Brunk Auctions Sets New Records with Sales of a Monumental “Dave” Edgefield Stoneware Jar and a Pio Fedi Marble Sculpture
Asheville, North Carolina, February 12, 2020— With its green and brown alkaline glaze, thick turned rim and large lug handles at its shoulders, a Monumental “Dave” Edgefield Stoneware Jar sold for an impressive $184,500 total at Brunk Auctions’ February sale. Lot 1210 captured the top lot of the sale and set a new auction record for a signed and dated “Dave” Edgefield Stoneware jar.
This signed 1857 Edgefield stoneware jar by Dave the Potter (Dave Drake) is an extraordinary example of Southern Pottery; its quality, historical significance, and great overall condition generated significant excitement on the floor and phones, driving the bidding on the “Dave” Jar to nearly quadruple the $40,000-$60,000 presale estimate. It was sold to an American museum.
With strong results for Southern Pottery, Fine Art, Jewelry, and Silver and an auction total of $1,766,999.25 with a 94% sell through rate, Brunk Auctions begins the New Year with solid Emporium and Premier sales. Fine examples of Southern Pottery, American and European Fine and Decorative Art, Jewelry, Silver, Coins and Currency claimed the best results in the weekend sale.
Lot 910, the signed Carrara marble sculpture, Cleopatra morente, by noted Italian artist Pio Fedi, set a new global record, finishing at a final total of $147,600 and securing the second highest total of the sale.
Other Fine Art highlights included Lot 1333, Bob Thompson’s Riders on Horseback, which sold for $46,740; Lot 1224, Alfred Heber Hutty’s Charleston Corner, which achieved $27,060; and Lot 1211, Alice Ravenel Huger Smith’s watercolor, Seascape with Sailboats, which realized $19,200. Other standouts included Lot 952, A Pair: Pointers Flushing Pheasants, which sold for a final total of $19,680; and Lot 1324, Edouard Léon Cortès’, Place de Clichy, Paris, which finished at a final total of $15,120.
The American Furniture and Decorative Arts department posted a 92% sell through rate with notable results that include Lot 1323, a Tiffany Studios Bronze Dragonfly Table Lamp, which achieved $35,840; Lot 1207, a Joshua Lockwood Mahogany Tall Case Clock, which realized a total of $29,520; and Lot 1329, a Wilhelm Hunt Diederich Art Deco Music Stand, which sold for a final price of $22,140.
The Jewelry department posted a 100% sell through rate while the Coins and Currency department and the Silver department demonstrated solid returns with 97% and 96% sell through rates respectively.
Andrew Brunk, President of Brunk Auctions, remarked that “We’re happy to start off 2020 with strong results from our first premier and emporium auctions of the year. I think these results show a continuing demand for quality across categories and the outstanding sell through rates speak to a widening customer base. We look forward to another strong performance in March.”
Brunk Auctions looks forward to following up on a successful start to 2020 for both collectors and consignors and invites potential consignments for Premier and Emporium auctions at its locations in Asheville and Richmond.
