Hark! The herald Christmas angels

NEW YORK – “Fear not” are usually the first words of an angel, described as a messenger with direct access to God and Heaven. It’s one of the reasons why they are so omnipresent during the winter holidays like Christmas, Hanukkah and other religious observances.

Originally from the Late Greek ángelos, angels may even have an earlier possibly Persian reference that is documented before the Christian era. In most religions, an angel is interpreted in art as having a human-like form complete with wings of feathers and, sometimes, a halo. While they are described as being a guide or messenger from God, it’s also suggested that an angel is a metaphor for the struggle of morality and spirituality of the conscience.

Over time, the angel has played a direct role in a religious context, mostly to tell stories of the season, particularly Christmas. The Archangel Gabriel, for example, is the one who informs Mary that she is to become the mother of the Son of God and to name him Jesus, meaning Yahweh or salvation in the Annunciation, a full nine months before his birth. It was an angel that appeared in the dreams of Joseph to spirit the baby Jesus away from King Herod’s murderous search for him.

One of the early commercially available holiday angels beginning in the late 19th century was this lovely embossed, hand-gilded tree topper made in the German state of Thuringia from 1880 to 1914 and are the most coveted of early tree toppers and ornaments. This almost perfectly preserved Dresden angel sold for $650 + the buyer’s premium in 2014. Image courtesy Bertoia Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

As a Christmas Tree Topper

So it’s no surprise that an angel figures greatly during the Christmas season. Except for the figure of Santa Claus or St. Nicholas, an angel is the most collected of all Christmas ornaments.

Its popularity began in a castle. An indoor lighted and decorated Christmas tree was featured in the Illustrated London News in 1848 at the royal residence of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of England. Both born of German heritage, it wasn’t unusual for them to feature an indoor evergreen during the Christmas season. It’s been done since at least the early 16th century.

What was particularly inspiring for the newspaper reader, though, was that the top of the tree featured an angel evoking the Archangel Gabriel and the Annunciation. Today an angel, along with the star of Bethlehem, continues to be the most popular Christmas tree toppers.

As a Christmas Tree Ornament

With an indoor evergreen tree more common by the late 19th century in America, early decoration consisted mainly of handmade colored paper, fruit and candles. More fanciful hand-blown glass ornaments from the German state of Thuringia were imported by the 1870s beginning the introduction of more commercial varieties that families added to each year.

From 1880 to about 1914, highly detailed fitted paper ornaments handmade in Dresden, Germany were being imported into Great Britain. Because these Dresdens, as they’re known by collectors, were not expected to survive from year to year, they are considered some of the most collectible ornaments today.

An unusual example of a wax covered angel that was popular in the late 19th century that features inset glass eyes, colorful fabric and doll’s hair. Containing a music box that plays two tunes, it sold for about $928 + the buyer’s premium in 2018. Image courtesy Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion GBMH and LiveAuctioneers

Guarding the Christmas Creche

At the birth of Jesus, celebrated on Dec. 25, angels appeared to shepherds to announce that, “Today your Savior, Christ the Lord, was born in [Bethlehem where you] will find an infant wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger,” according to the Bible’s Book of Luke, chapter 2.

The stories of the season tell of the Roman need for a census of its citizens and so Joseph and Mary traveled back to Nazareth for the final count. However, because so many were traveling, space for the birth was found only in a sheep stable where a manger was the only bed available. Even in this humble place, angels appeared to herald the coming of Jesus and to direct others like the Three Kings with light and celebration.

To help tell the story, nativity scenes are set up in a prominent place in homes, complete with angels that guard the manger or creche (French for crib). Look for figures of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, animals and Three Wise Men to complete a set. Most were made from painted ceramic from Germany in the late 19th century, but chalkware from Fonanini in Italy and detailed papier-mache ones from the 1940s to 1950s are also collectible in very good condition, but usually available for under $100. Ceramic or crystal angels from Mikasa and Lenox continue to remain popular with collectors and usually available at auction for under $30.

Painted chalkware was most commonly used for the seasonal creche and usually included an angel that was sometimes identified as the Archangel Gabriel similar to this mid-20th century version recently auctioned for only $5 + the buyer’s premium. While popular, chalkware chipped easily and the colors often faded. An example in very good condition is difficult to find at auction.
Image courtesy Vidi Vici Gallery and LiveAuctioneers

And Throughout the Season

By the early 20th century, America was importing ceramic angel figurines by the Japanese company Yona. They became one of the most collectible of the 1940s and 1950s because of the detailed hand-painted facial expressions and that they were incorporated into candle holders, wall hangings and table decoration. Each angel easily matched the holiday spirit and are routinely available for under $30.

Other more realistic angels were made of spun glass, delicate fabrics, and even wax figures were also very popular, but difficult to find excellent condition. By the 1950s, though, the molded, plastic angel became the more commercially successful version.

Three German spun cotton Christmas ornaments including two angels, late 19th or early 20th century, all with some paper elements and printed applied face, about 4½in high. Sold for $425 + the buyer’s premium in December 2019. Image courtesy Locati LLC and LiveAuctioneers.

What Collectors Look For

According to goldenglow.org, an online Christmas-themed website, “… angels have been crafted using a variety of techniques including hand-carved from wood, poured wax … papier-mache, clay, pressed cardboard, paper, fabric, bisque, porcelain, glass … tin, lead and almost any other readily available material.

“Interestingly,” they continue,” angels made from celluloid are virtually unknown.” So the variety of angel collectibles is rather large and varied with most available only from the early 19th century.

Mynativity.com recommends Italian papier mache angels from Fontanini beginning in 1908 until production switched to plastic by the 1960s. Early ceramic Hummel figurines from the World War II era still command auction interest rather than the later more commercial production period. Just note that each Hummel figurine with a copyright date embossed at the bottom only suggests when it was introduced, not when it was manufactured.

These German-made glass angel ornaments are an example of the fine hand-painted detail collectors of early 20th century ornaments look for at auction. They sold for about $920 + the buyer’s premium in 2016. Image courtesy Ladenburger Spielzeugauktion GBMH and LiveAuctioneers

Any Victorian-era angel (1840s to the early 1900s) will always have an enormous collector interest from the because production was more limited. The brighter the colors and the more intact, the higher the auction value is overall.

Without exception, the colorfully embossed, hand-painted Dresden angels are the most sought after with auction values easily beginning at several hundred dollars for good to very good examples. Products of a cottage industry and made of cardboard, they weren’t especially intended to last generations, so they are also difficult to find in exceptional condition.

As a Guardian

The presence of an angel during the Christmas season does seem to trumpet joy and celebration. Still, whether angels were messengers or guides from God in human form or are only metaphorical manifestations of our collective conscience, perhaps in the end, angels are just ordinary people that are intended as guardian angels for each other, not just for a holiday season, but all year-round.

Navajo expressed artistry with silver adornments

NEW YORK – The Navajo, who traditionally seek balance and beauty throughout their lives, adore ornamentation, especially silver. So families accumulate all they can afford. Besides, explains Charley B., raised on the “Big Rez” reservation near Chinle, Arizona, “Silver jewelry is given as gifts from birth, then all through life.”

Charley’s grandfather, a medicine man, wore all his silver – rings, bolos, concho belts, bracelets, ear pendants, moccasin buttons, hatbands, and bow guards – when performing healing ceremonies. His grandmother, a Navajo “star-gazer” and “hand-trembler” diagnostician, wore all her splendor, plus apparel bearing weighty Mercury-dime and Walking-Liberty-dollar buttons. All that radiance, though unrelated to religion, inspired respect and trust.

Silver concho belt, commercial leather and sinew with metal buckle, 43in, circa 1890. Sold for $7,000 + buyer’s premium in 2018. Image courtesy of Heritage Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

Yet Navajo silverwork is a relatively new art.

Decorative silver reached the New World in the 16th century, along with Spanish conquerors who decorated their horses with dazzling, silver-mounted bridles. Like the Moors, who had long ruled Spain, they believed that its shimmer averted the Evil Eye.

Hispanic blacksmiths, impressed by these trappings, eventually created similar bridles, trading some for Navajo cattle. In the 1850s, Atsidi Sani, a venturesome Navajo blacksmith, tried his hand at silverwork, using crude tools forged from scrap metal.

