New York—On June 13, the sale of Bonhams and TCM Present ... A Celebration of Robert Osborne was 100% sold, which included rare one-sheet posters and movie memorabilia from the estate of the beloved Turner Classic Movies host. The top lot of the collection was Bette Davis’ personal Sarah Siddons award, which realized $25,000 against an estimate of $10,000-15,000. A two-week online-only sale of additional lots from the estate starts June 14 and continues until June 28. TCM will donate its proceeds from the sale to The Film Foundation while proceeds from the sale of the posters will benefit the Gingold Theatrical Group.

Dr. Catherine Williamson, director of Entertainment Memorabilia at Bonhams, commented: “The affection for Robert Osborne was evidently clear at the auction. Bids poured out from every corner of the crowded room, as well as on the phone and online. The biggest surprise of the collection was the Stork Club ash tray, which sold for $23,750 against an estimate of $200-300. Fans realized the rarity of this relic from the classic New York night club.”

In addition to the Osborne estate, the June auction also featured classic Hollywood memorabilia from other sources and highlights included:  

• A Frank Sinatra painting that hung at the Friars Club of Beverly Hills, oil on illustration board, which was the top lot of the sale and realized $31,250.
• A Tom Hanks Army dress uniform from Forrest Gump Paramount, 1994, which realized $25,000
• A Katharine Hepburn watercolor painting of the American Shakespeare Theatre, watercolor and ink on paper, which realized $23,750.

Cincinnati, OH — The Cincinnati Art Museum is proud to celebrate Hamilton, Ohio’s own Robert McCloskey (1914-2003) with the special exhibition Make Way for Ducklings: The Art of Robert McCloskey, on view July 20-September 9, 2018. The exhibition delves into the life and legacy of the writer and illustrator of numerous classic children’s books that have captivated readers of all ages for generations. The recipient of two Caldecott Medals and three Caldecott Honors, McCloskey was a major force in twentieth century children’s literature.

Organized by The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts, Make Way for Ducklings consists of over 100 original artworks, ephemera and rare preliminary book materials. While emphasis centers on the classic picture book Make Way for Ducklings (1941), the exhibition considers McCloskey’s entire body of work.

Cincinnati Art Museum Director of Learning & Interpretation Emily Holtrop is curator of the exhibition. “In line with the museum’s mission and strategic plan, the Cincinnati Art Museum is thrilled to welcome a collection of artworks that engage and delight visitors of all ages and generations,” says Holtrop. “McCloskey’s illustrations do more than visually captivate readers—they capture the essence of life’s simple pleasures, reminding viewers to enjoy the little things and savor each day.”

Robert McCloskey was born in Hamilton, Ohio, in 1914. He spent his childhood years in Hamilton and later attended Vesper George Art School in Boston in the early 1930s. McCloskey’s initial artistic attempts were unsuccessful; it wasn’t until he received encouragement from The Viking Press children’s book editor May Masse that his career began to take off. Three years after their initial meeting, McCloskey shared an early draft of his first book, Lentil, with Masse and was met with approval. McCloskey knew he had found his calling.

McCloskey’s books Lentil (1940), Homer Price (1943), and Centerburg Tales (1951) recall the artist’s boyhood in Hamilton, Ohio. In Blueberries for Sal (1948), One Morning in Maine (1952) and Burt Dow, Deep-Water Man (1963), the artist tells family-based stories set in his adopted state of Maine.

Also on view will be McCloskey’s illustrations for books by other authors, including Journey Cake, Ho! (1953) and Henry Reed, Inc. (1958). The exhibition culminates with a selection of independent work—watercolors and paintings—that connect McCloskey to such prominent twentieth-century American painters as Thomas Hart Benton and Edward Hopper.

The exhibition includes a family-friendly drawing activity and related programs will be held at the museum throughout the summer. They include: Connect: A program for adults with developmental disabilities and their caregivers on July 28, Gallery Experience: Robert McCloskey with Emily Holtrop on July 29, Moving Images: Robert McCloskey’s Homer Price Stories on August 2, Artist Workshop: Animal Illustrations on August 18, and Family First Saturday: Make Way for Ducklings on September 1. To learn more, please visit www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/mccloskey. 

