Woody Auction – Ron Blessing Estate Collection
October 29 at 9:30 am
120 E 3rd St, Douglass, KS
www.woodyauction.com
info@woodyauction.com
316-747-2694
DOUGLASS, KAN. — Part 1 of the lifetime Ron Blessing estate collection — Victorian antiques, French cameo art glass, period American furniture and more — will come up for bid on Saturday, October 29, beginning at 9:30 am Central time by Woody Auction. The sale will be conducted online and live in the auction hall.
Blessing was a long-time resident of Kearney, Neb., and began collecting Victorian antiques many years ago. Early on, he developed a love of silverplate items, especially pickle castors and brides’ baskets. His dream was to turn his Kearney warehouse into a fully display showroom of the finest antiques available and to host large dinner parties surrounded by the Victorian atmosphere.
As with many collectors, Blessing’s tastes evolved, and French cameo art glass became another passion. Consequently, he managed to acquire some of the most sought-after pieces in the United States. His antiques needed to be properly displayed, so he commenced collecting furniture by makers such as R.J. Horner, A.J. Johnson, Meeks, Belter, Pottier & Stymus, Karpen, Phillip Kopp and Oriel.
There are several turn-of-the-century signed Galle French cameo art glass pieces. One, a lamp manufactured around 1920 and 30 inches tall, boasts a yellow ground with blue and amethyst cameo carved Japanese chrysanthemum overlay having butterfly highlights. Another, 11 inches high, is a vase with an ice blue ground with white cameo carved overlay featuring 16 seagulls in flight over ocean waves.
Yet a third signed Galle French cameo art glass vase, this one a 9½-inch-tall blown mold example, features a clematis design with yellow and white ground amber cameo cutback overlay. Also up for bid is a two-piece urn signed Moser, 38 inches tall, rare yellow opaque art glass with extensive colorful enamel leaf décor and applied acorn highlights. The upper section features a scene of two children.
A 12-piece dining set by R.J. Horner in the Oak Busted Lady pattern is a highly detailed set that includes a china cabinet with four glass shelves, a buffet with beveled mirror, a sideboard, a dining table with three leaves capable of extending to 95½ inches in length and eight dining chairs.
Also from R.J. Horner is a three-piece bedroom set made of quartersawn oak. The matched set includes a full-size bed, a dresser and a wardrobe, featuring elaborate griffins, cherubs and a figural head bust. A laminated rosewood parlor table by J.&J. Meeks will also attract attention.
One furniture item with an interesting back story is a circular bank/hotel foyer cabinet by Phillip Kopp, 105 inches tall and 63 inches in diameter, made in 1850 from burl walnut. The two-tiered cabinet, having four sections of white marble with mirrors set at 90-degree angles, was on display at the Crystal Palace Expo in New York, with one panel indicating the original price was $3,000 (more than $112,000 in today’s dollars). Other features included 16 lockable drawers and eight lockable doors.
A massive, three-door rosewood china cabinet, 112 inches tall by 93 inches wide, has an elaborate crest with a monogram “B,” beveled glass doors and glass shelves. Rounding out just a few highlights from the furniture category is a sideboard by Oriel Cabinet Co, circa 1880, made from quartersawn oak and featuring full-bodied figures of mermaids and soldiers, a large two-piece marble top, four drawers and four doors. A mirror will be sold separately.
Returning to French cameo art glass, two turn-of-the-century vases signed Daum Nancy are both expected to do well. One is a blown-out vase with Black Forest detail, 17½ inches tall, having an orange and yellow mottled ground with green transitioning to black cameo cut back overlay. The other has two applied handles, 6 inches tall, clear white, with a yellow and pink mottled ground with cameo acid-cut mushroom scenic décor, elaborate enamel highlights and detailing.
A preview will be conducted on Friday, October 28, from 1 to 5 pm Central time in the Douglass auction hall, for all of the antiques and small furniture items. Large furniture items will not be at the Douglass auction hall and must be picked up in person in Kearney, Neb., or shipped via a professional shipper by Thursday, December 8. Pick-up or shipment may only occur after wire transfer has been received, checks have cleared, or with a bank guarantee. For appointment to preview the large furniture items in Kearney, call 316-747-2694. Appointments are available October 15 from 8 am to noon; October 18, 1 to 5 pm; and October 27, 8 am to 4 pm.
Woody Auction is at 130 East Third Street, Douglass. For information, 316-747-2694 or www.woodyauction.com.
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