Leather bow guard adorned with silver buttons, 79 grams, 6in circumference, 2½in high, first quarter 20th century. Sold for $1,800 + buyer’s premium in 2020. Image courtesy of John Moran Auctioneers and LiveAuctioneers

While bands of his tribe were forcibly held at Fort Sumner in New Mexico Territory, he taught them his new-found techniques. By the time they returned to their homeland a decade later, scores had mastered the skill.

Initially, Navajo silversmiths melted American silver coins into ingots over charcoal fires. Then, by pounding them flat, they fashioned bridle bits, belt buckles, and bow guards for themselves, their families, and their community. Many of these early pieces featured simple, stamped geometric ornamentation, accented with filed or chiseled grooves and gashes. Others featured punched, scalloped borders.

Navajo silver bracelet featuring gem quality turquoise, stamped ‘RS,’ 105 grams, 1⁵⁄₈ x
5⁵⁄₈in, circa 1970. Sold for CA$450 (US$452.36) + buyer’s premium in 2012. Image courtesy of
Seahawk Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

By the 1880s, Navajo silversmith also crafted heavy ingot bracelets and earrings, embellishing some with choice blue or green bits of turquoise. Within a decade, many featured this “sky stone,” believed to offer physical and spiritual protection, more extensively. Yet it rarely overpowered the silver in their designs.

Once Navajo silversmiths mastered more advanced techniques like pounding silver into dies and soldering, they constructed more intricate creations. Silver conchos, possibly inspired by Spanish buckles, for instance, feature large shell-like, repoussé domes threaded through leather belts. Squash blossom necklaces, featuring flower-like beads resembling Spanish bridle floral motifs, are pairs of domed, soldered coins. Bridle-inspired najas, horseshoe-shaped, good-luck pendants often adorning these necklaces, were painstakingly sand-cast.

Squash blossom necklace featuring central, sand-cast, turquoise-tipped 3¼ x 2¼in naja suspended from dual strands of separated beads, each featuring bead and naja, on a 24in foxtail chain. Sold for $5,750 + buyer’s premium in 2017. Image courtesy Soulis Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

Anglo-American trading posts, established across the Navaho Nation in the 1890s, eased contact with the outer world. Since then, the relationship between trader and Navajo has been mutually beneficial. Traders provide Navajos with needed food, clothing, tools and art supplies. (When the U.S. government forbid defacing American currency, for example, traders supplied silversmiths with pure, soft Mexican pesos instead.) Navajo artists, in turn, sold completed creations to traders, who brought them to market.

From the 1920s, Navajo smiths, now including women, created lighter, smaller, more portable designs for the growing tourist trade. Others, in urban, Anglo-owned workshops, mass-produced similar pieces from prerolled silver sheets and precut components. Yet at the same time, innovative Navajo craftsmen, like Kenneth Begay and Mark Chee, were creating superb pieces for tribal use and retail. Sales fell, however, during the Great Depression.

Navajo silver hatband featuring groups of pear-shaped, bezel-set turquoise divided by raised crescent embellishment, marked ‘IH Sterling,’ 72 grams. Sold for $375 + buyer’s premium in 2020. Image courtesy Hill Auction Gallery and LiveAuctioneers

Navajo silver regained popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, as interest in Native American culture rose. Since production did not meet demands, however, prices soared. Yet toward the turn of the century, traditional Navajo silver pieces, along with fashionable watchbands, combs, barrettes, brooches, and earrings were readily available. Since then, master Navaho silversmiths, including Lee Yazzie and Ben Begaye, have combined traditional skills and innate creativity with sophisticated style.

Serious collectors, though, may seek Navajo “old pawn,” silver jewelry that, from the early 1900s, trading posts accepted as collateral on loans for necessities. Even today, women may swap sand-cast or turquoise-studded bracelets for bolts of cloth, redeeming them after their sheep are shorn. Farmers may swap prized concho belts for seeds, redeeming them at harvest home. Others routinely keep all their silver in pawn, “borrowing” it briefly for communal dances and ceremonies. “Stuff changes hands whenever there is a need,” Charley explains. “ Families in the midst of a dispute, for instance, might redeem their entire fortune, then don it to demonstrate strength and independence.”

Silver bracelet featuring turquoise set on stamped motifs resembling feathers, 5.5 x 1.2in, first quarter 20th century. Sold for $3,750 + buyer’s premium in 2010. Image courtesy of Cowan’s Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

If old pawn silver is not redeemed within the contracted period of time, however, it becomes “dead pawn,” which traders are authorized to sell at will. These historical pieces, which rarely reach the market, are prized not only for primitive style and silver content, but also for their authenticity – unevenly wrought wire, worn edges, crackled silver and crazed, natural turquoise. Some even boast original pawn tickets.

These treasures, created by Navajos for Navajos, reflect not only tribal art and culture, but also a notable time in Native American history.

The enlightening story of the menorah

NEW YORK – Hanukkah, known as the Festival of Lights, falls during the darkest days of the year. It commemorates the rededication of Jerusalem’s Holy Temple following second century B.C. Greek defilement. Though a bit of consecrated olive oil, enough for one day, was found to rekindle the Temple’s candelabra, it burned for eight days and nights – long enough to prepare more.

Ever since, Jews have celebrated this eight-day miracle by kindling special lights commonly known as Hanukkah menorahs or lamps. Their form is fixed – eight lights at uniform height, along with a separate “servant” light, used to kindle them. One light is lit on the first night of Hanukkah, followed by another on each subsequent night. By holiday’s end, all eight are aglow.

Rare, important, Neo-classic style Hanukkah lamp of hand-chased silver with the original servant light, 7in high, Wurzburg, Franco-Germany, 1800. Realized $17,500 + buyer’s premium in 2018. Image courtesy of J. Greenstein & Co. Inc. and LiveAuctioneers

Though candelabras appear on Jewish coins dating from 40 B.C., people likely kindled eight individual oil-filled clay lamps or single ones featuring eight small oil-fonts. During the Diaspora (70-1948 A.D.) when Jews scattered worldwide, Hanukkah lamps often reflected local materials, techniques and traditions. Some were impermanent. Many communities kindled eight small cups of oil, while others used eggshells or scooped-out potatoes.

Through the late Middle Ages, Franco-German Jews evidently favored wall-hung bronze lamps featuring pierced, triangular backplates. In place of olive oil, however, they may have kindled wicks dipped in goose fat.

Rare, engraved silver, marked Hanukkah lamp with architectural-type backplate, 25.5 x 13.5 x 4 centimeters, Salé, Morocco, 1899. Realized $950 + buyer’s premium in 2017. Image courtesy of Hammersite and LiveAuctioneers

Early Spanish Hanukkah lamps, though similar in style, featured vertical backplates.

Examples reached foreign shores during the 15th century when Jews sought refuge overseas from persecution. In time, Moroccan wall-hung models incorporated Moorish-type arabesques, openwork geometric designs, stylized birds and architectural elements. Algerian and Tunisian ones, edged with tiny oil fonts, featured decorative scrolled motifs and crenelated backplates. Since North African Jews favored appearance over age, when these lamps were worn or needed repair, they were melted down and cast anew. As a result, originals are rare.

With the expansion of international trade, North African Hanukkah lamp elements also appeared in other lands. Early, squarish, brass Dutch backplates, for example, were pierced, punched or embossed with low-relief bird, flower, candelabra, heart or Star of David images.

Brass Bezalel menorah, marked, 29 x 15.5 centimeters, circa 1915. Realized $5,500 + buyer’s premium in 2017. Image courtesy of Ishtar Auctions Ltd. and LiveAuctioneers

By the 19th century, however, Dutch Jews, like many others across Europe, favored convenient, candle-lit silver, gold or bronze menorahs featuring symmetrical branches supported by central shafts. Some were simply designed, evoking the stately Temple candelabra. Others featured imaginative bases, decorative spouts and intricately scrolled branches, along with oil jug, lion or Star of David finials.

Small, decorative backplate, footed menorahs of this era, especially those wrought by master craftsmen, were highly desirable. Silver Austrian ones often feature semicircular backplates exquisite chased and pierced peacock, ramping lion, or Ten Commandment motifs enhanced by rich florals and regal crowns. Polish brass ones, depicting crests or noble animals like stags, griffins or eagles, are sometimes flanked by similar side panels. Fine, woven silver filagree “Baal Shem Tov” models, featuring gilded, cartouche-shaped backplates adorned with birds, flowers, Torah scrolls, architectural elements and paired servant lights, are particularly enticing. Though most were small, designed for table use, “monumental” Polish and Russian synagogue menorahs ranged up to 4 feet in height.

