Setting the table for $17,500 was this 255-piece Tiffany sterling silver flatware service for 18 in the 1890 Broom Corn pattern, which weighed approximately 266 troy ounces ($10/18,000).
Review by Kiersten Busch
BLOOMFIELD, N.J. — Nye & Company closed out April with its Hunt, Heritage & Home: Property from the Estate of Susan Ely auction, which saw 365 lots cross the block from the private collection of the New Jersey area art dealer. In a description of the sale from the firm’s LiveAuctioneers site, Ely’s collection was detailed as “a tribute to the sporting life, fine craftsmanship and the power of objects to hold memory and meaning.”
“We were very pleased with the sales results,” reported president, Andrew Holter. “In particular, the paintings and bronzes saw high levels of competitive bidding and interest from across the country and the pond. The collection was 80 percent sold by lot and blew through the mid-point of the estimates and was close to reaching the presale high estimate.”
As for the buying demographics, Holter shared, “The demographics of the sale seem to be primarily US-based across the country, with some European and Asian buyers. The majority of bidders were private with some trade participation as well.”
Sporting life, or sporting artwork, would not be possible without man’s best friend, who was depicted in numerous works in Ely’s collection. There were four paintings of spaniels in the sale, ranging in price from $188 for a grouping of four pencil and ink dog portraits including one of a resting spaniel, to $7,040 for Franklin Whiting Rogers’ “Portrait of a Spaniel.” The latter, an oil on canvas, was signed “F.W. Rogers” and measured 13¾ by 15¾ inches.
Barking to $7,040 was “Portrait of a Spaniel” by Franklin Whiting Rogers (1854-1917), oil on canvas, 13¾ by 15¾ inches (sight) ($800-$1,200).
Eight depictions of setters, both two and three dimensional, ran home to new owners. The pack was led by a pair of English setter portraits done in the Nineteenth Century by members of either the English or French School. The oil on canvas paintings appeared to be unsigned, according to catalog notes. The remaining seven lots ranged in price from $125 for a painted plaster sculpture of an English Setter to $4,688 for the circa Nineteenth Century British School oil on canvas “Sleeping English Setters.” Other notable Setter-related lots included a group of four dog portraits sold together: “Three Dogs on Doorstep” by Valentine Thomas Garland, an oil on board of an English setter signed “Don,” an oil on canvas of a basset hound signed “YWS” and an unsigned oil on board of a lhasa apso, which wagged its tail for $3,750. Additionally, Rudolf Schrader’s 1883 oil on canvas “Sleeping English Setter” was certainly not slept on, earning more than five and a half times the high end of its $300/500 estimate at $2,813.
Of the many well-known artists of sporting dog portraiture present in Ely’s collection, Colin Graeme Roe’s work had some of the highest results of the day. All four of his paintings which were offered sold at over $1,000 each, with “Sporting Dogs in Landscape” achieving the highest price. Signed lower left and dated “99,” the oil on canvas pointed at a $3,200 finish. It was followed by a lot of two sporting dog paintings dated 1894 ($2,500), “Foxhounds on Scent” ($1,875) and “Otterhounds by Lakeside” ($1,500).
While dogs were the star of the show, other animals received a spotlight, too, in works like Arthur Batt’s “Three Donkeys at Fence,” which earned the sale’s highest price for a painting at $8,960. The oil on canvas came with a black and white postcard of the work attached to the back of its frame and was signed “A. Batt 1890” on the fence post the donkeys leaned over. Batt was represented by one other work in the sale, “Fowl Feeding,” an oil on canvas depicting a rooster, two hens and several multi-colored chicks, which flapped to $563. Another fowl painting, “Barnyard Fowl Feeding” by Frans “Van” Severdonck, flew to $2,125. John Wainewright’s “Highland Moor,” which depicted four Highland cows, defied expectations by selling for five times the high end of its $300/500 estimate at $2,560.
“Highland Moor” by John Wainewright (British, 1794-1883), oil on Artist Board, 9½ by 11½ inches framed, signed and dated lower left, walked to $2,560 ($300/500).
Sculptures of horses also drew attention from bidders. Heading the race was a 8-inch-tall bronze sculpture by the French artist René Paris, titled “A Two Year Old’s Canter.” Signed on its front, the work was mounted on a marble base and galloped to $4,375. One more Paris bronze was offered in the sale, this one depicting a jockey on a racehorse. “The Start” cantered past its $1/2,000 estimate to achieve $1,750. The 1865 bronze “Hunter, Hound, and Horn,” depicting a horse, dog and fox hunting horn, was signed “P. Lenordez” and “V. Boyer” for Pierre Lenordez, the sculptor, and Victor Boyer; it made $1,536. “If there is one thing that is clear, it is that there is no shortage of dog, horse and animal lovers,” commented Holter.
Turning away from “Hunt” to focus on “Heritage” and “Home,” bidders were particularly struck by a Tiffany sterling silver flatware set in the Broom Corn pattern from 1890. Accompanied by its original mahogany fitted box, the 225-piece service for 18 contained the crest of Sir Thomas Ashley Sparks and weighed approximately 266 troy ounces. It set the table for $17,500, the highest price of the sale, landing at the high end of its $10/18,000 estimate. Of the 11 additional Tiffany lots offered, two more were Broom Corn pattern silverware. A 24-troy-ounce lot with 24 pieces sold for $750, while an ice cream server coupled with a serving salad spoon and fork set also crossed the block for the same price.
Leading the furniture, this George I carved walnut footstool, English, early Eighteenth Century, sat pretty for $4,063 ($1,2/1,800).
Furniture was led by a George I carved walnut footstool from the early Eighteenth Century. Its upholstered seat consisted of nine different panels depicting different things: some fruit or flowers, some animals and one, the center panel, showing a house surrounded by a landscape with a river view. The English footstool was raised past its $1,2/1,800 estimate to earn $4,063. Another piece of George I furniture, a mahogany drop leaf table with hoofed feet from the early Eighteenth Century, changed hands at $375. George II and George III furniture was also offered, led by a rosewood and mahogany Harlequin-action triple top card table ($1,250) and a mahogany veneered tambour demi-lune pier table ($1,250), respectively.
Holter offered his thoughts on working with the Ely collection, sharing, “It was a real pleasure working with the family of Susan Ely. They were a delight to work with and I hope we were able to convey our enthusiasm and passion for the type of objects their mother cherished so dearly. Many friends and clients came to the gallery to celebrate Susan and were blown away by all the terrific objects she collected and handled. This sale is proof that the traditional and sporting aesthetic is alive and well.”
Nye will conduct a sale of the maritime and Country house collection of a private New Jersey collector on June 11, followed by its Chic and Antique Auction on June 12-13. Prices quoted include buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, 973-984-6900 or www.nyeandcompany.com.