Make Way for Ducklings will be on view in the Schiff Gallery and Balcony, Galleries 234 and 235. Admission is free.

Belton, Missouri - The legend of Bonnie and Clyde may have to be rewritten or at least revised with the discovery of a trove of more than 40 previously unknown photographs of the notorious 1930s-era outlaws and various other family members that will be sold in an online-only auction ending Wednesday, July 11th, by Mayo Auction & Realty. There is no live bidding in the gallery. 

Mayo Auction & Realty is no stranger to Bonnie and Clyde. Several years ago the firm auctioned a gun found in the infamous “death car” that police riddled with bullets the day the couple was killed, then later sold another gun owned by the pair. “We’ve become the go-to auction company for market fresh Bonnie and Clyde collectibles,” said Robert Mayo of Mayo Auction & Realty. 

The catalog, with all lots, is online now for viewing and bidding, at www.AuctionbyMayo.com. A preview, where all the photographs can be seen by the public, will be held on Monday, July 9th, from 4-6 pm Central time, in the Mayo Auction & Realty gallery at 16513 Cornerstone Drive in Belton, Missouri. Belton is located just south of Kansas City, a short distance off Interstate 49.

The photos will come as a revelation to those who have only seen the widely published shots of the couple in full gangster mode, Bonnie with a cigarette dangling from her mouth and Clyde toting a machine gun. These show a softer, more human side to the pair: Bonnie all dressed up and wearing makeup in a studio glam shot, and Clyde looking dapper in a crisp three-piece suit.

The photos - small black and whites from the ‘20s and ‘30s - have a history as colorful and well-documented as Bonnie and Clyde’s meteoric rise to the top of the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list. The group was purchased at a drive-in theater flea market in Texas, around 30 years ago, along with a Texas newspaper account of the couple’s murder dated the day they were killed.

The buyer was Bob Andrews of Oklahoma, who has held on to the photos all this time and is now ready to part with them. “This guy was selling what he claimed to be authentic photographs of Bonnie and Clyde that he said had been found hidden in the back of an old console radio, in an album and with the newspaper from the day after the couple’s murder by police,” he said.

Andrews said he didn’t believe the man and walked away. “But it kept gnawing at me and finally my wife said, ‘Oh, just go back and buy them.’ So I did.” Andrews said the man didn’t know anything else about the photos, just that they’d been kept hidden in the back of the radio and had changed hands several times. Only recently did Andrews decide to step forward with the photos.

But are they real? Yes, according to Marc Geyer, an auctioneer, appraiser and historian out of Mesa, Arizona, who worked on authenticating the photographs, indicating that he spent weeks researching and comparing the photos to other known images of the families. “In my opinion, I believe these photographs to be authentic,” Geyer said. “I believe the photo subjects to be Bonnie Parker, Clyde and Buck (Clyde’s brother) Barrow and various other family members and acquaintances. Their journey to this auction is the mystery.”

He has a theory, though. “Through my research, I find it is a strong possibility that these photos belonged to Emma Parker - Bonnie’s mother - and that when she died in 1944, the radio may have ended up with Bonnie’s sister, Billie Jean. When Billie Jean died in 1993, I believe that old radio was sold along with the rest of her estate. The photos were then discovered by the buyer.”

Assuming they are real, following is a list of some of the more historically significant ones:

