In the words of several bidders, Garth’s January 12, 2013 auction of Country Americana was a barnburner.  The 190-year old bank barn in Delaware, Ohio (occupied by Garth’s for almost 60 years) was the enchanted site for the realization of the "magic formula in today's market”, to which President Amelia Jeffers often refers.  “Buyers are looking for color, form, whimsy, and size...the smaller the better (generally, but not always).  In fact, the vast majority of the auction spoke to those first three factors,” said Jeffers. Given the pre-sale interest, it is not surprising that an impressive 99% of the 471 lots offered found buyers, but it was the prices paid (over 85% within or above estimate) which did surprise many.  Quite a few of these objects were purchased in the past 36 months, leaving some doubt about how the market would respond.  “While we usually see a softness when objects are "churned" quickly, that was not the case here,” said Jeffers.  “Clearly, this consignor had not been buying with the intention of "churning"...he was buying with the intention of building a wonderful collection of objects that made him smile.” 300+ bidders packed the room that Saturday, and another 3,000+ joined them online and by phone or absentee, responding to the collective whimsy and charm represented in the one-day auction.

Color:
Following the factors of the “magic formula”, strong color was evident in nearly every lot of the sale. Lot 102, the red blanket chest with original paint and decoration pinwheels and flowers(originally attributed to Centre County, Pennsylvania in the catalog) proved - according to a variety of sources - to actually be Ohio. Garth’s CEO and principal auctioneer Jeff Jeffers remarked, "Although stylistically it had decoration similar to Centre County boxes, those boxes are almost always constructed with a French foot...this decoration was much more whimsical and folksy, with the addition of the yellow star treatment and a couple of other nuances that we know to be found almost solely on Ohio objects - we believe wholeheartedly this was an Ohio box." It sold for $50,525. Vice-president Andrew Richmond further explained “We were told It turned up in a local Wooster, OHio sale years ago, and was said to have been apparently purchased then, or owned slightly later, by Jeromesville, Ohio dealers George and Susan Delagrange.  Purportedly, they sold it into an Ohio collector, and from there it went to our consignor by way of a dealer.  I talked with Wayne County furniture historian Paul Locher (author of Artistry of the Cabinetmaker) and he recalls a chest with similar stars that sold in the late 1980s near Wooster.  I've not personally seen anything related to it, but my radar is now up. "

The portrait of George and Matilda Hodgson (lot 232) by William Matthew Prior drew attention in part to the blue dress worn by Matilda and reddish-orange flowers held by both children.  The portrait had sold in New York in May 2010 for $9,500. Noted Amelia Jeffers, “You wouldn’t expect to double up the sale price in this market, but we were thrilled that it brought $23,500!  Of course, we love when the strength of the market shows itself - and, especially, when it is made clear that the Midwest is an equal contender for the sale of wonderful things.”

A decorated  mule chest with a deeply scalloped apron and an older yellow painted surface with brown sponge decoration over traces of earlier blue doubled its high estimate selling for $3,290. An American poplar hanging corner cupboard (46.5"h.) with a glass door revealing decorative scalloped interior shelves and a blue and brown painted surface was pushed to $3,173 by bidders. An unusual apothecary chest married color and form as the piece sported thirty-five drawers and an old robin's-egg blue paint. It sold for $7,344 against an estimate $2,500-4,500. A large American pine work table was of particularly grand scale at 133” long with four drawers and stout turned legs. It retained an old, bittersweet-orange or vibrant pumpkin paint and reached $7,230. An American painted poplar corner cupboard dating to the second quarter-19th century was especially vibrant with an electric blue paint over an old red. It sold to a Southern dealer for $16,450 despite the fact the blue wasn’t that old. He explained it made a visual statement that his clientele just loves.

Form:
The top lot of the sale proved that form and color can also make a nice team. A fine tobacconist Indian figure, believed to be from the shop of Samuel Anderson Robb, New York, late 19th century, sold for $76,375. The figure of an Indian princess wearing a headdress retained its original polychrome paint and was mounted on a period base with iron wheels.

Almost every weathervane in the sale exceeded expectations. Lot 52, a full-bodied cow of impressive size (43.5” long) was attributed to New York and doubled its estimate selling for a sold $24,675.  A full-bodied example depicting the angel Gabriel with horn measured a stately 56" long and sold for $10,243 (estimate $2,000-4,000).  An American full-bodied copper rooster weathervane with verdigris surface sold for nearly 10x its estimate at $7,050 despite some minor seam separation.  

