Weschler's to auction noted Baltimore estate & Capital Collections sale

ROCKVILLE, MD - Weschler’s, the Washington area's oldest auction house, will inaugurate its new location with two sales comprising nearly 500 works of art, fine furniture, jewelry, silver, rugs and more in two sales on Fri., Sept. 15. The estate of Baltimore antiques collector Elizabeth Margolet will begin at 10 a.m.; the Capital Collections Estate auction will begin at 1 p.m. Bids will be accepted in person, absentee, via telephone and online. 

These auctions mark the first catalogue sales for Weschler's since their move in June. At this new site, Weschler’s is continuing its regular schedule of weekly and online sales and quarterly catalogue auctions in spacious showrooms with ample on-site parking.

The first sale of the day will be the estate of noted Baltimore antiques collector Elizabeth "Betty" Louise Margolet (1926-2017). Her mother, Minerva Margolet, opened an antiques store on North Charles Street in Baltimore, and was joined in business by her other daughter Bernice Margolet. The store, which later moved to the Antique Center of Savage Mill, attracted many notable clients including Pauline Gore, mother of the Vice President, and Frances Haussner who furnished her family's landmark restaurant with finds from the Margolets' store. Louise Margolet pursued a career as a researcher at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, as she cultivated her love of antiques. Ultimately, she acquired the estates of both her sister and mother.

The Margolet sale includes 184 works of fine art, silver, enamel and porcelain objects, miniature portraits, fine furniture, painted screens and mirrors, chandeliers, bronzes, desk clocks, and many more objects reflecting Betty Margolet's love of French and Asian art. One lot to note is an Elizabethan gilt-silver mounted Chinese blue and white two-handle bowl (pictured above) from the Xuande Mark and Period (1426-1435) that is expected to bring between $1,000-$1,500.

The afternoon session's Capital Collections sale has a strong selection of contemporary works including striking paintings by Washington Color School artist Sam Gilliam (b.1933): Fan Fire IV ($100,000-$150,000); Untitled Abstract ($20,000-$30,000), and Untitled ($5,000-$7,000); Top Banana (pictured left), a painting by Gene Davis (1920-1985), a fellow Washington painter, is estimated at $40,000-$60,000.

More traditional works include:Margaret Mason Colt Peabody of Horseback by Franklin Brooke Voss (Am. 1880-1953) estimated between $20,000-$30,000 and Modèle dans l'atelier du peintre by Román Ribera Cirera (Sp. 1848-1935) expected to bring $5,000-$7,000.

JEWELRY offerings include an Art Deco tested platinum and diamond bar pin ($6,000-$8,000); Italian 18-karat yellow-gold and diamond evening bag with a 14-karat yellow-gold chain ($12,000-$15,000) and a 4.36 carat emerald-cut platinum solitaire diamond ring ($15,000-$20,000), among other pieces.

20th CENTURY lots include two Tiffany Studios Favrile lamps: a bronze and dark green glass lamp with linenfold shade (pictured below) ($15,000-$25,000) and a bronze and gold glass three-light lily piano lamp ($3,000-$5,000). Other lots of note, include: a Steuben glass 'Balloon Rally' sculpture designed by Bernard X. Wolff, c. 1985 ($6,000-$8,000) and a Philip and Kelvin LaVerne Romanesque acid-etched, engraved patinated bronze and pewter cocktail table, c. 1960-1969 ($6,000-$8,000).

FURNITURE highlights include a Chippendale mahogany chest-on-chest, c. 1760-1780 ($5,000-$7,000); a Federal satinwood inlaid walnut tall case clock, Caleb Davis, probably Shenandoah Valley, c. 1800-1815 ($3,000-$5,000); and a Napoleon III style sèvres-type ormolu mounted partial ebonized thuyawood bonheur-du-jour, c. 1900 ($1,500-$2,500).

The public is welcome to view all lots during exhibition hours prior to the sale: Sat. Sept. 9 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m.; Sun., Sept. 10 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m.; and the following weekdays preceding the sale from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (except Thurs., Sept. 14 when the preview will close at 2 p.m.).