• Photos of Bonnie, Clyde and Billie Jean on the docks in Galveston, Texas. The ship in the photo (identified as the Edgemoor, accompanied by a pilot boat, the Mariner) was one that loaded lumber in Galveston. Men are seen in the background loading lumber.
• A glamour shot of Bonnie, taken at Kelly Studio in Denison, Texas. This is a never-before-seen photo, but it was known that Bonnie and sister Billie Jean enjoyed playing dress-up and sitting for the photographer. Still, it doesn’t square with her gun moll image. 
• Clyde dressed up in his Sunday best, too. Evidently, vanity wasn’t limited just to Bonnie. Clyde could have modeled for GQ (if there was a GQ in the ‘30s). The shot of him in a three-piece suit, hand propped on the door of a sedan, makes him look downright dapper.
• A photo of the marker sign at the North Dakota-Montana state line. Again, like with Galveston, it was never previously reported that Bonnie and Clyde ever visited or spent time in either state. It’s assumed the photo was taken on a (possibly necessary) road trip. 
• Bonnie holding one of her sister Billie Jean’s children. Bonnie never had children of her own, but she enjoyed doting on her younger sister’s kids, and especially took a shine to Billie Jean’s son, Buddy. 
• Clyde in a photo next to anything but a Ford. Clyde Barrow was a Ford man all the way - wouldn’t drive or steal anything but. However, in one photo he’s shown next to what appears to be a 1926 Chrysler Imperial model E-80 with Illinois license plates from 1929.
• Bonnie as a young girl, at around age 10. Photos of the outlaw as a child are extremely rare, and this one shows her with three other family members outside their Texas home: here sister Billie Jean, her mother’s late husband’s sister Ada, and a man written as “Ed”.
• A photo of W.D. Jones, the young protégé and possible love interest. Little is known about Mr. Jones, except that he got caught up in Bonnie, Clyde, Buck and Blanche’s (Buck’s wife) shenanigans as a young man and was rumored to be Billie Jean’s lover.
• Photos of the infamous “billy goat car”. The billy goat car was so-named because it had a goat-like hood ornament. In one classic photo, Bonnie is shown wearing the ornament on her head and smiling. Cars are in many of the photos - essential for quick getaways.
• Any photos showing Clyde and Buck together. As career criminals, when one was being sent to prison, the other was just getting out. They were only out together on and before Nov. 29, 1929, when Buck was shot and arrested in Denton, Tex., and after March 1933.

Bonnie once wrote a letter to Clyde while he was in jail, dated Feb. 23, 1930, in which she pours out her lovesick heart: “I’ve got a Majestic Radiola and they drive me crazy with the music. All I’ve heard today is Lonesome Railroad Blues and I Sing All My Love Songs to You. It nearly drives me mad.” Could that be the very radio that contained these photos? We will never know.

One thing is certain, though. The legend of Bonnie and Clyde will only get larger and stronger with the sale of these 40-plus never-before-seen and historically significant photos. Whoever buys them - whether it’s a serious collector, a museum or corporate interest - they will be the custodians of a slice of American history that’s deep in legend and lore - and ready for revision.

Brunswick, Maine — This summer the Bowdoin College Museum of Art (BCMA) will present Winslow Homer and the Camera: Photography and the Art of Painting, the first exhibition to look at the role of photography in Homer’s artistic practice. On view June 23 through October 28, 2018, Winslow Homer and the Camera brings together over 130 objects by the artist across all mediums, ranging from master paintings to oil studies, drawings, prints, and photographs created in the United States and during his travels to Europe and the Caribbean. This comprehensive survey was inspired by the BCMA’s 2013 acquisition of a camera once owned by Homer and presents new research drawn in part from the museum’s extensive collection of works by the artist.   

Curated by co-director Frank H. Goodyear III and Bowdoin art history professor Dana E. Byrd, the exhibition will present a full picture of the artist’s working methods and will include noteworthy archival objects, such as three wooden mannequins, his palette and watercolor brushes, his walking stick and fishing net, and two of the three cameras he owned in his lifetime. Homer acquired his first cameras during a two-year sojourn abroad in England, a trip he took in his mid-forties seeking a new direction in his art. Upon his return in 1882, scholars noted a demonstrable change in his style of painting and choice of subjects. Taking this shift and the artist’s penchant for experimentation across mediums as a point of departure, Winslow Homer and the Camera questions how new visual technology impacted the artist’s production and engagement with subjects and unveils how photography became increasingly a part of Homer’s visual investigation and broader creative practice.  

“We are thrilled to present Winslow Homer and the Camera this June,” said Frank Goodyear, co-director and organizer of the exhibition, “Since the generous gift of Homer’s camera, my colleague Dana Byrd and I have been engaged in understanding how Homer’s interest in photography influenced his own artistic identity. This exhibition allows us to consider how Homer’s experimentation with photography solidifies the artist as a proto-modern figure, anticipating many of the trends and concerns of American and European artists who followed.”  

“The opportunity to examine Homer, a well-loved and well researched figure of American art, anew, has been so rewarding,” says Dana E. Byrd, “Utilizing the museum’s extensive collection of the artist’s work, Frank and I have uncovered a new facet of Homer, and we hope this pioneering framework will lead to continued revelations of how the iconic painter engaged with the modern world.” 