When the color of the decoration didn’t rule the bidding of the furniture, the form did. A Pennsylvania or Midwestern, mid 19th century cherry and poplar wall cupboard sold for  $6,756. An architectural  wall cupboard with dentil-carved cornice, two six-pane doors over two drawers and two raised-panel doors, all flanked by pilasters sold at the top end of its estimate for $6,025, as did a late 18th century diminutive wall cupboard which made $4,406.

Whimsy:
Doesn’t everyone need a life-size saddle-maker’s horse model? If this wasn’t whimsy, who knows what is! The American, late 19th century, wood, iron, and plaster  model of a well-detailed horse attracted quite a bit of attention. With cast-iron legs & ears, glass eyes, a wood body frame, horsehair mane and braided tail, and a plaster surface with the original paint, this 94” high horse was as close as you could get to owning the real thing without the on-going expense! It sold for $8,813.

An American carnival game kept the fun going in the form of a pair of bucking "Pony" toss games. Each with oil cloth on a wood frame and broom head mane, they descended in the Knoll family of Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Estimated at $2,500-3,500, the game hammered at $7,833.  Winning an American cast iron shooting gallery target  in the form of an owl with holes and ringers behind it was the aim of multiple bidders. With worn original red and white paint, the 16" high figure was expected to bring $600-900, but competition drove it to $6,169.

Over a dozen gameboards sold throughout the day including an American mid 20th century example with yellow and black squares flanked by moon and stars and wind and stars figures. Smaller than some of the others at only 14"l. 8.25"w.,  it still sold for double its estimate at $1,326. A pair of gameboards titled "Winning Numbers" each measured 60" long, and sold for $5,581.

Twenty-two lots of toys mixed nicely into the rest of the sale.  The finest was a large German wool, felt and metal sheep pull toy. With curly pelt, painted felt face, silent voice box, and a red ribbon collar, the 25" high example leapt beyond all the others to a sale price  $5,581.

A group of five Odd Fellows pine platforms seemed to strike a chord with several bidders. With each bearing one of the sentiments "Love", "Hope", "Friendship", Charity" and "Purity" in hand-painted lettering on colorfully painted boxes, the lot shot to $1,293.  

Size:
A fine, miniature blanket chest attributed to western Virginia, proved the point that things of nice small size and originality are highly desirable. Dating to the second quarter of the 19th century, the poplar, dovetailed case retained its original stylized flower decoration in red and gold, against a green ground. Measuring just 11.25"h. 17.5"w. 9.75"d., the attribution on this example is based on an inscribed chest by the same hand that at Northeast Auctions in August 2012. Research had identified the inscribed name as Granville H. Pool of Grayson County, Virginia.  This chest is nearly identical in size, construction and in decoration, however, this example had more exuberant floral decoration on which contributed to the sale price of $41,125.

An American carousel bear was a nice small size at 18” high and 21” long. WIth glass eyes, a saddle and the original yellow paint it truly crossed categories of color, form and whimsy selling for $4,583 against an estimate of $1,500-3,000.

At the other end of the spectrum, large scale trade signs were also in high demand. A bellman’s sign towered over the room at 10’1” tall.  The painted wood sign was comprised of back-to-back cutouts of striding uniformed bellhop carrying suitcase labeled "Lobby" and it sold for $3,878 (estimate $500-1,000). A large, 122” long single-sided sign “Ice Cream Parlor” sign with original blue paint sold for $3,055.  A two-sided, realistic fish shaped sign "Hamilton's Market" was a whopper of a catch at 82.5" long and a sale price of $3,408.

Commenting on the sale, Amelia Jeffers remarked, “The room was sooo crowded!  Beyond standing room only, and everyone was engaged and enthusiastic.  I love to see spirited bidding in the room, with strong competition on the phones and online.  It is such a great, energizing feeling as an auctioneer when you are in front of a crowd like that.”

Garth’s Auctioneers & Appraisers is currently preparing for its March and May 2013 Americana sales, the latter will feature the 7th Annual Ohio Valley session. Consignments are also being accepted for the July auction of Asian, European & American Paintings, Fine & Decorative Arts. For a complimentary and confidential auction estimate of your items, please call 740.362.4771 or email info@garths.com. A full list of prices realized from Garth’s January 12 Country Americana auction is available at  www.garths.com. All prices include a 17.5% buyer’s premium.