Baal Shem Tov menorah, fine woven filagree, with applied decorations, marked 12 and a clover, 12in high, Ukraine, circa 1820. Realized $8,000 + buyer’s premium in 2012. Image courtesy of J. Greenstein & Co. Inc. and LiveAuctioneers

Rare, exceptional, antique menorahs, featuring fine, unusual images or craftwork, explains Jonathan Greenstein, Judaica expert at J. Greenstein and Co., are extremely collectible. Yet few survived the Holocaust. Most available on today’s market reached the West during earlier Jewish immigration.

From 1909 through 1926, members of the Bezalel School in Jerusalem created appealing stamped brass and silver backplate menorahs, many depicting classic motifs or scenes of the Hanukkah story. Classic Bauhaus forms and green, patinated brass models followed.

Rare Austrian silver peacock menorah, marked and initialed, Vienna, late-1800s. Realized $9,000 + buyer’s premium in 2016. Image courtesy of Pasarel and LiveAuctioneers

Contemporary Western artists often recast favorites or, inspired by tradition, create modern ones featuring Hebrew inscriptions, embossed Biblical scenes or popular motifs, Some, through cutting-edge technology, create crystal, acrylic, glass and freeform “molten” silver beauties. Others craft intriguing menorahs from found materials like bullets, artillery shells, or a mishmash of metal pipes.

Handmade sterling silver menorah featuring spheres intertwined with silver pipes, signed Ari Ofir, 13in high, Israel, modern. Realized $11,000 + buyer’s premium in 2015. Image courtesy J. Greenstein & Co. Inc. and LiveAuctioneers

Though many celebrate Hanukkah with a single menorah, others assign a separate one to each member of their family. Seven, eight, nine menorahs with candles all aglow – that’s a sight to behold.

Many observant families, however, prefer kindling oil-fonts because they are closer to tradition, closer to the Hanukkah miracle. These are enclosed in protective glass boxes, then displayed outdoors for all to see.

Pandora has a charm for every occasion

NEW YORK – Among modern collectibles, Pandora charms are some of the most well-known and widely worn. Introduced in 2000, Pandora charms are designed to allow the wearer to express her personal style through jewelry with personal meaning. Hundreds of styles of dangle and clip-style charms have been released since then in gold, sterling silver, rose or two-tone. Today, Pandora is synonymous with charm jewelry and while charm bracelets are its bread-and-butter, it even has necklaces that can accommodate a few charms.

A 14K gold Pandora charm bracelet sold for $2,750 + the buyer’s premium in November 2019 at Dallas Auction Gallery. Photo courtesy of Dallas Auction Gallery and LiveAuctioneers

There are charms for all interests and to commemorate many occasions from a wedding, a memorable trip to the birth of a child. They also have been a godsend to those who found themselves stumped for gift ideas but could look like a rock star by getting that special woman a charm each year for graduation, Mother’s Day or her birthday to add to her bracelet/s.

Popular charm themes are animals and family as well as special collections, including Star Wars and Disney. Most new charms range in price from about $25 to about $75, though the 14K gold ones are pricier. Pandora’s most expensive charm is a pavé gold heart that features real diamonds, which retails for over $600. In 2020, to celebrate its 20th anniversary, Pandora issued a limited edition charm each month based on designs in its archives. Charms that are not selling at goal levels are periodically retired from production to make way for new styles. Some of these retired charms can become more valuable over time, owing to scarcity. Among desirable retired examples are some charms issued to benefit charities, especially the Randers Frog charm. This was issued in 2003 for a Kiss the Frog event and only sold in Randers, Denmark. Fairytale-inspired charms, including ones paying homage to Hans Christian Andersen stories, are also collectible as are strikingly designed retired charms such as Daybreak, which features cubic zirconia.

This 14K gold Pandora bracelet with 24 charms earned €3,000 + the buyer’s premium in October 2015 at Henry’s Auktionshaus AG. Photo courtesy of Henry’s Auktionshaus AG and LiveAuctioneers

Generally, the plainer the charm is, the more affordable it is and Pandora’s sterling silver charms are on the first pricing tier with one of its most popular models, the Motherly Love charm, selling for $25. Adding gemstones and embellishments such as colored enamels and Murano glass elements, depending on the intricacy of the work, will increase the price for these charms. Among its newest releases and sure to have a strong following given the popularity of Disney’s Mandalorian is a charm featuring Baby Yoda called The Child, which retails new for $55.

A University of Kansas Jayhawk charm, one of the retired 14K gold charms, clips and spacers on a Pandora bracelet that fetched $3,100 + the buyer’s premium in July 2019 at Circle Auction. Photo courtesy of Circle Auction and LiveAuctioneers

While the company is based in Denmark, the charms are made in Thailand – finished by hand – and the company reportedly has a production staff of over 5,000 people there. Pandora charm jewelry is sold around the world and there are some charms that are only sold in certain countries. A football helmet was sold in America while a cricket bat charm was an Australia exclusive and reportedly a dice charm was available only in Las Vegas. Short of having a personal shopper overseas, some passionate collectors buy or trade with others online. There are several Facebook groups for this purpose that are quite active.

This 14K gold Pandora bracelet with 21 gold charms and clips brought $2,750 + the buyer’s premium in August 2018 at Dan Morphy Auctions. Photo courtesy of Dan Morphy Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

As with many luxury items made today, fakes will abound in the marketplace. “Spotting Pandora fakes can be quite difficult, especially if you are not overly familiar with Pandora’s catalog of charms,” according to the blog, Mora Pandora. Authentic Pandora charms feature a Pandora hallmark, usually “S925 ALE” or “925 ALE” for silver charms, and “G585 ALE” for gold charms. Hallmarks can be faked, however, so be careful when buying online.

The Art of Pandora blog website routinely reviews Pandora charms, especially as new ones are released. Among its recent reviews was Pandora’s relaunch of one of its earliest charms, the Stars charm that features small cutout stars on the cylinder-shaped charm that has ruffled edges. “The Pandora 20th Anniversary Stars Cham (799119C00) encourages and reminds its wearer to dream big and wish upon a star,” it writes.

Bearing 28 Pandora 14K gold charms, this sterling silver Pandora bracelet went for $1,350 + the buyer’s premium in September 2019 at Apple Tree Auction Center. Photo courtesy of Apple Tree Auction Center and LiveAuctioneers.

Personalization is the top-searched item for on crafting e-commerce site Etsy this holiday season and Pandora charms owe their popularity to their personalized nature. Mixing and matching favorite charms lets you express your personal style with charms that speak to important moments in life. They also ensure your jewelry designs don’t look like anyone elses.

LaVerne furniture etched with images

NEW YORK – Philip Laverne (1908-1988) and his son Kelvin (b. 1936) sought to create pieces that were both functional furniture and expressions of fine art. Their approach, their designs, their techniques were unique and thus their works remain instantly recognizable.

Supported by wooden frames, the tables and cabinets were clad in bronze, brass and pewter, which had been cast, carved, etched, incised and patinated. The strong metal forms become showstoppers in an interior, and collectors scroll through auction catalogs to find the best examples.

Philip and Kelvin LaVerne important Bathers cabinet, circa 1968, acid-etched brass, enameled and patinated brass over pewter and wood, 59¼in wide x 15½in deep x 32¼in high. Etched signature to door face. Sold for $85,000 plus the buyer’s premium in November 2016. Image courtesy of Wright and LiveAuctioneers

Major surfaces are often covered by low-relief figural scenes inspired by archaeological or art historical sources. Many designs are drawn from Chinese art, while others reflect ancient Greek friezes or even Egyptian wall paintings.

Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam from the Sistine Chapel ceiling was also a theme that appealed to the LaVernes. Another group of furniture from their workshop is more simply ornamented with repeated geometric patterns. Full-bodied sculptural figures were at times used as dramatic table supports. Some designs were issued as a series, others seem one-of-a-kind. Surprises turn up all the time.

