Here Be Old Things

Merry Christmas to all...

If Sotheby's and Christie's can close for the holidays, so can Here Be Old Things. I'm off to the west coast. When I return, a profile on the Hell's Kitchen flea market and Tepper Galleries. Until then, Happy New Year!

New York City Auctions: December 24–30, 2007

In New York, everything is expensive, even Santa: this Norman Rockwell illustration sold in November at Christie's for $2.17 million. But thank goodness, there are still no wild Day-After Thanksgiving auctions, with bidders clawing over each other for paddles. Tepper Galleries is back in business January 5th, but most of the houses are closed until mid-January. That's civilized. Time is the most valuable asset of all.

Bloomsbury Auctions: rare book auctions, now in New York

Bloomsbury Auctions
6 West 48th Street
212.719.1000

All my old friends!

That was my first thought when the elevator doors opened and I stepped into Bloomsbury Auctions. Two Shepherd pen and ink originals of Christopher Robin were framed and hanging on the wall, "Now We are Six" illustrations I remember from my childhood. I grabbed a catalogue and briefly considered the estimates (could I? should I?) before moving on to the Sendak art. The name of the auction was appropriate: Memories of Childhood. It all came flooding back.

Magna Carta up for sale in a one lot auction at Sotheby's

Perot Foundation

"Sure, but what is he selling, the Magna Carta?"

That was the reaction of James Zemaitis, director of Sotheby’s 20th-century design department, when asked to give up a room that he had reserved for a pre-auction exhibition of his own.

Well, yes, it IS the Magna Carta.  Out of seventeen surviving copies, it's the only one in private hands–Ross Perot's–and it's the one and only lot up for auction on December 18th, 7:00 pm at Sotheby's. It is estimated at 20 to 30 million dollars.

Sotheby's vice chairman David Redden says of it, ""It is absolutely correct to say the Magna Carta is the birth certificate of freedom. It states the bedrock principle that no person is above the law — that is the essence of it."

Your chances to preview probably the most important document in the world are:

• 11 Tues 10:00–5:00
• 12 Wed 10:00–5:00
• 13 Thurs 10:00–5:00
• 14 Fri 10:00–5:00
• 15 Sat 10:00–5:00
• 16 Sun 1:00–5:00
• 17 Mon 10:00–5:00
• 18 Tues 10:00–5:00

But ... one lot ... won't that be embarrassing if it doesn't sell? Other high-profile and highly-publicized lots have failed to draw bids in the last few weeks. I think I'm going to tune in for the webcast, and bite my nails.

Magna Carta is Going on the Auction Block [NYT]
Magna Carta copy to fetch fortune at auction [MSNBC]
Sotheby's to auction Magna Carta [Daily News]

New York City Auctions: December 17–23, 2007

Starting today, I'm losing the previews list and listing auctions a full week ahead of the event. Please click through to the appropriate sites for this week's previews. (My fingers thank you.)

Lot 405 Claude & François-Xavier Lalanne 'Petite Carpe,' Sotheby's Property from the Estate of Robin Roberts

• Tuesday December 18
  • Christie's 10 am: Important Works Of Art By Tiffany Studios
  • Christie's 11 am and 2 pm: Important 20th Century Decorative Art & Design
  • Christie's 5 pm: Property From The Estate Of Robin Roberts
  • Sotheby's 2 pm:  Israeli and International Art
  • Sotheby's 7 pm: The Magna Carta

• Wednesday December 19
  • Bonhams 10 am: The Mark Woolley Collection of Vintage Radios
  • Bonhams 1 pm: 20th Century Decorative Arts
  • Bloomsbury 11 am and 2 pm: Books, Photographs, Drawings and Prints
  • R.A. Siegel 10:30 and 1:30: United States and Confederate States Postal History
  • Sotheby's 10 am: Judaica
  • Swann 1:30 pm: Rare and Important Art Nouveau Posters

• Thursday December 20
  • R.A. Siegel 10:30 and 1:30: United States and Confederate States Postal History

New York City Auctions: December 10–16, 2007

Tiffany lamps were once so considered so outdated, their owners used to set them out for the trash. One antique dealer in NYC got her start by picking them up off the curb. I think about this whenever I throw something out ... is my Ikea piece the next Tiffany lamp?

Lot 208, "Wisteria" table lamp, Tiffany Studio: Sotheby's Important Tiffany Lamps.     .

New York City Auction Previews: December 8–14, 2007

Things are changing here at Old Things. Up until now I've been posting previews on Fridays and then auction listings for the coming week on Sundays. But it felt redundant, and I'd rather have the time free to concentrate on actual stories. Next week I'm going to eliminate the previews and on Mondays, a full week prior, post coming auctions. If you want to preview, just click through to the pertinent site.

Lot 10, "A New Lottery Book of Birds and Beasts for Children to Learn their Letters by as soon as they can Speak," by Thomas Bewick at Bloomsbury's Memories of Childhood auction.

Thrift shop row: West 17th Street in Chelsea

Thrift stores are the new flea markets. Maybe that's why I love West 17th Street so much. Perfect day: poke through Housing Works and the Angel Street Thrift Shop, pop into Pippin's used furniture store, peer into their vintage jewelry store next door, stop by the Chelsea Antique & Collectible Flea Market (if it's the weekend) and then wander on up to City Bakery. I'm thristy for their famous hot chocolate,* and I haven't even stopped by Fisch for the Hip or 17@17 yet.

Down this corridor, in a weird little structure built between the surrounding apartment houses, find Pippin Home.

Flea scene...

Evil Monkey by Anniebee. I was at the Hell's Kitchen Flea the week after and took a photo of this same monkey, but the results were less satisfactory.

New York City Auctions: December 3–9, 2007

Lot 59 Gustaf Tenggren for Little Red Riding Hood; Illustration House auction