Review by Madelia Hickman Ring, Editor
DOWNINGTOWN, PENN. — “The sale was great; we are very happy with the results,” said Dierdre Pook Magarelli, president of Pook & Pook, talking about the firm’s annual Spring Americana auction May 1-2. “Bidsquare and PookLive both performed beautifully and we sold 98 percent of the lots, realizing $1,232,522 against a total low/high estimate of $589,800/923,500.”
A 13-star linen American flag, cataloged as the Cowpens/Third Maryland pattern, hand-sewn with stamped stars, set the bar high on the second day, realizing $42,500 from a trade buyer against an estimate of $1/5,2,500. It was the highest-selling of five flags in the auction, which also included a 32-star American linen flag ($4,000), a circa 1863-65 hand-sewn linen 35-star American flag ($2,750), a late Nineteenth Century 13-star flag with both hand and machine stitching ($1,250) and a circa 1898 cotton Cuban flag that had purportedly been captured during the Spanish-American war ($704). All the flags were from the Hanover, Penn., estate of Daniel I. Keys.
“The Burma Road” by Charles Wysocki, acrylic on canvas, 25 by 30 inches, achieved $40,000 from a private collector ($6/9,000).
“The moment I saw it, I tested it out as the cover lot for the catalog and everyone loved it” was Magarelli’s comment about the second-highest selling lot — and one of her favorites — “The Burma Road” by Charles Wysocki (American, 1928-2002). The only work by the modern folk artist in the sale, it came to sale with provenance to the Carson Gallery of Western American Art and an estimate of $6/9,000, but interest pushed it to $40,000 and a home with a private collector.
A rare eagle insignia of the Society of the Cincinnati, with gold and enamel decoration, rounded out the leaderboard with a $37,500 finish. The double-sided medal retained remnants of its original pale-blue and white grosgrain ribbon and carried an estimate of $1/2,000. According to the catalog, it was acquired by its Charles Town, W. Va., seller at Christie’s in the early 1990s.
A private collector won, for $23,750, this painting after Charles Willson Peale titled “George Washington and His Generals at Yorktown,” oil on panel, 21 by 30 ½ inches ($2/4,000).
The same seller sold a Nineteenth Century oil on panel painting after Charles Willson Peale titled “George Washington and his Generals at Yorktown,” which traded at $23,750. A silver mounted small sword, made by Boston silversmith Jacob Hurd (1703-1758) that also came from the same collection more than doubled its high estimate with a $12,500 result. The catalog noted that Hurd was a more prolific sword-maker than his peers but just 10 of his swords are known to exist.
Nearly four dozen lots of stoneware were presented over both days but one that led the field was a jug made by Warne & Letts in South Amboy, N.J. Standing 9¼ inches tall, it had an impressed bird and cobalt decoration and was described as “scarce,” in a “desirable” half-gallon size. Bidders agreed with both assessments, taking it from a $4/6,000 estimate to $30,000.
“A Bay Horse” by Sir Alfred James Munnings, dated “1905,” oil on canvas 20 by 25 inches, rode to $23,750 and a new home with a trade buyer ($20/30,000).
British sporting artist Sir Alfred Munnings (1878-1959), best known for his dog and horse images, had four paintings in the sale. His “A Bay Horse” realized $23,750 and sold within estimate but his dog painting — titled “Lark III” — did not find a buyer with an estimate of $12/18,000. The other two paintings were landscapes; his winter landscape made $22,500 while an untitled oil on board finished at $6,875.
American furniture in the sale was led at $15,000 by a walnut tall case clock made by New Jersey clockmaker Isaac Pearson (1685-1749) that had provenance to the National Watch & Clock Museum and related to a similar example in the collection of Winterthur Museum in Wilmington, Del.
Pook & Pook will sell fine art from an East Coast Educational Institution on August 20. The firm’s next Americana sale is scheduled for October 2-3.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, www.pookandpook.com or 610-269-4040.