While Winslow Homer and the Camera: Photography and the Art of Painting draws principally from the BCMA’s Winslow Homer Collection, the exhibition will also feature works on loan from twenty-five institutions and collectors from across the United States. Following its presentation at the BCMA, the exhibition will travel to the Brandywine River Museum of Art in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. Museum Director Thomas Padon noted, “Homer defined the look of America in the second half of the 19th century and is central to key artists in our collection, which gives the exhibition particular resonance here at Brandywine.”

An illustrated catalogue of the same title authored by Byrd and Goodyear and published by Yale University Press will accompany the exhibition. The catalogue will serve as a significant contribution to the study of Winslow Homer and the cross-disciplinary study of painters and photography in American art.  

The Museum is also pleased to announce a series of exhibition related public programs throughout the summer and fall, featuring an array of perspectives on Homer, from art historians to fly fishermen. Highlights include: 

·      A keynote program led by exhibition co-curators Frank H. Goodyear III and Dana E. Byrd, providing an orientation to the exhibition’s themes in conjunction with the exhibition’s opening;

·      Gallery talks by art historians Susan Danly and Linda Docherty

·      Music performances by faculty from the Bowdoin International Music Festival inspired by the exhibition

The exhibition was made possible in part by Bank of America.  This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Cranston, Rhode Island - A pair of outstanding Rhode Island collections - one of gorgeous Tiffany pieces pulled from a home in Providence and the other the modern prints collection of Lucille Comes out of Warwick, all purchased from Multiple Impressions in New York - will be just part of Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers’ next big sale, planned for Saturday, June 23rd, at 10 am Eastern.

The auction will be held online as well as in Bruneau’s gallery, located at 63 Fourth Avenue in Cranston. Internet bidding will be available via Invaluable.com, LiveAuctioneers.com, ePaiLIVE (in Asia), Bidsquare.com, Bidlive.Bruneauandco.com, the Bruneau app, Auctionzip.com and eBay. Phone and absentee bids will also be accepted. Doors will open at 8 am on auction day.

“This sale will not disappoint,” Kevin Bruneau announced proudly. “As owner of the company I take pride in seeing such a comprehensive catalog come to be. Whether you collect Asian art, period furniture, modern prints or more, there is definitely something for you in the catalog.”

Travis Landry, a Bruneau & Co. specialist and auctioneer, added, “You name it, this sale has it. From Tiffany Studios to ancient Roman glass, American Fauvism and even a 1962 Rolls-Royce, there’s something for every collector. I can’t wait to see who takes home the Tiffany table lamp.”

He was referring to the circa 1905 Tiffany Studios (N.Y.) table lamp having a poppy shade consisting of variegated blue, green, red, purple and yellow Favrile glass with reticulated bronze overlay, supported by a twisted vine base. The 20 ¼ inch shade is impressed “Tiffany Studios 1537” and the base is impressed “Tiffany Studios 443”. The lamp should bring $30,000-$50,000.

Also from Tiffany Studios in New York is a beautiful circa 1910 paperweight Favrile glass vase, 10 inches tall (est. $15,000-$20,000). The piece is prolate form, with a thick rolled rim decorated with a freeform bleeding heart pattern in hues of red and purple throughout the iridescent amber Favrile glass. A lovely faint blue swirl pattern is cast over the entirety of the paperweight’s body.  

The Rolls-Royce is lot #1 and a strong contender for top lot of the auction, with an estimate of $30,000-$50,000. It’s a 1962 Silver Cloud II Standard Saloon, one of only 2,417 built between 1959-1962. The velvet green over sand left-hand drive car has a 380 cubic inch V-8 engine and is in remarkable condition. It once resided in the Yankee Candle Car Museum in Massachusetts.

A Fauvist landscape painting by the Swedish-born American artist Birger Sandzen (1871-1954), depicting Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, with two sloped trees amongst rockery on the edge of a river, with mountains in the background, carries an estimate of $20,000-$30,000. The work is signed lower right “Birger Sandzen” and comes in a 21 ¾ inch by 18 ½ inch frame.

