Robert Todd Lincoln, the firstborn son of Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd, rose to the rank of Secretary of War under Presidents James Garfield and Chester Arthur. Following this, he pivoted to diplomacy as Minister to Great Britain, which is a position now called Ambassador. As Lincoln served up American peace, he was gifted a Tiffany & Co, silver flask by US Major James Clarence Post, engraved “a souvenir of his friend.” Everyone knows there’s nothing that says “keep the peace” quite like sharing a drink that spontaneously appears from the depths of one’s pocket. The flask joins other top lots from around the United States in this week’s Top Picks.
COWAN’S
Sale Date: February 22–23, 2019
Lot 700
Robert Todd Lincoln Silver Presentation Flask, Tiffany
Circa 1890, a silver flask with engraved presentation To / Robert T. Lincoln / as a souvenir of his friend / James Clarence Post, the lid with monogram of Robert Todd Lincoln. Marked Tiffany & Co / Paris on neck; 6 inches high.
Estimate: $6/8,000
GUERNSEY’S
Sale Date: February 20–21, 2019
Lot 566
Houdini Flight Photograph
Original 1910 snapshot of Houdini’s Australia flight, hand-labeled, with a signed statement from a friend of Houdini’s family.
Estimate: $400/600
ARTEMIS GALLERY
Sale Date: February 21, 2019
Lot 144D
Aztec Volcanic Stone Solar Disc
Pre-Columbian, Mexico City region, Aztec, Post-classic Mexico, circa 1400 to 1500 CE. A diamond-shaped volcanic stone, weathered to a dramatic black, with a large, round solar disc motif at its center and additional carving on the projecting sides. At the center of that circle is a sun image with an anthropomorphic face — the deity Tonatiuh, 16½ by 16¼ by 5½ inches.
Estimate: $50/70,000
POSTER AUCTIONS INTERNATIONAL
Sale Date: February 24, 2019
Lot 262
Underground / Power
Design by E. McKnight Kauffer (1890–1954), 24-3/8 by 39 inches. Published by Vincent Brooks, Day & Son, London, 1931.
Estimate: $12/15,000
HERITAGE
Sale Date: February 21–22, 2019
Lot 91068
Superman No. 1 (DC, 1939)
CGC VG+ 4.5, cream to off-white pages. Unrestored copies of this super key are very difficult to come by. Heritage has never offered an unrestored copy graded higher than 5.0 to date, and gpanalysis.com shows no sales of unrestored copies graded higher than 5.5.
Current Bid: $240,000
RAGO
Sale Date: February 23–24, 2019
Lot 936
Jean Cocteau (1889–1963)
Art Deco triple-level folding server, France, circa 1950s. Mixed metals, enamel, resin; closed 11 by 8 inches.
Estimate: $800-1,200
THE COBBS
Sale Date: February 23, 2019
Lot 61
New Jersey Blue Painted Bakers Box
Nineteenth Century, having an unusual arched cutout base which is found in northern New Jersey area supporting a maple and pine case. Lift top and centrally divided interior, 32½ inches high.
Estimate: $400/700
APPLEBROOK AUCTIONS
Sale Date: February 21, 2019
Lot 78
Pair Of Tiffany & Co Sterling New Years Horns
Measuring 10½ inches high, gross weight 380.4 grams.
Estimate: $500-1,000
KAMELOT
Sale Date: February 23, 2019
Lot 40
Donald Deskey Dresser
Four drawer, labeled Charak, 31 inches high.
Estimate: $700/900
