The highest price of the sale — $17,220 — was earned by this J.T. Dickman “Bright Eyes” clown shooting gallery target, 1911, 23 by 17 by 17 inches, which used gas-powered lighting to make its eyes glow ($10/15,000).
Review by Kiersten Busch
LONE JACK, MO. — December 29 marked the 20th Annual Between-the-Holidays Auction at Soulis Auctions, which saw 351 lots from multiple estates cross the block. Owner Dirk Soulis was happy to report that the sale had a 100 percent sell-through rate and earned $547,220. “We had a great turnout, and it was a nice throwback to the type of sales we used to have on a regular basis,” he added.
Top-lot status was secured at $17,220 by a J.T. Dickman “Bright Eyes” clown shooting gallery target, which surpassed its $10/15,000 estimate. The 1911 target got its name from its back-lit eyes, which were illuminated with gas-powered lighting. It was marked “Pat’d Sept. 19. 1911 by J.T. Dickman L.A. Cal.,” and had provenance to The Frontier Casino in Las Vegas.
Around 10 additional shooting gallery targets by or attributed to Dickman were offered, crossing the block for prices ranging from $554 for a diamond playing card target, to $5,166 for a heart playing card target. “The Dickman heart-form ‘Poker Target,’ as it was called in the 1921 company catalog, is a classic cross-over piece,” explained Soulis. “It consistently outperforms the other suits in the playing card series, selling for multiples of the other suits in the series. It obviously appeals to buyers for its iconic imagery, rather than just collectors of shooting gallery targets.”
Earning the highest price of the four suits in the card series of shooting gallery targets by J.T. Dickman — $5,166 — was this heart-form example, 14¾ by 10½ by 9¾ inches ($3/4,000).
Soulis’ predictions were correct, as the club and spade from the playing card series sold for $1,230 and $1,169, respectively. He concluded, “I was hoping for more on the playing card shooting gallery targets. I think the newer custom stands and the surface of the targets may have been factors.”
A knockdown deer shooting gallery target with an unknown maker also turned heads, just surpassing its $3/4,000 estimate to make $4,674. According to Soulis, what made this target unusual was its inclusion of the deer, which disappeared when struck. “The deer figures were unusual and not previously documented,” explained Soulis. “The consignor referred to it as ‘classic American redneck,’ with deer targets and red, white and blue.”
A few sterling silver flatware services earned high prices to lead silver, including a 136-piece set of International silverware in the Royal Danish pattern, which were not monogrammed. Landing at the low end of its $8/10,000 estimate, the set earned $8,000. A 39-piece partial service by Reed & Barton in the French Renaissance pattern ($6,765) and a 79-piece Oneida service in the Damask Rose pattern ($4,920) followed behind. Also gaining attention in the silver category was a four-piece tea and coffee service by Conrad Bard & Son in the Philadelphia Coin pattern, which included a teapot, two coffee pots, a creamer and a sugar bowl, and sold for $5,658 ($5/6,000).
These 13 forks were just a selection from the 136-piece sterling silver flatware service by International in the Royal Danish pattern, which set the table for $8,000 ($8/10,000).
Bracelets were popular with bidders, and several earned high prices. A 14K gold basket weave mesh bracelet was one of two pieces to lead the group, sliding onto its new owner’s wrist for $6,150. It weighed 67 grams and was stamped “SBN 14K” on its clasp. Also earning $6,150 was a 14K white gold bracelet set with 36 round brilliant-cut natural diamonds. Other notable bracelets included a polished 14K yellow gold curb link bracelet ($4,920), a 48-link 18K gold bracelet centered with 78 princess-cut diamonds ($4,920), a 14K white gold tennis bracelet set with 42 round full-cut diamonds ($4,674) and an Oscar Friedman bracelet composed of alternating square-cut emeralds and openwork links in 18K white gold ($4,428).
Works of art on paper were topped by an original oil illustration by Rose Cecil O’Neill, the creator of the Kewpie doll and characters. Titled “A Pal For Your Palette,” the circa 1925 work was apparently commissioned by the Hendler Ice Cream Company and purportedly originally came from the Hendler family estate in Baltimore, according to catalog notes. Previously auctioned by Soulis in 2003, it sold for $16,520 this time around and was the second-highest price of the sale. Soulis commented that it “was pursued by members of the International Rose O’Neill Collector’s Foundation and was presumably won by one of them.”
Slightly more than 15 additional lots related to or illustrated by O’Neill, many of them Kewpie related, found new homes, with prices ranging from $18 for a framed print image of Kewpies with balloons done circa 1930s, to $2,460 for an original India ink illustration on paper of three Kewpies jumping over a small boy.
“A Pal For Your Palette” by Kewpie doll creator Rose Cecil O’Neill (American, 1874-1944), circa 1925, oil on artist’s board, 40½ by 30 inches framed, was most likely purchased by one of several Rose O’Neill Collector’s Foundation members bidding on the lot for $16,520 ($10/15,000).
Two oil paintings of farm animals were popular with bidders, one by Hermann Ottomar Herzog and the other by Alfred Montgomery. Herzog’s work depicted several turkeys and other fowl and was “a great example,” according to Soulis. “According to online databases, it had failed to garner an opening bid in November of 2024 and was bought in at an Iowa auction. This time it caught traction and tripled the estimate.” The work earned $5,658. Montgomery’s painting, an untitled work showing sheep and a rooster in a barn, was “an unusual example,” according to Soulis, which may have helped push the work to $5,166.
Three-dimensional art was also offered and was topped by a figural and relief carved folk art cane, which was purchased by “a household name among American folk art dealers,” according to Soulis. “[It] had previously made the final cut on a 2014 episode of Antiques Roadshow in Kansas City, where Allan Katz estimated it could bring $4,500 at auction. I knew it was good, but wasn’t sure how good, so I gave it a simple estimate and let the market decide, which it would have done regardless.” The cane almost doubled its Antiques Roadshow expectations, making $8,260, certainly besting Soulis’ $1/1,500 estimate.
Manufactured by well-respected Swiss music box maker Benigne Amedee Bremond, this Swiss cylinder music box, 12½ by 34 by 15½ inches, was unique because of its 187 teeth and was “exhibition grade”; it sounded off at $7,995 ($4/8,000).
Soulis was also excited to highlight the success of a Swiss cylinder music box made by Benigne Amedee Bremond, which played a tune to $7,995. “The music box was exhibition grade with its relatively enormous cylinder and comb of 187 teeth, compared to the more typical number of less than 100. Together they made long overtures and complex arrangements possible with greater tonal projection. It had other unusual features, like a heavy brass plaque listing the tunes rather than a paper song sheet, and an original oil painting inside the ornate case. Benigne Amedee Bremond was a highly respected Swiss music box maker.”
Soulis’ next auction will span February 21-22, featuring antique Caucasian rugs from the collection of John Adair on day one and fine art and jewelry from various estates and collections on day two.
Prices quoted include buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, 816-697-3830 or www.soulisauctions.com.