Four-door ‘Chan’ cabinet, circa 1970, etched and patinated bronze, pewter, painted wood, Chinoiserie landscape, signed ‘Philip Kelvin LaVerne,’ 32½in high x 60¼ wide x 16in deep. Sold for $35,000 plus the buyer’s premium on June 26, 2020. Image courtesy of Freeman’s and LiveAuctioneers

Richard Wright has sold many examples at his Chicago-based auction firm and even chose one for his personal collection: “LaVerne furniture is totally unique within American design, and it’s readily identifiable. The pieces pull together all kinds of disparate elements including archaeological and art historical references, which are then applied to some pretty muscular forms. Sometimes the objects are very decorative in themselves, but oftentimes the forms are architectonic and plain with heavy pattern applied to them.

“The materiality is completely essential to the work. A lot of the forms are quite modernist, but with this archaeological treatment done to them, they become very compelling. The surface feels like unearthed old metal. Fortunately for collectors, while some of the furniture is very expensive, some of it is relatively accessible. I actually live with a LaVerne coffee table at my house, and I have young kids – it’s incredibly durable,” he said.

Chan desk, New York, 1960s, etched, patinated and polychromed bronze, pewter and enamel, raised signature to underside, 29¾in x 60¼in x 30¼in. Sold for $42,500 plus the buyer’s premium in June 2018. Image courtesy of Rago Arts & Auction Center and LiveAuctioneers

In addition to distinctive forms and decoration, LaVerne furniture has a characteristic patina carefully cultivated through processes developed by the furniture makers. One technique involved burying the metal elements in special soil compounds to achieve the appearance of ancient artifacts. While some tables have an overall dark bronze finish, those with decorative surface patterns use the contrast of dark and light metals to make the design pop out for the viewer. Colored enamels were added to enhance figures in the more elaborate chinoiserie scenes. Because the LaVernes put so much effort into the decoration and patination of their pieces, condition is an important element in determining present value.

After experimenting in the late 1950s, the LaVernes began to produce limited edition designs in the 1960s, some of which are rarer than others. The cabinetmakers’ joint signature is usually clearly visible on the surface, often within the relief scenes. Well-preserved examples may retain a paper label from the team’s New York studio at 46 E. 57th St.

Free form ‘Odyssey II’ cocktail table with double bronze pedestals and acid etched surface of patinated bronze, pewter and enamel, featuring classical scenes based on Homer’s ‘Odyssey,’ 18in high x 70¼in wide x 34½in deep. Sold for $17,080. Image courtesy of Palm Beach Modern and LiveAuctioneers

The cabinetmakers published their own sales catalogs – The Art of Philip LaVerne – which are helpful in determining the names of styles and patterns. The workshop advertised, emphasizing the union of art and functionality, and examples entered collections around the country.

A rare free-form cocktail table sold for $17,080 in March of 2014 at Palm Beach Modern auctions had a printed label for “Philip LaVerne Collection, Works of Art,” that was hand-lettered with the edition, “Odyssey #2.” The table’s top was covered with Grecian scenes inspired by Homer’s Odyssey and the supports were in the form of fluted column sections. According to the auction catalog, Herbert and Belle Lapidus purchased the table in 1967 from the New York studio. Phillip LaVerne told Mr. and Mrs. Lapidus that only one other free form “Odyssey” table had been made and that “Odyssey #1” appropriately had gone to Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.

Chin Yin coffee table (inset depicts the tabletop), etched, patinated and polychromed bronze and pewter,17in high x 70in wide x 30in deep. Sold for $16,640 + the buyer’s premium in June 2018. Image courtesy of Palm Beach Modern and LiveAuctioneers

In an interview with Auction Central News, Wade Terwilliger of Palm Beach Modern talked about the market for LaVerne: “People like the craftsmanship. There’s real artistry in the design, and the pieces are functional. You definitely want to have the original patina on them, and most of them do. Sometimes the finish gets rubbed out a little, especially if they have color applied. We often get the ‘Chan’ coffee table.”

“At the auction house, we usually categorize things as ‘Hollywood Regency’ or ‘Traditional Modern’ – but LaVerne is completely by itself. Most of our consignments come out of New York or from Florida – it was popular down here, and we always carry LaVerne. I’ve seen big dining tables that are outstanding, also console tables and center hall tables. Pewter, brass, bronze – there are mixed metals on most of them. The pieces get noticed. Everyone recognizes quality, and there’s that artistic element that captures the viewer’s attention.”

Pre-Columbian art: a collectible for the ages

NEW YORK – Pre-Columbian art is a collective term that describes the architecture, art and crafts of the native peoples of North, South and Central America, and the islands of the Caribbean dating from the second millennium B.C. to the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492 and subsequent European conquests of the early 16th century. That’s a broad swath of history, not just in terms of time but geography as well; Pre-Columbian art was produced from Chile up to what is now New Mexico.

Since many Pre-Columbian cultures didn’t have writing systems, they used visual art to express their views of the cosmos, religion, philosophy and the world. They produced a wide array of visual arts, to include painting on textiles, hides, rock and cave surfaces, bodies (especially faces), ceramics, and architectural features (including interior murals, wood panels and other available surfaces). Fortunately, many of these artifacts survive and are highly collectible today.

Pre-Columbian Nayarit matched sitting figures, circa 200 B.C.-A.D. 200, Mexico, red and white painted terra-cotta, painted wood stand, Andre Emmerich label to underside of female figure, each approximately 13in tall. Sold for $18,750 at an auction May 17, 2018. Image courtesy of Millea Bros. Ltd. and LiveAuctioneers

The Pre-Columbian cultures included the following:

  • The Olmec civilization, which flourished around 500-400 B.C. They produced jade figurines and created heavy-featured colossal heads, 6½ feet tall, that still stand today.
  • The Mayans (circa 200-950 A.D.), whose art focused on rain, agriculture and fertility, in images in relief and surface decoration, plus sculpture, often with hieroglyphic text.
  • The Toltecs, a culture that dominated the Post-Classic period (10th-12th centuries A.D.). They built huge, block-like sculptures, like the freestanding columns at Tula, Mexico.
  • The Mixtecs, who developed a style of painting called Mixtec-Puebla, as seen in their murals and manuscripts, where all space is covered by flat figures in geometric designs.
  • The Aztec culture in Mexico, which produced dramatically expressive artworks, such as the decorated skulls of captives and stone sculpture; naturalism was a recurring theme.
  • The Chavin culture (1000 B.C. to 300 B.C.), which produced small-scale pottery, often human in shape with animal features (especially jaguars), spectacular murals and carvings.
  • The Paracas culture, also of Peru, most noted today for their elaborate textiles, some as long as 90 feet, which were primarily used for burial wraps for Paracas mummy bundles.
  • The Nazca people (A.D. 200 to the mid-eighth century), whose ceramics depicted abstract animal and human motifs, some of the most beautiful polychrome ceramics in the Andes.
  • The Moche, who flourished about A.D. 100-800 and were among the best artisans of the Pre-Columbian world, producing delightful portrait vases, metallurgy and architecture.
  • The Wari (or Huari) Empire, in the Andes region, noted for their stone architecture and sculpture, but best known for their large ceramics, many depicting the Andes staff god.
  • The Tiwanaku Empire, in what is now Bolivia (A.D. 375 to A.D. 700), famous for its Gate of the Sun, which depicts a large image of the staff god flanked by religious symbols.
  • The Chimu people of Peru (A.D. 700 to A.D. 900), who produced excellent portrait and decorative works in metal (some in gold but mostly silver); also known for featherwork.
  • The Inca Empire in Peru, which produced many gold and silver sculptures, large ceramic vessels covered in geometric designs and tunics and textiles containing similar motifs.

Rare Pre-Columbian Chavin bone/turquoise jaguar claw from the north coast of Peru, circa 1400 to 400 B.E. A jaguar claw, hand-carved from a human elbow bone with pointy turquoise claws of brilliant aqua hues and a carved, double-headed serpent design around the wrist. 1.75in wide x 2.125in high. Sold for $13,695 at an auction Jan. 19, 2017. Image courtesy of Artemis Gallery and LiveAuctioneers

Bob Dodge, founding director of Artemis Gallery Ancient Art in Louisville, Colorado, said Pre-Columbian art appeals to a large segment of the art and antique collecting universe. “For many, Pre-Columbian art complements their antiquities, ethnographic/tribal objects and even modern art,” he said. “There are examples, such as ceramics from the Chavin culture of Peru, dating to around 900 B.C., that one would swear is Cubist and inspired Picasso. And who knows, maybe it did.” 

