RENO, Nev. – Serious collectors need to clear their calendars for the days spanning October 18th through 22nd for Holabird Western Americana Collections’ Cornucopia of Collectibles Auction, a five-day colossus bursting with over 3,300 lots in many collecting categories. The auction will be conducted online and in Holabird’s gallery located at 3555 Airway Drive (Suite 308) in Reno.

Start times all five days will be 8 am Pacific time. For those unable to attend the sale in person, online bidding will be facilitated by iCollector.com, Invaluable.com and eBay Live. “This sale marks the start of an exciting fall and winter season for us,” said Fred Holabird of Holabird Western Americana Collections. “We will be offering a number of fantastic major collections.”

These will include the Ken Prag American stock certificate collection, with categories such as railroads, mining, automobile, airplane, navigation and U.S. business; a medallic arts/Northwest Territorial mint reference ingot collection, with medals, tokens and token dies; the Joe Elcano Nevada history collection; and the Daniel Manassillian collection out of Central Valley, Calif.

Over 150 lots on Day 4 will be dedicated to an astounding array of directories, dating from the second half of the 19th century through the early 20th century and encompassing many states from coast to coast (but especially New York). The volumes are time capsules that collectors can read and enjoy, as well as display. They’ve been exhaustively compiled by several serious collectors.

Day 1, on Thursday, October 18th, will be packed with Native Americana, posters, entertainment industry memorabilia, bronze sculptures, furniture and related items, original art, vintage and antique bottles, saloon collectibles, taxidermy, gaming items, political memorabilia, and 420 lots of bargains and dealer specials of all sorts. In all, 659 lots will come up for bid across the day.

Star lots of the original art and bronze sculptures categories promise to be a gorgeous oil on canvas depiction of California Gold Rush miners by Kerne Erickson, signed lower left and housed in a 34 inch by 46 inch deep gold frame (est. $2,000-$4,000); and a bronze sculpture by Terry Murphy titled Bedded Dall Rams, #3 of 24, dated 1984, 15 inches tall (est. $2,000-$3,000).

Bottles will feature a beautiful sun-colored circa 1890-1900 pumpkinseed whiskey flask, 6 ½ inches tall, embossed with “From Wine House / Cigars & Liquors / Reno, Nev.” (est. $1,200-$2,000). Also offered will be an A.M. Cole (Virginia City, Nev.) Cold Cream pot lid, one of fewer than ten known, embossed and surrounded by a fancy chain border (est. $1,000-$2,000).

Day 2, Friday, October 19th, will showcase badges (26 lots), belt buckles (28 lots), numismatics (334 lots total, to include ingots, coins, currency and scrip, medals, scales and miscellaneous); jewelry (18 lots), tokens (180 lots), dies (67 lots) and minerals 19 lots) – for a total of 678 lots.

A candidate for top lot of Day 2, or maybe the auction overall, is a set of 25 Austrian 100 kroner gold coins dated 1915, uncirculated and each containing 0.98 troy ounces of pure gold. The coins were struck for the modern bullion market a year after the original series ended and are one of the most attractive of all the bullion coins extant. The set is expected to realize $25,000-$30,000.

Other noteworthy Day 2 lots include the authentic gold-plated badge and handcuffs once belonging to Charles McGuigan, who served as fire chief and sheriff (a combined position) of Virginia City, Nevada from 1910-1918, along with his biography (est. $1,000-$1,500); and a unique 5-cent saloon token from the Cyclone Saloon in Fowler, California (est. $200-$500).

Day 3, Saturday, October 20th, will feature mining collectibles (691 lots, geographically sorted) and militaria (59 lots). The day’s top lot is expected to be a set of 12 large original photo albums made expressly for the Ely-McGill Nevada Consolidated Copper Company (circa 1907-1933), containing 1,076 8 inch by 10 inch mostly classic blue sepia tone photos (est. $20,000-$30,000).

Rare and gorgeous mining stock certificates are plentiful and will include the following lots:

• Monitor and Northwestern Silver Mining Company of Milwaukee, with an eye-catching T. Davenport vignette of Monitor Mountain, Monitor Mining District in Alpine County, Calif., certificate #569 for five shares, datelined Milwaukee 1871 (est. $3,000-$5,000).
• Alhambra Mining Company, datelined 1860 Carson City, Utah; certificate #39 in the amount of 45 shares, issued to John Vignot, an early prospector in the area; signed by company secretary Thomas D. Johns and president Cipriano Thurn (est. $2,000-$3,000).
• Wells Fargo Mining Company, Virginia mining district in Storey County, Virginia; one of only a few examples known; certificate #4227 for 50 shares issued to W.G. Crandall, trustee and datelined San Francisco, 1876; signed by two officers (est. $2,000-$3,000).
• Dauphin & Colorado Gold Mining Company, datelined Philadelphia 1865; a rare, early certificate, twice signed, with a low number (34), for 200 shares issued to William W. Wiley; has a great vignette of mining in the high Colorado Rockies (est. $1,500-$3,000).

Day 4, Sunday, October 21st, will feature the aforementioned directories, firearms and weaponry, cowboy collectibles, tools, toys, automotive stocks, checks, Gold Rush items, pens and pencils, spoons, World’s Fair and Exposition memorabilia, locks and keys, and general Americana.`

Day 5, Monday, October 22nd, will have general Americana that’s geographically sorted, foreign items, railroadiana, Wells Fargo & Express collectibles and postal history – 702 lots in total.

Day 5 highlights will include an 1850 Gold Rush-era letter handwritten by a miner who left Illinois to seek his fortune and, as described in the letter, discovered Green Horn Lake (Calif.), that he renamed Lake Tahoe (est. $1,600-$2,000); and a rare Central Pacific Railroad timetable broadside, 1884, showing “From San Francisco & Toward San Francisco” (est. $2,000-$3,000).

In addition to in-person and online bidding, telephone and absentee bids will also be accepted.

Color catalogs are available by calling 1-844-492-2766, or 775-851-1859. Also, anyone owning a collection that might fit into an upcoming Holabird Western Americana Collections auction is encouraged to get in touch. The firm travels extensively throughout the U.S., to see and pick up collections. Last year it visited Boston, Florida, Seattle and New York, among other destinations.

Holabird Western Americana is always seeking quality bottle, advertising, Americana and coin consignments for future auctions. To consign a single piece or a collection, you may call Fred Holabird at 775-851-1859 or 844-492-2766; or, you can e-mail him at fredholabird@gmail.com. To learn more about Holabird Western Americana's Oct. 18th-22nd auction, visit www.fhwac.com.

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