In March, Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers made headlines in the trade papers when a gigantic 19th century Chinese archaic poem scroll painting - 24 feet wide by 29 inches tall - sailed past its estimate of $800-$1,200 to command $72,500. From the same estate, two more massive Chinese scrolls will be offered in the June auction, each one with a pre-sale estimate of $10,000-$20,000.

The first is a 26-foot-wide ink and watercolor depiction of three cliffside landscape scenes of robed scholars by the Chinese artist and poet Gai Qi (Chinese, 1773-1828). The Qing dynasty scroll is a masterpiece and museum-quality, signed throughout with calligraphy red seal chop marks. Gai Qi painted in Shanghai and was associated with Fei Dangxu (Chinese, 1801-1850).

The second is a Ming dynasty scroll painting by the Chinese artist Zhimian Zhou (1550-1610), a monumental ink and watercolor scroll depicting a panoramic landscape with birds perched amongst bamboo, foliage, pink flowers and rockery. Measuring 17 feet 4 inches long and 10 ½ inches high, it is museum quality, signed throughout with calligraphy and red seal chop marks.

The centerpiece of Lucille Comes’ modern prints collection is a portfolio of work by Joan Miro (Sp./Fr., 1893-1983), titled El Inocente (est. $4,000-$6,000).  Included are three etchings and an aquatint in color on Arches paper. Each work is signed and numbered (165 of 170). The portfolio is published by Robert Lydie Doutrou (Paris, 1974) with accompanying text by Xavier Domingo.

Also from Ms. Comes’ collection is Pablo Picasso’s Suite 347 No. 106 (Bloch 1586, Baer 1602), etching #47 of 50, signed by Picasso lower right and numbered lower left, with the date within the plate. Framed, the etching measures 22 ½ inches by 24 ¾ inches. It’s accompanied by the original receipt, dated Feb. 20, 1982 from Multiple Impressions. The estimate is $3,000-$5,000.

A circa 1880 room-size Persian Sultanaban rug, 16 feet 1 inch by 11 feet 10 inches, having a central field with burnt sienna ground with ivory and blue floral decoration surrounded by multiple bands of geometric and floral borders, is expected to change hands for $8,000-$12,000.

Also, an early 17th century Northwest European allegorical hand-woven Renaissance tapestry after The Nativity by Peter Paul Reubens (1577-1640), measuring 8 feet 1 inch by 7 feet 3 inches and most certainly from that period, exhibiting routine wear from age, should hit $2,000-$3,000.

Download the Bruneau app on Google play and iTunes. Phone and absentee (left) bids will also be accepted. Previews will be held on Thursday, June 21st, from 9-5; on Friday, June 22nd, from 12 noon until 9 pm; and on Saturday, June 23rd, the date of auction, when the doors open at 8 am.

Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers has announced a new schedule for 2018. There will be no pre-sale with the estate auctions, as before. They will usually be on the first Saturday of each month and will start at 11 am Eastern. Monday night auctions will be held the third Monday of every month.

New York—Swann Galleries’ auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books on June 7 brought to market landmarks from the history of cartography and ornithology. The nearly 400 lots traced important developments in science and natural history, especially in North America.

Leading the auction was the hand-colored elephant plate of Fish Hawk from John James Audubon’s Birds of America, 1830, at $68,750. Audubon works, as well as those generally related to birds, performed well overall, achieving three of the top five highest prices in the sale. Another highlight was the first octavo edition of a complete subscriber’s copy of Birds of America, 1840-44, which was purchased by a collector for $22,500.

By delightful coincidence, all three of the most important “Beaver Maps” were in the sale and performed well. Nicolas de Fer’s L’Amerique Divisee Selon Letendue de ses Principales Parties, 1713, colloquially known as the “Original Beaver Map,” was the first major map to include an engraved cartouche of beavers in the wilderness. It was purchased by a collector for $30,000. The beaver motif was emulated and popularized later by Herman Moll in his circa 1735 atlas, The World Described, on the spread depicting New England, which came to be known as “The Beaver Map” for its ubiquity ($22,500). Finally, “The Dutch Beaver Derivative,” the moniker given to Henri Chatelain’s 1719 long Carte Tres Curieuse de la Mer du Sud..., reached $9,375.