Of course, Dodge said, other collectors specialize exclusively in Pre-Columbian art. “The reasons are many,” he said, “but in conversations I’ve had with collectors, something I often hear is, ‘Classical antiquities are refined but Pre-Columbian art is powerful.’”

Oaxaca region Zapotec pre-Columbian sculpture. Good condition considering its age, several repairs on the back of the headdress, no apparent losses. Measures 14in high. Sold for $1,200 at an auction April 14, 20118. Image courtesy of Blackwell Auctions and liveAuctioneers

The fact is, Pre-Columbian art varies dramatically from region to region. “Objects from the Mayan region are completely unique from objects found in western Mexico,” Dodge observed. “Peruvian objects are dissimilar to pieces found in Colombia or Ecuador – but in every region of the Western hemisphere one can find objects that showed every bit of artistic skill that you would see in the finest Egyptian, Greek or Roman antiquity.”

Dodge continued, “The subjects and emotions found in every art style – love, hate, fear, sex/eroticism, religion, death, birth and even a profound sense of humor – can be seen in Pre-Columbian art. They are just shown in a different style than we were used to from the ‘Western’ cultures.”

Pre-Columbian human skull, Oaxaca, Mexico, circa 16th century. Human skull with eye sockets covered in seashell discs, believed to be of the Zapotec culture. The Zapotec culture was an indigenous pre-Columbian civilization that flourished in the Valley of Oaxaca in Mesoamerica over 2,500 years ago, having left significant archeological evidence of their presence at Monte Alban, one of the first major cities in Mesoamerica. Sold for $4,500. at an auction Nov. 10, 2018. Image courtesy of Potter & Potter Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

And, he said, affordability is and always has been a big advantage of collecting Pre-Columbian art versus classical antiquities. “While masterpieces of Pre-Columbian art can fetch six figures at major auction houses, one can still find superb examples under $10,000 and build an impressive collection while never paying more than $2,000 per piece. There are pieces in my personal collection that I acquired for under $1,000 that are among my all-time favorites.”

Like with many genres of collectible, there are trends in collection interest in Pre-Columbian art. “It seems some of the Peruvian cultures, Chavin in particular, are quite hot,” Dodge reported. “The Chavin of northern Peru are one of the earlier cultures found in the Pre-Columbian world. They descended into the Moche, who ultimately descended into the Inca – of course conquered by the Spanish around 1532. Other Peruvian cultures like the Chancay and Nazca are also seeing increased interest of late. We also find objects of jade being eagerly sought-after with much interest coming from collectors in China.”

Pre-Columbian Mayan incised blackware vessel, Mexico (A.D. 700-850). Size: 4¼in by 4 in. Sold for $2,688 at an auction May 6, 2020 by Material Culture. Image courtesy of Material Culture and LiveAuctioneers

Dodge said certain regions are always in high demand. “Maya ceramics are always in style, as are good examples from the regions of Colima in Mexico, Cocle in Panama, Inca from Peru, Aztec from central Mexico, stone objects from Veracruz and gold and silver from any region.”

As for market demand for Pre-Columbian art (as well as most forms of ancient art over the last five to 10 years) has been steady, Dodge said, but attributed much of that to his gallery’s growth and expansion. “Sadly,” he said, “I think the trend for the foreseeable future is a steady decline as the collector base ages. The typical collector is over 60 years old – with the average age certainly in the 70s. These older buyers are not being replaced with a younger buyer – at least not right now.”

Pre-Columbian pottery mask, 6¼inch tall by 6¾in wide. Sold for $6,150 at an auction Jan. 18, 2014. Image courtesy of DuMouchelles and LiveAuctioneers

Dodge added, “What we have seen is that typically younger people today have the resources to buy, just not the interest. They prefer experiences to objects. They aren’t looking to fill their houses up with pieces of art or history.  We have obtained literally hundreds of collections where the owner has died and the surviving children have no interest in anything in the collection. We find it sad, and not just from a potential revenue perspective.”

Anyone considering collecting Pre-Columbian art need to be mindful that condition reports for just about any object are essential. This is especially true for ceramics, but even applies to stone pieces.

Louis Vuitton Handbags: Real or Fake?

As far back as 5,000 years ago, a “purse” was a small, stitched fabric bag which men used to keep their coins safe. Such a bag was either attached to a man’s coat or worn at the waist. It was not until several millennia later that this type of purse was replaced by pockets in clothing, and in the 19th century, wallets.

Women also needed a way to carry their “indispensables,” giving rise to various versions of the handbag, which was introduced in France and, later, embraced in other parts of Europe. At first it was a reticule, a very slender, handmade drawstring bag which women used from the late 18th- to early 19th century. It looked similar to a modern-day evening bag.

With railway travel becoming more common later on in the 19th century, something more durable was needed for the transport of necessities. The small, mostly decorative ladies’ handbag just couldn’t withstand such conditions. That changed in 1841 when Samuel Parkinson, famous for his butterscotch confection, commissioned trunk maker H. J. Cave to create a completely matched set of variously-sized traveling trunks, boxes and handbags. Each was made from the same sturdy material, in a matching pattern. This is considered the very first order that launched a luxury market that was estimated at nearly $60 billion dollars in 2019.

An advertisement for Louis Vuitton that appeared on the inside front cover of the French publication ‘Le Theatre’ in July 1898. Source: Villanova University Digital Library, image in the public domain in the United States where copyright term is the author’s life plus 70 years.

Louis Vuitton, a trunk maker in Paris, took notice. One of the notable features of a traveling trunk created by H. J. Cave was its innovative flat top, making the luggage easier to stack. The more commonly seen round-top trunk was designed to repel water, but it was difficult to load and stack onto railcars, coaches or ocean liners. In 1854 Vuitton incorporated treated canvas on the flat tops of his trunks to better repel water while also making them easier to stack and stow. His style was so distinctive that imitators started copying it almost from the very beginning. In 1898, Louis Vuitton added a handbag to the company’s product range.

Today, 122 years after its initial entry into the marketplace, the Louis Vuitton handbag is still considered the ultimate accessory, but it is also the most counterfeited of all luxury bags. How can you make sure you’re buying an authentic LV bag as opposed to a fake? It’s all in the details.

Brand-Specific Styling

In order for a handbag or other luxury item to be recognizable, the brand must be consistent with its identification.

LV’s initial pattern for its flat-top trunk was a gray Trianon Canvas (all patterns are identified as a “Canvas”), in 1872 the design was changed to beige and red vertical stripes. Since it was too easily counterfeited, another version called the Rayee Canvas with beige and brown vertical strips was introduced in 1876, but it, too, was counterfeited. The Damier Canvas design, a checkerboard of contrasting light and dark colors, replaced Rayee Canvas in 1888, with the words “marque L. Vuitton déposée” imprinted within a few squares as a logo to identify it as a Louis Vuitton registered product.

Introduced in 1888, the perennially popular Damier Canvas displays an alternating dark and light checkerboard pattern, with leather handles and perfect stitching. This Salema PM Damier Canvas bag example sold at auction for $1,300 (plus buyer’s premium). Image courtesy Bidhaus and LiveAuctioneers

Regardless, the counterfeits persisted. By the time George Vuitton succeeded his father, Louis, who died in 1892, it had become abundantly clear that a different logo needed to be adopted. In 1898, the motif changed once again, to its now-familiar quatrefoils, floral symbols and the “Louis Vuitton” logo called the Monogram Canvas. The design was based on the Japanese mon of a simple, stylistic representation of an object important to a family, similar to a European heraldic coat-of-arms.

Each part of the Monogram Canvas is trademarked, and any counterfeit that shows even the slightest variant is challenged vigorously with lawsuits, no matter how small the changes. Protecting its brand from counterfeiters is of utmost importance to Louis Vuitton and to those who purchase LV handbags, who want to make sure their accessories are authentic. How can a buyer be sure that their handbag is the real deal? You just have to look closely.

Details Matter

There are many distinctive aspects to note in an authentic Louis Vuitton handbag. Each and every component is perfectly matched and assembled, stitched or riveted by hand. On average, it takes about four hours to create the work of art that ultimately becomes an iconic LV handbag. Each part of the finished handbag matters.

