metalwork.

The first lot to be offered during the discovery portion was a small Roseville vase that was bid on by several in the gallery with it selling at $287; a signed Rookwood vase in a vellum glaze was up next with it hammering down at $460. The first piece of furniture to cross the block went reasonably as a Harden rocker sold at $235, a Limbert armchair realized $230, and a small Gustav taboret table brought $258.

The top lot among the discovery items was a Gustav double-door bookcase with thru-tenons and marked with a large red label at $4,312. A Harden four-piece living room set consisting of a settle, two rockers and an armchair, which came in too late to be advertised, did well selling at $3,162. Other top lots from the discovery portion included an L&JG Stickley pedestal dining table with two leaves at 1,265, and a Lifetime desk brought $920.

A Gustav drop front desk in a dark finish brought $9,775.

The regular session of the sale got underway promptly at 6 pmwith the first lot to be offered bringing a solid price as anL&JG Stickley sideboard sold for $2,530. A Limbert server witharched apron was next with it hammering down at $1,322, an L&JGV-back slatted settle realized $2,242, and a small clipped cornerlamp table sold for $1,380.

It was not long before the item that virtually everyone had come to see crossed the auction block, a rare Gustav Stickley early double-door bookcase with keyed tenons and gallery top. The piece had been consigned from a home in New Jersey, according to auctioneer John Fontaine, and it still retained the original key that had a stylized “S” handle. Bidding on the lot opened on the floor at $5,000 and progressed rapidly with several phone bidders getting in on the action. Competition narrowed to one bidder on the floor and a single telephone participant, with the phone eventually winning out at $29,325.

Several Morris chairs were offered with a Gustav bow arm bringing the most at $5,750, a #332 Morris chair with slatted sides realized $4,600, and an early three-slat Morris chair brought $3,450.

A Gustav drop front desk in a dark finish that had been consigned from the same New Jersey home as the bookcase did well with two phone bidders and a buyer in the room chasing the lot. Opening at $3,000, the piece bounced back and forth with it selling to the phones at $9,775.

A Gustav table brought $4,600.

A couple of dining sets were sold with a set by L&JGconsisting of a sideboard, server, china cabinet, table and fourchairs selling reasonably at $9,200, while a Lifetime set includingsix chairs, a table with two leaves, a china cabinet and serverrealized $6,900.

A Gustav table with keyed and tenoned center stretcher attracted attention with six telephone bidders lined up for action. The lot opened at $2,000 and was soon hammered down to one of the phone bidders for $4,600.

A three-drawer writing table by Gustav in an early dark finish also attracted a great deal of attention from telephone bidders with it initially hammering down to a buyer in the room at $8,050.

A telephone bidder who had inadvertently been missed interrupted the sale when he insisted on speaking with the auctioneer about the problem. Mr Fontaine refused to put the lot back up as it had already been sold, but the persistent phone bidder would not take no for an answer. The auctioneer finally asked the successful bidder what he would take for the lot. After a few tense moments, “$11,000” was called out from the buyer in the rear of the room, a price that the telephone bidder accepted.

Prices printed include the 15 percent buyer’s premium charged.