Important post-Revolutionary American maps included the first 1827 issue of Herman Boye’s Map of the State of Virginia Reduced to come to auction in more than 50 years ($27,500). The first official map to delineate the exact boundaries of Pennsylvania, by Reading Howell, 1792, reached $5,980.

True to form, unusual plans of Manhattan sparked interest among buyers. A seven-part map compiled by Charles Kinnaird and issued by the Department of Docks in 1873 shows the original shoreline of the island, overlaid with proposed infrastructure including piers and bulwarks. Only five institutional copies are known to exist; it was purchased by a collector for $8,750. Another highlight was Egbert Viele’s “Water Map,” or Topographical Atlas of the City of New York, 1874, depicting the waterways of Manhattan before its development ($9,100).

Specialist Caleb Kiffer was delighted with the auction: “Yesterday's successful auction gave me a lot of confidence in the market. Top material performed very well with the mid-range market remaining strong as ever. The collectors were bidding with strength and it pleases me to see Swann keeping the door open to the private audience, as well as the trade, for high-quality collectible material. A few items, such as Boye’s Virginia and Audubon’s Fish Hawk have not hit the market in some time and it's encouraging to see the continued positive interest in great material like this.”

The next auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books at Swann Galleries will be held on December 13, 2018. The house is currently accepting quality consignments.

Seattle, WA — ThriftBooks, the largest used bookseller in North America, is now open in India! The new storefront on the Amazon.in Marketplace makes it possible for customers in India to browse and shop over 6 million books that can be shipped to every province within the country.

ThriftBooks India offers an unparalleled selection of English language books (with free shipping) to the estimated 125 million English readers in India.

In coordination with Amazon.in, ThriftBooks offers a “Pay on Delivery” payment method to make shopping and buying more convenient for Indian customers.

“Our launch with Amazon.in is a part of our global initiative to put quality, affordable books into the hands of readers.” said Lance Pettit, Merchandising Manager for ThriftBooks.com and Marketplaces. “Indian customers have been asking for a way to easily find and shop for a greater selection of books. With Amazon.in and Easy Ship, we made this happen.”

Shopping is simple. Customers can go straight to the ThriftBooks India storefront, which lists the top 1 million titles ThriftBooks offers. Customers can also shop for any book on Amazon.in. If ThriftBooks India has the book for sale, it will show up on the Offers page for used copies.

About ThriftBooks

Based in Seattle, WA, ThriftBooks is the largest online seller of used books in the world, having sold more than 100 million books since its inception. Founded in 2003 and backed by KCB Management, ThriftBooks employs more than 700 people and operates 8 fulfillment centers in the US that purchase, grade, and distribute used and collectible books. ThriftBooks relies on proprietary software to identify and list books, as well as a sophisticated pricing model that dynamically prices books across a variety of online platforms, including ThriftBooks.com, ThriftBooks mobile app, ThriftBooks offers their selection on Amazon North America, Amazon Europe, eBay, Barnes & Noble, AbeBooks, and Alibris marketplaces.

Middleburg, Virginia - The National Sporting Library & Museum (NSLM) received a major grant from the Ohrstrom Foundation. The grant was made in May 2018 and will support the NSLM’s project to digitize its collections and share them online. The grant will make it possible for NSLM to purchase scanning equipment designed to take high-resolution images of pages of rare books. Once digital images have been made, they will be added to an online site where readers and researchers can access them from anywhere in the world.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Ohrstrom Foundation for their investment in this project,” said NSLM’s Executive Director Melanie Mathewes. “The NSLM has a superb book collection and we cannot wait to make it available to a wider audience.”

NSLM currently reaches an online audience of over 13,000 annually through its blog, Drawing Covert, and thousands more through social media. The addition of a digital collection will meet the needs of researchers across the globe who wish to access the unique materials in the Library’s collections.