Black Suhali Leather Lockit MM Bag handmade in Paris in December of 2006 (letters DU is code for France; first and third numbers indicate month; second and fourth number indicate year). Image courtesy Japan Treasure Auction and LiveAuctioneers

 

A clear example of an internal leather tag in the same color as the leather trim features two letters and four numbers for this Black Suhali Leather Lockit MM Bag that translates as being handmade in Paris in December of 2006 (letters DU is code for France; first and third numbers indicate month; second and fourth number indicate year). Image courtesy Japan Treasure Auction and LiveAuctioneers

A clear example of an internal leather tag in the same color as the leather trim of a genuine Black Suhali Leather Lockit MM Bag features two letters and four numbers, meaning it was made in Paris in December of 2006 (letters DU is code for France; first and third numbers indicate month; second and fourth number indicate year). Image courtesy Japan Treasure Auction and LiveAuctioneers

There is no better way to know a Louis Vuitton handbag is authentic than by going directly to the source: Louis Vuitton authorized stores and boutiques. Their products are never “discounted,” they are not wholesaled to the public, and they never go “on sale.” In fact, the only way to buy a new Louis Vuitton product is to be invited to do so.

If you are presented with the opportunity to purchase a Louis Vuitton handbag, either from a reputable auction or boutique that is not operated by Louis Vuitton, here are points to note:

  • Material: All Louis Vuitton handbags are made from a high-quality, coated-canvas-type material with real leather handles and trim that are soft, never hard or rough, with absolutely no seams that break up the design.
  • Stitching: Each handbag is handmade, and the stitching for each and every piece of trim is evenly placed within a certain number of stitches (a trade secret), where none are ever missing, skipped or frayed.
  • Patterns: Each of the Canvas patterns is uninterrupted by stitches or the placement of fasteners, straps or zippers, unless it matches exactly on either side.
  • Inside: A Louis Vuitton handbag features lining specifically designed only for that handbag. There will never be a substitution of color, style or fabric.
  • Tags and Codes: Tags are never attached to the bag itself. Instead, date codes (not serial numbers) consistin of letters and numbers beginning in 1980 are either foil-embossed on the inside lining or printed on a rectangular leather tab stitched to an inner seam that is the same color as the trim.
  • Hardware: All rivets, mechanisms, locks or metal fasteners are sturdy and solid, and fitted evenly throughout, without gaps. Certain pieces are stamped with the Louis Vuitton logo.
  • Imperfections: There is no bleeding of color, missing edges, sloppy logos, frayed threads, ill-fitting zippers, shorter handles, painted metals, plastic parts, incorrect stamps or misspelled words (except for words intentionally spelled in an unusual manner by LV). These sorts of things suggest a bag may have come off an assembly line and therefore is a counterfeit.
  • Releases: There may be a particular product that was never released that is being offered for sale as a prototype, an unauthorized limited edition, or special opportunity not offered to others. This should be regarded as a red flag, as Louis Vuitton never does such things.

On occasion, LV will choose to produce authorized limited-edition handbags such as this striking red and black Speedy 30 handbag designed by Stephen Sprouse with Marc Jacobs in 2001 with the words ‘Louis Vuitton Paris’ written as graffiti. The limited edition also came with a charm bracelet, the only piece of jewelry ever released by LV. It sold for $2,800 (plus buyer’s premium). Image courtesy Bidhaus and LiveAuctioneers

  • Packaging & Miscellaneous: Packaging, including the addition of an authorized dust bag, is also a critical point. Louis Vuitton does not include a certificate of authenticity but can provide a cream-colored, heavy stock card identifying the style with a unique barcode placed inside. If the seller adds anything additional such as extra straps that weren’t part of the original release, it is a sign that the handbag may be a counterfeit.

Even the font on the logo should be researched beforehand to determine if it is correct in size, shape, color and material. With all the different styles and features seen in Louis Vuitton handbags, research matters. The watchword at Louis Vuitton is “perfection.” Each handbag created by LV is a very limited work of handmade art whose materials, fasteners, and workmanship are of uncompromising quality.

Louis Vuitton Speedy 30 monogrammed leather handbag with LV’s iconic quatrefoils, floral design, and leather trim and handles. This bag sold at auction for $950 (plus buyer’s premium). 
Image courtesy Bidhaus and LiveAuctioneers

According to Forbes, the counterfeiting of top-tier luxury goods such as those produced by Louis Vuitton is around a $600 billion industry. While this staggering number shows that there are many who will knowingly purchase a cheaply-made fake bag, the bottom line is, it’s illegal. If you can’t afford a genuine handbag made by the French company whose history and workmanship are second to none, the best advice is, save up for it. Some things are so special, they just can’t be duplicated.

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‘PUZZLING’ ANTIQUES: TEAPOTS TO TOYS

NEW YORK – Puzzles are toys, games or brain teasers that test a person’s ingenuity. Mechanical puzzles, whether twisted, assembled, disassembled, disentangled, misleading or completely “impossible,” test not only physical skills, but personal mettle as well. They also make delightful collectibles.

Chinese, hand-painted, lidless Fitzhugh Pattern Puzzle Cadogan teapot, 5½ x 7½ x 4in. Realized $175 + buyer’s premium in 2019. Image courtesy of Greenwich Auction and LiveAuctioneers

Ring-puzzles often require long wire loops to be disentangled from networks of wires, much like disentangling a mesh of delicate gold chains. Puzzle-rings, however, are bits of wire cleverly intertwined around a central pivot. Though they may seem indivisible, they separate with a simple twist. These intriguing trinkets developed from gimmels, traditional betrothing rings typically bearing clasped hands. Their challenge, explained Mechanics Magazine in 1829, “lies in disengaging the rings from the wire; and every additional ring increases the difficulty. This puzzle is of great antiquity …”

Intricately crafted Japanese wooden puzzle boxes, famed for beautiful geometric marquetry, seem entirely sealed, with no apparent points of entry. Some open with a simple secret mechanism or two. Though owners may try every trick in the book, others open only by following complex successions of shifting, sliding, inclining, rotating, pushing, pressing and/or lifting movements in precise order.

Japanese puzzle box, 3¼ x 4¾ x 7in. Realized $175 + buyer’s premium in 2018. Image courtesy of Fortune Auction Gallery and LiveAuctioneers

In addition to keeping secrets safe and documents free from prying eyes, a puzzle box is perfect for storing personal letters, tokens of affection or treasured trinkets. It’s also a charming way to give a gift in a gift.

Cadogan porcelain puzzle teapots, adaptations of traditional Chinese wine-pots, are named for Lord Cadogan (1675-1726), who introduced them to British society. Traditional and peach-form models often feature auspicious dragon, phoenix, lotus, prunus or peony motifs in classic blue-and-white or famille rose or verte palettes. Some, reflecting 18th-century expanding horizons, feature images of merchant fleets, trading posts or the stylized Fitzhugh china pattern, evoking the British East India Company. Other Cadogans, unadorned, glow with bright green, treacle, turquoise or aubergine glazes.

These teatime conversation-starters feature functional handles and pour from spouts, yet lack lids. Inversion is the key. When hot water is poured into wide holes at their bases, it flows into funnel-like, narrowing channels. When turned upright, the liquid pools at the base of these funnels. Bottoms-up!

Pottery puzzle jugs beguiled and befuddled European imbibers through the 17th and 18th centuries. These unique tavern amusements, due to unconventional construction, hindered filling, pouring or drinking without spilling a drop. Discovering their secrets was the name of the game.

Some puzzle jugs, like Cadogan teapots, were filled bottoms-up. Some channeled liquids through hollow handles and rims before reaching their spouts. Some, featuring decorative, perforated necks, could be filled, but not emptied. Others, to drink without drenching, required stopping up one or more holes while sipping from another. Moreover, hidden holes (and increasing tipsiness) could make manipulating puzzle jugs even more demanding. Rare ones that incorporate verse into their designs are particularly charming. A 17th century one, for example, reads, “Here Gentlemen come try y skill, I’le hold a wager if you will, That you don’t drink this liquor all, without you spill or lett, some fall.”

