Modern Covers: Treasures from the Trash?

by Doug Finch

Something that was always a beginner’s way to collect stamps has become a way to collect covers; and the decline in interest in postal history has had a lot to do with it.

A stamp show is an event and this cover gives the collector a souvenir from Interpex 1964.

Modern postal history was a hot area for awhile. Stamp auctioneer Robson Lowe sparked interest in “postal history,” a term he coined, with his sales of collectible philatelic items that unlike mint stamps had traveled through the postal system. But now, lack of stamps on covers has caused casual collectors to cease collecting in this area. But paradoxically, it might be just the time to add some of these items – especially current items – to your collection. Continue Reading

The Best of Ed Welch: The Ten Levels of the Antiques Trade

The Business of Doing Business in Antiques
By Ed Welch

As many of you are aware, our friend Ed Welch passed away in October, 2012. His wisdom and entrepreneurial spirit will be greatly missed. At the request of many of our loyal readers we’ve decided to publish some of their favorite columns from past years.

The antiques trade is divided into ten levels, based on selling price. Low-level antiques are sold in flea markets and perpetual yard sales. Mid-level and high-level antiques are sold in individually owned shops, group shops, and at antique shows.
Businesses that provide services to the antiques trade can also be divided into the same ten levels. There are many types of auction houses. Some serve the low-levels of the trade. Other auction houses serve the mid-levels of the antiques trade and a few auction houses serve the high-end of the antiques trade.
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“On the Road” Important Safety Tips for Antique Dealers of any Age

By: Veteran Dealer Pamela E. Apkarian-Russell – The Halloween Queen

Dealers who head off to set up at antique shows or shops often find themselves the target of individuals and groups of criminals. Crime is at an all time high at antique shows and shops and it is imperative that we become more aware of this situation and be prepared to protect ourselves and our property.  It’s essential to use precautions and common sense and be aware of what is happening in the antique world and the world around us to protect ourselves. Robbing an antique dealer is much easier than robbing a bank and once your inventory or collection emerges on the internet it is easy to “fence” and almost impossible to repossess.  In the more than four decades I have been making my living as a dealer and as a collector whose life is part and parcel of their collection, I have had so many things stolen over the years that if I had them back I would be a wealthy woman.

Be vigilant. Watch your stock and the people who are in your booth or shop, and watch what they are doing. Chatting with a customer or fellow dealer is lovely but while you are doing so make sure you are still watching the booth. Distraction is one of the favorite strategies used by thieves and it is often the people you least suspect that will be doing the deed. We have seen ministers, doctors, lawyers, a judge, teachers, an army major, and women with baby carriages caught for stealing. A person’s profession or age has nothing to do with their ethics or honesty.

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Paul Sawyier painting, $89,450, Cowan’s Auctions

Gavels ‘n’ Paddles
Recent Auction Results From Near & Far
By Ken Hall

An original painting by Kentucky artist Paul Sawyier, titled The Kentucky Arsenal, sold for $89,450 at a Fine and Decorative Arts Auction held Mar. 9 by Cowan’s Auctions in Cincinnati, Oh. Also, a Newport Chippendale drop-leaf table commanded $45,000; a Regina standing music box realized $36,000; a Tiffany & Company sterling marquise flatware set hammered down at $7,000; an early Western County (Ohio) sampler brought $11,400; and a Woolworth & Co. carved eagle trade sign hit $9,600. Prices include a 20 percent buyer’s premium.

Ken’s Korner: Court halts sale of ’59 Augusta jacket

News & Views From the World of Antiques & Collectibles
By Ken Hall

The Augusta National Golf Club was recently awarded a preliminary injunction blocking the sale of the coveted green Masters jacket won by Art Wall, Jr., in 1959. The jacket was bought at auction last year by Stephen Pyles, an Ocala, Fla.-based anesthesiologist and collector of golf memorabilia who has been displaying the jacket in his office. He paid around $62,000 for it then, and he recently contacted Heritage Auctions in Dallas, Tex., with the idea of reselling it to make a profit. Heritage readily agreed to take on the consignment.

Not so fast, said officials in Augusta, who heard of the pending sale and came forward with the claim that the jacket had been stolen from club property in 2010. Further, they asserted, all of its green jackets ever won remain the property of Augusta National (the club allows each Masters champ to remove his jacket from club property for one year, but then it must be returned). Pyles’s attorney said that’s not true, pointing to Gary Player, who took his Masters jacket home to South Africa in 1961 and never returned it.

Yuan Dynasty porcelain jar, $1.324 million, I. M. Chait

Gavels ‘n’ Paddles
Recent Auction Results From Near & Far
By Ken Hall

A magnificent 14th century Yuan Dynasty blue and white ovoid porcelain jar, with narrative scene from the Yuan zaju drama The Savior Yuchi Gong, sold for $1.324 million at an Asia Week Sale held Mar. 17 by I. M. Chait in Beverly Hills, Calif. Also, an early 15th century Ming Dynasty gilt bronze bodhisattva of Manjushri, with six-character Yongle mark under the base, made $274,500; and a large spinach jade brushpot with a continuous landscape scene of sages in a courtyard, 7 ¾ inches tall, hit $122,000. Prices include a 22 percent buyer’s premium.

Ken’s Korner: Queen Elizabeth I portrait from 1592

News & Views From the World of Antiques & Collectibles
By Ken Hall

An oil on oak portrait of an aging Queen Elizabeth I that hung in a modest garden gift shop on the Outer Banks of North Carolina has been dated to 1592 (when the Queen would have been about 60 years old) by an East Carolina University conservator. Now that it has officially been authenticated, the work has been whisked to Washington, D.C., to be part of an exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library called Nobility and Newcomers in Renaissance Ireland. Queen Elizabeth I ruled over Ireland as part of the United Kingdom.

For years a debate raged over how old the painting is, who painted it and how much it is worth. The question of age has been answered and most art experts agree the painting can be attributed to the school of Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, an artist of the Tudor court. As to its value, that will be discussed on an episode of CNBC’s Treasure Detectives, which will feature it in a segment. The painting was donated to the Elizabeth Gardens in North Carolina in 1950 after a collector bought it from an art gallery in New York City.

William Wendt painting, $299,000, Cottone Auctions

Gavels ‘n’ Paddles
Recent Auction Results From Near & Far
By Ken Hall

An original oil on canvas painting by American landscape artist William Wendt (1865-1946), titled Patriarchs of the Grove (1920) sold for $299,000 at a multi-estate auction held Mar. 22-23 by Cottone Auctions in Geneseo, N.Y. Also, an oil on canvas by Jonas Lie (Am., 1880-1940), titled Manhattan, soared to $126,500; a late 19th century bronze group of a bogatyr by Evgeni Lanceray (Russ., 1848-1886) garnered $115,000; and a Gustav Stickley oak corner cupboard, circa 1905, went for $92,000. Prices include a 15 percent buyer’s premium.