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Maine Antique Digest, May 2015 13-B
- auction -
An intricately carved
ruyi
scepter in
celadon jade, 18 5/8" long, from the
early 20th-century Republic period,
with relief-carved flowers, plum trees,
branches, and viewing stones and a
Qianlong mark for the sixth Manchu
emperor of China sold well over the
$3500/4500 estimate at $24,700.
The psychedelically solarized gelatin pho-
tographs of the Beatles by Richard Ave-
don (1923-2004) were taken at Thomp-
son House in London on August 11, 1967.
Each 10 3/8" x 8¼" photo had Avedon’s
ink copyright stamp on the reverse and
a grease pencil “75” notation. Unframed,
the set cruised past the $2500/4000 esti-
mate and landed at $17,775.
This patchwork and appliquéd cotton quilt was made in Port-
land, Maine, in the 1860s, reputedly as a gift for Abraham
Lincoln. Each of the 68 blocks is inscribed with patriotic pen
and ink verses, and some bear the signatures of the makers,
including that of Cornelia M. Dow, daughter of Brigadier
General Neal Dow. It was featured in
America’s Quilts and
Coverlets
(1980) by Carleton L. Stafford and Robert Bishop,
and it sold for a solid $14,220.
The monk Budai, whose name meaning “cloth sack” is derived
from the bag he is often depicted carrying, is typically dressed in
a loose robe and almost always shown laughing or playing with
children as he is here. Six childlike imps are clambering over his
body in this Wanli period (1573-1620) rhinoceros horn carving.
In the West, the image of Budai is often mistaken for Gautama
Buddha, whom he was predicted to succeed. The 5 7/8" wide
figure was rare and impressive enough to pull in $53,325 (est.
$30,000/40,000).
This natural jadeite Guanyin pendant,
approximately 2" x 1", surrounded by bril-
liant-cut diamonds, was part of the estate
collection of Ye Gongchao, also known as
George Kung-chao Yeh (1904-1981). He was
the foreign minister of the Chinese National-
ist government (1949-58) and then the Tai-
wanese ambassador to the U.S. (1958-61).
Following his political career, Ye became an
author, visual artist, and calligrapher. The
small pendant fell within the estimate for
$54,510.
An exuberantly painted flat-topped 18th-century document
box decorated with chrome-yellow lozenge panels, salmon
corner panels, and baskets of flowers and cherries came in at
a strong $5036.25.
The base on this
lamp with irides-
cent turtleback glass
inserts and a beaded
and filigreed bronze
surface was marked
“TIFFANY
STU-
DIOS / NEWYORK
/ D801” under a Tif-
fany Glass & Dec-
orating
Company
logo. That was suffi-
cient to bring it just
over the estimate at
$8295.
A. Elmer Crowell (1862-1952) has long been regarded as one of the
most important and artistic American bird carvers. This collection of
25 shorebird carvings came with a Crowell receipt listing and identi-
fying the species. Each carving was mounted on a wooden base, and
each was numbered and marked with Crowell’s stamp reading “A.
E. CROWELL / MAKER / EAST HARWICH / MASS.” With unas-
sailable provenance directly back to the maker, the remarkable flock
flew over the $10,000/15,000 estimate and settled down at $82,950
over the phone.
☞