Brunk Auctions held an auction of Fine and Decorative Arts on July 21-22, 2017. Over one thousand lots were offered in the two-day, two-session auction, with significant interest coming from buyers of Cut Glass and Southern objects.
The top lot in the auction was a Fine and Rare Green Cut to Clear Dorflinger Montrose Punchbowl Set. The piece was one of the gems of the Collection of George Siek, Founder of the Museum of American Cut and Engraved Glass. Included in the exceptional punchbowl set is thirteen cups and ladle with Dorflinger marks. The final selling price for the Pennsylvania-made piece was $114,000, to a private bidder.
Several lots from the Collection of George Siek piqued the interest of cut glass buyers over the weekend. Among the top lots from the collection in the sale are Brilliant Period Blue-to-Green Cut Glass Tray selling for $26,400, a New England Amberina Cut Glass Cologne selling for $38,400, and a Queens Pattern Hawkes Cut Glass Punch Bowl and Cups selling for $11,400. The collection consisted of 138 lots and featured a 100% sell-through rate.
Southern objects performed well over the course of the weekend. The top lot in the category was a Rare Edgefield Face Pitcher, which sold for $60,000. Consensus indicates production of these vessels was undertaken by working African slaves of the period. A Fine Southern Federal Inlaid Cherry Bottle Case, attributed to Mason County, Kentucky sold for $48,000. Created 1790 – 1810, the lot features MESDA Provenance and was illustrated in the Magazine Antiques. Other top Southern lots include a Rare Kentucky Federal Cherry Sugar Desk selling for for $38,400, a Maud Gatewood acrylic entitled Herd Spring Storm selling for $18,000, and a Rare Richmond, Virginia Federal Inlaid Mahogany Sideboard circa 1800 selling for $16,800.
Other top lots in the sale include a John Emms painting of beagles, entitled After the Chase, selling for $45,600, a Hermann Herzog landscape of a High Country Lake selling for $20,400, and a Monumental Claire du Lune Moon Flask selling for $21,250. In total, the auction brought $1.55 million over two days and featured a 92.5% sell-through rate. All prices listed include applicable buyers premiums.