John Connolly, NSLM’s George L. Ohrstrom, Jr. Head Librarian offers presentations and tours of the Library’s rare book holdings with a special focus on the antiquarian titles to be digitized in the project. The NSLM will continue to raise funds toward the project to grow it for future years. To schedule a Library tour or to donate to this exciting new project, contact John Connolly at JConnolly@NationalSporting.org or 540-687-6542 x18

The National Sporting Library & Museum (NSLM) is located in Middleburg, V.A., the heart of beautiful hunt country. Founded in 1954, the renowned research Library, and fine art Museum highlight the rich heritage and tradition of country pursuits. Angling, horsemanship, shooting, steeplechasing, foxhunting, flat racing, polo, coaching, and wildlife are among the subjects one can explore in the organization’s general stacks, rare book holdings, archives, and art collection. The NSLM offers a wide variety of educational programs, exhibitions, and family activities throughout the year, and is open to researchers and the general public. While there is no admission fee to the Library, the Museum charges $10 for adults, $8 for youths (age 13-18), and $8 for seniors. NSLM members and children age 12 and under are free. Library & Museum hours are Wednesday - Sunday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

New York—On Thursday, June 21, Swann Galleries will close their auction season of books and manuscripts with Revolutionary & Presidential Americana from the Collection of William Wheeler III­-some 230 works on paper including autographs of 36 presidents, manuscript material illuminating the American Revolution and a premium selection of Jacksoniana.

The collection reveals a historian's perspective. Inspired as a child by the collections of the American Antiquarian Society, particularly their holdings of The Massachusetts Spy, Wheeler collected Revolutionary Americana with an eye towards answering questions of American history that caught his interest. The collector outlines this passion in an introduction to the catalogue.

Among Autograph Letters Signed by founding fathers is Revolutionary Americana perhaps less expected, including an 1818 sketch of the Battle of Bunker Hill by Henry Dearborn, who later served as Secretary of War. Drawn in the year he published An Account of the Battle of Bunker's Hill, which drew controversy as a criticism of General Israel Putnam, the sketch, along with autograph manuscript reflections on the battle, is estimated at $6,000 to $9,000. From this account, the offerings span the Revolution: a December 1775 ALS by Horatio Gates sends British prisoners of war to the Chairman of the Committee of Safety at Northampton, MA, and details how they should be treated; a 3 May 1776 pay order for an express rider named Jonathan Park to ride to Philadelphia, signed by several notable early patriots, marks the spread of news in a critical week of the Revolution ($4,000 to $6,000 and $20,000 to $30,000, respectively).

An Autograph Document Signed by Paul Revere discharges Captain Philip Marett from Revere's regiment in 1779 ($12,000 to $18,000). A Letter Signed by George Washington to Major General Nathanael Greene advises that the Commissary General of Forage, Colonel Biddle (whose letter was forwarded to Washington the same day), appeal to the legislature of New Jersey for money to save the Continental Army. The February 1780 letter, showing the challenges of the war in its later days, is estimated at $15,000 to $25,000.

Presidential Americana beyond Washington includes every president through Zachary Taylor, with exceptionally complete offerings through the middle of the twentieth century. Highlights include an Autograph Letter Signed by Thomas Jefferson in 1793 as Secretary of State to Governor Thomas Sim Lee, stating that the government is not authorized to intervene during the Citizen Genêt affair ($20,000 to $30,000). A run of autographs by Franklin D. Roosevelt provide evidence of his formative efforts with the foundation that now operates as the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation in Georgia. 

The cover lot for the auction is a photograph of Harry S. Truman holding the famous erroneous Chicago Daily Tribune announcing "DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN." Truman signed and inscribed the photo, estimated at $12,000 to $18,000, "Too bad!" A copy of the famous misprint is also available and is expected to bring $1,500 to $2,500.

Perhaps the most notable run of presidential material is Wheeler's collection of Jacksoniana. Highlights include an Autograph Letter Signed by Andrew Jackson to editor Thomas Eastin: a retained draft for the 1806 published letter that led to the duel in which Jackson killed Charles Dickinson ($10,000 to $15,000). Other autographs relate to Wheeler's interest in Jackson’s fiscal ineptitude. A November 1829 Autograph Letter Signed, as president, to the Secretary of Treasury Samuel D. Ingham discusses changes to reduce the national debt, while an Autograph Note Signed in January 1832 arranges a meeting with a treasury auditor in advance of the nullification crisis (each $3,000 to $4,000). An ALS from after Jackson's presidency to Nashville Union editor J. George Harris expresses joy at the result of the 1842 congressional elections and criticizes the propagandizing that led to the election of Whig candidate William Henry Harrison in 1840.