English Delftware puzzle jug with drinking verse, circa 1750, 7in high. Realized $550 + buyer’s premium in 2017. Image courtesy of Alex Cooper and LiveAuctioneers

Native Americans of the Great Lakes region, believing that puffs of smoke carry thoughts and prayers to the spirit world, used ceremonial pipes during traditional tribal rituals. Those with wooden stems are often highly decorative. Some boast animal hair, dyed quillwork, beadwork, feather, brass tack or hot-file branding adornments. Some spiral from top to bottom or depict carved, low-relief figures of birds, elk, bighorn sheep, turtles, fish or buffalo. Other wooden stems, in addition to spirals and bright pigmented images, feature intricate fretwork hearts, chevrons, triangles or diamond piercings along their lengths. The puzzle is how inhaled air winds its way from pipe bowl to its smoker.

Great Lakes pipe, Ojibwa, late-1800s, black steatite bowl with elaborate lead and catlinite inlays, stem carved with twist and puzzle elements, featuring brass tacks and file branding, 27in. Realized $5,000 + buyer’s premium in 2010. Image courtesy of Skinner and LiveAuctioneers

Model ships-in-bottles, which date from the mid-18th century, are well-known “impossible” mechanical puzzles. (Spoiler: though different techniques exist, their flexible, cabled masts, spars and sails are often rigged tight to hulls while outside, then raised when inside.)

On the other hand, Harry Eng (1932-1996) encapsulated full-sized books, golf balls, tennis balls, decks of cards, padlocks, packs of cigarettes, scissors, signature rope knots and/or puzzling Rubik’s cubes into narrow-necked bottles. Some surmise that he shrank, sliced, unstitched, bent, folded, rolled or disassembled them before slipping them inside. Then, with tweezers, pencils, rubber bands, mini-vises, tiny metal tubes, extreme cleverness and endless patience, perhaps he expanded, glued, stitched, straightened, unfolded, unrolled or reassembled them into their original condition. Or not. According to the Puzzle Museum website, Eng, educational consultant, schoolteacher, magician and inventor, created impossible bottles to make people think.

Impossible Puzzle Bottle, Harry Eng, circa 1990, 10in high. Realized $550 + buyer’s premium in 2015. Image courtesy Potter & Potter Auctions and LiveAuctioneers

Though table and floor-assembled jigsaw puzzles are perennially popular, puzzle-carpets take them to a new level. Marcello Morandini, award-winning Italian architect, sculptor and graphic designer, for example, created one featuring seven wool pieces edged with Velcro.

Seven-piece ‘Puzzle carpet’ from PRORGETTI series, wool/Velcro tape, 404 x 99 or 202 x 198 cm, marked Marcello Morandini, circa 1988, made by Melchnau AG, Switzerland, 1990. Realized €1,600 ($2,063) + buyer’s premium in 2014. Image courtesy Quittenbaum Kunstauktionen GmbH and LiveAuctioneers

“In my usual ‘black and white’ graphic language,” he explains, “I wanted to design a carpet that is not static in its format and its visual perception, but modifiable in its shapes for the infinite combinations and the different practical spatial needs of living. Life is a puzzle!”

Sam Maloof: a woodworker, plain and simple

NEW YORK – Of all the American woodworkers and furniture designers of the 20th century, perhaps none were at once as celebrated and humble as Sam Maloof (1916-2009), the son of Lebanese immigrants who was born in California and lived and worked there his entire life. The accolades were many: in 1985 he was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” grant, the New York Times called him “a central figure in the postwar American crafts movement,” the Smithsonian Institution declared him to be “America’s most renowned contemporary craftsman” and People magazine dubbed Maloof “The Hemingway of Hardwood.” His furniture resides in the collections of many American museums.

But if anyone attempted to call Sam Maloof an artist, he would quickly correct them. “I am a woodworker,” he would say with typical humility. “I like the word. It’s an honest word.” Maloof worked with wood starting as a child, making a spatula for his mother, plus dollhouse furniture, cars and other toys. In 1948, he and his wife, Alfreda, moved into a house in Ontario, California, where he set up a furniture workshop in the garage. Having little money, he designed and built a suite of furniture for the home, mostly made of salvaged materials and discarded packing crates.

Walnut dining table made circa 1967 by Sam Maloof, numbered 18/67, rectangular with a pedestal base and two leaves (each leaf: 20¾in long) 113¾in wide (fully extended); 39¾in wide; 29in high, sold at Abell Auction for $16,250. Image courtesy of Abell Auction

Word spread of his creations and commissions began pouring in. A friend, Henry Dreyfuss (the noted industrial designer of such classics as the Singer sewing machine and the Hoover vacuum cleaner) commissioned Maloof to make 25 pieces for his Pasadena home. The rocking chair he designed for Dreyfuss was an instant hit and was soon found in the chicest homes – including the White House. Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan had rockers made by Maloof in the Oval Office. Carter signed a photograph to Maloof, “to my woodworking hero,” in a visit to Maloof’s home.

Maloof’s style was to put function over form, usefulness before artistry. His modern furniture was assembled entirely out of wood (he preferred claro walnut, cherry, oak, rosewood and yew) using no nails or metal hardware at all. These were a perfect fit for the minimalist homes of the postwar period. “He was trying to make other people appreciate what it was like to live with a handcrafted object in which there was a kind of union between maker, object and owner,” according to Jeremy Adamson, author of the 2001 book The Furniture of Sam Maloof.

‘Cradle Hutch’ made in 1971 by Sam Maloof, one of six made, walnut construction, a freestanding cradle hutch with a rectangular outset top over a double-door blanket cabinet secured with a shaped wooden latch, raised atop a central space suspending a slatted rocking cradle over a pull-out changing surface, 80¾in x 58in wide, sold for $43,750 at John Moran Auctioneers on April 25, 2017. Image courtesy of John Moran Auctioneers

Maloof’s chairs, for which he is most famous, have a sculptural quality about them, yet are also very ergonomic and austere in their simplicity. They can be characterized by completely rounded over corners at mortise and tenon joints (which are always plainly visible); carved ridges and spines, particularly on the arm rests; decorative ebony dowels; deep, dished-out seats (always made from several boards glued together); and clear finishes. Everything he made – chairs, cradles, hutches and other furniture pieces – were designed and crafted entirely by hand.

“Sam Maloof’s work is timeless; it is subtly modern and surprisingly sophisticated,” said David Rago, a partner and co-director of 20th /21st Century Design Development at Rago Arts & Auction in Lambertville, N.J. “While his famous rocking chair has a lyrical expression of line, the magic of Maloof’s designs can be found in the details – the expertly formed joints, the finishing of the edges, the graining and beauty of the planks, and his use of proportion.”

Executive swivel chair made in 1984 by Sam Maloof in-studio, signed and dated, 52½in tall x 29in wide, sold for $8,960 at Los Angeles Modern Auctions on Oct. 11, 2015. Image courtesy of Los Angeles Modern Auctions.

Together, these details reveal a mastery of material and form, Rago said, resulting in works that are simple but refined and work in any interior. “I should add that he chose the discipline of a rocking chair as his cornerstone form,” he pointed out. “They are deceptively difficult to make, and yet part of the furniture vernacular for centuries. At one, a rocking chair is basic and functional, but brought to the level of high art by Maloof’s genius as a craftsman and designer.”

“A few years ago, we had a Sam Maloof bench here in the showroom,” said Wade Terwilliger, president and marketing director of Modern Auctions in West Palm Beach, Fla. “I recall the woodworker we use – who’s normally pretty reserved – sharing with me at length his awe of Maloof’s craftsmanship. I’m sure some of the humility in Sam’s self-described title of simply “woodworker” is related to his background as the hardworking son of immigrants, but I think there may be more to it than that. The title directs your attention to what he considered most significant – the working of wood.”

Fine and rare bench by Sam Maloof made from bird’s-eye and tiger maple, 30in tall x 38½in wide, est. $30,000-$35,000, lot was passed at an auction held Nov. 26, 2011 by Palm Beach Modern Auctions. Image courtesy of West Palm Beach, Fla.

Terwilliger said Maloof’s pieces are shaped and finished to draw attention to the inherent beauty of the grain. “Wood is both the medium and the subject of a functional sculpture, without disguise or ornamentation,” he explained. “For example, the ebony dowels Maloof often used to join pieces together remain visible, providing color contrast, but are fully smoothed over and integrated into the chair’s form. It’s clear that great effort and attention to detail went into creating something so seemingly simple.”

