Maine Antique Digest, March 2015 23-B
- SHOW -
Old Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich Winter Antiques Show
by Julie Schlenger Adell
T
he Greenwich Winter Antiques Show,
held December 5-7, 2014, has arrived in
this town 30 miles from New York City
on the first weekend of December for several
decades. It has gone through a few manage-
ment changes but remains the event that her-
alds the Christmas season in this land of old
and new money.
As in years past, the opening night preview
benefited the Greenwich Historical Society.
Some 400 town residents and their guests ate
and drank their way through the booths of the
43 dealers, some of whom have been at the
show for 20 years or more, and some of whom
were there for the first time.
Dealers’ comments on the weekend show
ranged from “fabulous” to “good” to “eh.”
Most agreed that the gate was light, especially
over the weekend. Sales were made in booths
where the dealers are known and have a loyal,
strong following, including Jeff R. Bridgman
for American flags, The Spare Room for vin-
tage jewelry and ceramics, Michele Fox for
textiles and Bakelite, B. Gallagher for fire-
place accessories, Nula Thanhauser for vintage
purses, Fletcher/Copenhaver for paintings, and
Nancy Steinbock for vintage posters.
Gary Sergeant of G. Sergeant Antiques,
Woodbury, Connecticut, said his business had
“the best year yet” of the past ten years. “The
best merchandise is selling, and people are
buying the higher quality pieces.” For those
who declare that “brown furniture is out,”
Sergeant, who has been in the business for 42
years, disagrees vehemently. “People appre-
ciate good furniture,” the dealer said. At the
show he sold a Regency walnut center table
with paw feet and a pair of small gilt Chippen-
dale mirrors.
Some other sales at the show included an
Auguste Edouardt silhouette, a mahogany
American kas, andirons and fire tools, and an
18th-century maple tap table from Hanes &
Ruskin Antiques, Old Lyme, Connecticut; an
1860 Scottish portrait of a sitting teenage girl
from Neverbird Antiques, Surry, Virginia; and
Davenport china in an ivy leaf pattern and a
Chelsea porcelain plate from The Spare Room
Antiques, Baltimore, Maryland.
Jewelers had a strong presence at the show,
including DK Farnum Estate Jewelry, Lake-
ville, Connecticut; Lawrence Jeffrey Estate
Jewelers, Litchfield, Connecticut; and New
York City dealer Brad Reh. Other dealers who
also offered jewelry included Marion Harris
of New York City, who sold some Scottish
jewelry; Poirier Schweitzer, Montreal, Que-
bec; T.J. Antorino Antiques, Oyster Bay, Long
Island, New York; and Glen Leroux Antiques,
Westport, Connecticut.
This was the third year that Frank Gaglio’s
company, Barn Star Productions, managed
the show. Exhibitors new to the show were
Schulson Autographs, Millburn, New Jersey;
Hanes & Ruskin, Old Lyme, Connecticut;
Nancy Steinbock Vintage Posters, Chestnut
Hill, Massachusetts; David and Donna Kmetz
of Douglas, Massachusetts; and Shaia Oriental
Rugs, Williamsburg, Virginia.
For residents of Greenwich, the Winter
Antiques Show is one event in a triad that
includes a holiday boutique and a holiday
house tour and luncheon. The events are held
under the name Antiquarius and help fund the
Greenwich Historical Society.
The historical society is based in the
Bush-Holley House, a National Historic Land-
mark that once housed the Cos Cob art colony.
The society maintains a research library and
archives, the Vanderbilt Education Center, and
the 1805 Storehouse Gallery, with rotating exhi-
bitions and a museum shop.
Further information is available at (www.
greenwichhistory.org) and
(www.barnstar.
com).
Dealers’ comments
on the weekend
show ranged from
“fabulous” to “good”
to “eh.”
Bakelite jewelry from the 1930s and 1940s was displayed
and grouped by color at the booth of Michele Fox Antiques,
Weston, Connecticut. Prices ranged from $150 to $350.
David and Donna Kmetz, art dealers from Douglas, Massa-
chusetts, offered
After the Theater
(above) by William Baxter
Closson (1848-1926), 10" x 10", for $5800. Closson was a wood
engraver who began painting in the 1890s. He is known for
his depictions of women and children.
Lanesville, Gloucester
(below) by Antonio Cirino (1889-1983) was $1850. Cirino,
born in Italy, settled in Providence, Rhode Island, and spent
summers in Rockport, Massachusetts.
The 12 famille rose Chi-
nese export plates were
displayed by Philip Col-
leck, Ltd., New York
City, which specializes
in antique English fur-
niture and works of art.
Each plate has a central
peony with café au lait
and gilt foliage. They
were marked $12,500 for
the 12. The rare Regency
chinoiserie pagoda-form
birdcage, circa 1880,
19½" (to the hanging
hook) x 12" x 9½", was
also $12,500.
A Noah’s ark with 120 animals, mostly pairs, was available from Marion Harris
of New York City. Accompanying the German-made ark was a letter of prove-
nance detailing the original purchase in 1820 along with letters of family ownership
throughout the 19th century. Harris asked $9500 for it.
This Pennsylvania Dutch dower chest, dated 1778, from Berks County
was available from Roberto Freitas of Stonington, Connecticut, who had
reacquired it from a client. Freitas asked $58,000 for the 22 3/8" x 50½"
x 22¼" chest with a dovetailed
case opening to a till, its inside
lid stenciled “Peter Derr,” and
fronted with three arched pan-
els. The center panel is painted
with two unicorns and an olive
tree.
☞