Dallas, TX - A trio of extraordinary flags and banners sparked a flurry of competitive bidding, boosting the final total from Heritage Auctions’ David and Janice Frent Collection of Presidential & Political Americana, Part 3 auction to $1,152,076, exceeding the pre-auction estimate by nearly 20 percent. This auction was the third presented in the last year by Heritage Auctions featuring portions of the Frent collection. Each has exceeded its pre-auction estimate, and the three have produced a combined total of $3,274,023. Additional portions of the Frent Collection are scheduled to be included in at least four more auctions.

“Helping to put together the Frent collection has been one of the highlights of my career,” Heritage Auctions Americana Auctions Director Tom Slater said. “What they have been able to assemble is nothing short of extraordinary, which is why so many of the lots in this auction were pursued so vigorously.”

A William Henry Harrison: A Spectacular Large 1840 Silk Campaign Flag nearly tripled its pre-auction estimate when it sold for $87,500. As stunningly beautiful as any political flag of the era, the deep, rich colors offer a perfect background for the large centered image of the country’s ninth president. Part of the appeal to collectors is the fact that silk flags are particularly prone to condition issues, yet this one endured over the years in near-mint condition.

Another lot that nearly tripled its pre-auction estimate was a Van Buren & Johnson: The Very First Jugate Political Poster, which brought $56,250. A full-page feature in Running for President, 1789-1896, which was engraved and published by E. Durham in New York, this poster features the jugate portraits of the 1840 Democratic candidates, presidential hopeful Martin Van Buren and vice president candidate Richard Johnson, along with an eagle carrying a banner that reads “Liberty and Equality.” The photos of the candidates are positioned above their biographies, as well as detailed illustrations of Johnson at the Battle of the Thames and the Battle of Horse Shoe Bend.

A favorite among collectors is a Lincoln & Hamlin: Sought-after 1860 Campaign Flag Banner, which realized $31,250. In high demand among serious collectors of 19th-century political display items, the allure in this flag is due in part to the fact that Lincoln’s first name is spelled “Abram.”

A George Washington: Outstanding “Plain Roman GW” Inaugural Button, Possibly the Finest Example Known drew multiple bids until it closed at $21,250. A beautiful example of an elusive pattern, this button often is found in much lower grades, but the absence of wear, in addition to the gloss and patina and the original shank, make the condition of this example extremely rare. This button was acquired directly from Dewey Albert at the 1976 A.P.I.C. convention in Hartford, Connecticut. So pristine is the condition that Albert later added the notation “Best specimen known” by its image in his book on military and historical buttons.

One of the largest varieties of political flags ever produced, a Henry Clay: Spectacular Large 50” 1844 Campaign Flag Banner inspired 17 bids before ultimately bringing in $21,250. Featuring an outstanding portrait of Clay, the lawyer and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, the flag has an extraordinary display presence. This style is in particularly high demand among collectors because of the production of a Polk mate, offering collectors the prospect of owning a matching pair. Heritage Auctions will be offering a much rarer Polk mate in its Aug. 18 Americana & Political auction.

A John Quincy Adams: Profoundly Rare “Pewter Rim” from the 1828 Election, which drew $20,625, is an example of one of the most sought-after and valued political collectibles from the second quarter of the 19th century. Some, like this example, feature a mirror on verso, compared to other models that have a vice president or running mate. To collectors of this pewter rim series, this Adams variety - the lot here is one of just two known to exist - is considered the ultimate prize. Adams campaign memorabilia is extremely rare, making this one of the key offerings in the entire Frent collection.

Other top lots include, but are not limited to:                                                                                     

·         Lincoln & Hamlin: Spectacular Example of the Largest Size of 1860 “Doughnut” Ferrotype $20,000

·         Lincoln & Hamlin: Huge, Colorful 1860 Campaign Jugate Chart $16,250

·         Cox & Roosevelt: Supremely Rare Jugate 1920 Campaign Watch $15,000

·         Andrew Jackson: An Important Original Oil Portrait by Ralph E. W. Earl $11,875

·         Bryan & Stevenson: Perhaps the Best Jugate Poster Designed for this 1900 Democratic Ticket $11,250