“Furniture by Sam Maloof continues to resonate with collectors of all kinds as it is sculptural, visually pleasing, timeless and easy to use,” said Jason Stein, director of Modern Decorative Art + Design at Bonhams in Los Angeles. “I once heard him described as ‘a craftsperson’s craftsman.’ The woods he worked with were incredible and his pieces were known to be technically precise and beautifully finished.”

“The market for Sam Maloof designs has been consistent for the past decade,” David Rago said. “It’s strong, but not quite ‘hot.’ Given the relatively small number of works produced, his prices are very fair, generally ranging from $5,000 to $50,000. An interesting comparison is the market for the work of George Nakashima, for which there are over 5,000 auction results with a top price of $800,000. There are only 370 auction results for Sam Maloof and only one lot – a complete dining set – has achieved a price over $100,000, and that was more than a decade ago.”

Fine rocking chair (no. 11) made in 2004 from sculpted ebony walnut by Sam Maloof, signed, dated and numbered with copyright, 47in x 27in, sold for $26,000 at Rago Arts & Auction Center on Jan. 20, 2019. Image courtesy of Rago Arts & Auction Center

It’s hard not see the relative value in the beautifully crafted works of Sam Maloof, Rago said. “That said, the rarity of Maloof’s work counter-intuitively serves to keep prices down because there has never been sufficient availability to generate a broad market. Phil Powell, the New Hope furniture designer, perhaps made a thousand pieces in his lifetime. Though working at the same time as George Nakashima and Paul Evans, in the same town, George and Paul are said to have produced between 35,000 and 40,000 pieces.  The relative paucity of Powell’s surviving work mirrors the market’s response to Maloof.”

Wade Terwilliger said the market for Sam Maloof furniture has held remarkably steady. “His famed rockers hold most of the top spots, and the curviest forms in fiddleback maple and rosewood are the most desirable,” he said. “Beautiful craftsmanship tends to hold value, and I believe the catalog raisonné, well-documented provenance and an active studio lend themselves to a healthy market because there is little question of authenticity.”

Walnut 12-drawer cabinet made circa 1975 by Sam Maloof with dovetail joinery and circular tenon details, an exemplary of Maloof’s exquisite craftmanship, signed with branded manufacturer’s mark to each drawer, 80in wide x 20in deep x 32in tall, sold at Wright for $24,2130. Image courtesy of Wright

Jason Stein said the current market demand for works by Maloof is strong and consistent – “especially for his prized sculptural rocking chairs, cribs and hutches. I see this demand continuing and many collectors have Maloof on their wish lists.” Bonhams holds the world record for Sam Maloof furniture at auction – set in Los Angeles in 2006 for a carved walnut conference table and ten armchairs ($194,250). It also holds the record for a Sam Maloof rocking chair, with an example making $80,500 in 2012. Pieces by Maloof continue to do well at auction.

Maloof’s former residence in Alta Loma, which he purchased as a simple bungalow in 1953, was, over time, transformed by Maloof into a timbered, 22-room house with a hand-carved spiral staircase and door latches shaped like miniature golf clubs. It’s listed on the National Register of Historic Places and now serves as the Sam and Alfreda Maloof Foundation for Arts and Crafts. Tours of the historic home are given on Thursdays and Saturdays.

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Walker Evans photography: modern yet timeless

NEW YORK – Gritty portraits of a disheveled dockworker in Havana or a tenant farmer in Alabama, who unflinchingly stares into the camera, speak volumes about life’s harsh realities. Images captured by documentary photographer Walker Evans (1903-1975) tell rich stories of American life in the early 20th century. The self-taught photographer became synonymous with the Great Depression. While definitely relating to the period they were taken, his photographs transcend their era, resonating with and speaking to viewers today as fresh as the day they were printed in a darkroom.

Demonstrating his keen appreciation of the vernacular is this Evans 1936 photo (printed 1960s) of an Atlanta auto parts shop. It made €5,500 ($6,147) + the buyer’s premium in June 2017 at Leitz Photographica Auction. Photo courtesy of Leitz Photographica Auction and LiveAuctioneers

Born in St. Louis, Evans studied in Paris, where he encountered the work of forward-thinking artists that inspired his early artistic direction. After returning to the United States in 1928, he borrowed a Leica camera and started taking dramatic shots of New York City’s architecture, These images are recognized for their abstracted and striking perspectives. Within a few years, however, he switched to shooting vernacular scenes of people and American culture.

A circa 1930 untitled photograph of a step-back building in New York City, earned $6,000 + the buyer’s premium in June 2020 at Wright. Photo courtesy of Wright and LiveAuctioneers

While working for the Farm Security Administration 1935-1937, Evans created many photographs that were used in the groundbreaking exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1938, which was the museum’s first single-person exhibit. It was also during his stint at the FSA that he took a sabbatical to photograph Alabama sharecropper tenant families, whose images immediately captured the public and are still fascinating today.

According to the International Center for Photography, Evans’ work paved the way for the American documentary movement that really took hold in the 1930s and for street photographers later on. “His precisely composed, intricately detailed, spare photographs insisted on their subject matter, and his impartial acceptance of his subjects made his work seem true and aesthetically pure – qualities that have been the goal of documentary photography ever since,” according to the center’s website.

‘Alabama Tenant Farmer’ (Floyd Burroughs) photographed by Walker Evans in 1936, gelatin silver print, 9 1/8 x 7¼in. Sold for £70,000 ($110,857) + the buyer’s premium at Phillips in London in May 2012. Photo courtesy of Phillips and LiveAuctioners

Not surprisingly, among the highest-selling images by Evans on LiveAuctioneers is his iconic portrait of Alabama cotton farmer Floyd Burroughs taken in 1936 that achieved £70,000 ($110,857) + the buyer’s premium at Phillips in London in May 2012.

“In the eyes of Floyd Burroughs is a fixed, intense integrity, his strength and unwavering determination magnified by the close crop of the frame, conveying almost a numbness to his current circumstances and a knowing willingness to survive,” according to the auction house.

Evans also took four portraits of Floyd’s wife, Allie Mae Burroughs, composing the shot starkly with her standing against the wall of the cabin they rented. The sharecropping family lived in a four-room cabin and did not own their land, nor even the farm implements. Of the four portraits he took of Allie Mae, “Although compositionally similar, they record distinct facial expressions ranging from bemused cooperation to brooding anger and resentment – moods conveyed by a slight tilt of the head, the furrows around the eyes, the angle of the pursed mouth,” according to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Nearly as iconic as Evans’ photograph of Floyd Burroughs were his four 1936 portraits of the sharecropper’s wife, Allie Mae, described as a Mona Lisa of sorts. This 9½-by-7½inch image sold for $26,000 + the buyer’s premium in October 3023. Photo courtesy of Phillips and LiveAuctioners

Evans was not only a photographer but reportedly an avid collector. In his travels, he acquired postcards, a passion for which he took to early on and lectured on later in his life; as well as tools, roadside signs and more. According to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, which presented a major retrospective of the photographer’s work in 2017-18, photography was an extension of Evans’ penchant for collecting. Clément Chéroux, the museum’s senior curator of photography, who organized the exhibition, said in a museum blog that “photography became for him a convenient way to acquire things too big, too unwieldy, or too complex to physically remove from American roadsides to bring back to his home or studio.”

A 1931 photograph, ‘Saratoga Springs,’ printed in 1962, brought $9,000 + the buyer’s premium in December 2019 at Stair. Photo courtesy of Stair and LiveAuctioneers

Collecting and art were twin passions and the two shared a deep interplay with Evans often staging photographs of his collections, such as when he juxtaposed American farming tools with European tools to illustrate the difference in decoration between the two. He is said to have likened a hardware store to a museum of sorts. He found not only beauty in the objects he collected and photographed but a cataloging of American culture from its businesses to products to its people.

An early example of street photography, Walker Evans’ 1929 photograph, ‘Girl in Fulton Street, New York,’ printed 1962, sold for $10,000 + the buyer’s premium in December 2019 at Stair. Photo courtesy of Stair and LiveAuctioneers

And perhaps that is what lies at the heart of the appeal of Evan’s photography is his keen ability to capture the spirit of America in a single image.