I will do my best to publish a new post every Monday.
Toomey & Co., Oak Park, IL, held a sale of The Ira Simon Collection on April 27, 2022, with outstanding results. Included in the sale were some very fine examples of Tiffany lamps, and a multitude of unique Art Nouveau and Art Deco items. Following is a review of a few interesting lots by Tiffany Studios. There were other categories and makers that also sold fabulously well. You can check them all out by clicking here.
The sale started off with a bang. Lot #1, a lovely Tiffany Studios 22″ diameter Dragonfly table lamp was the top lot of the sale. It almost doubled its high estimate of $250,000, realizing $545,000, including buyer’s premium. Wow! Shows you the market is hot.
I really wanted to buy lot #2, a charming Tiffany Studios 12″ diameter Apple Blossom table lamp on a rare Fern base. I figured it had a retail price in the range of $40,000 – $50,000. Boy, was I wrong. It sold for $112,500, including buyer’s premium, against an estimate of $15,000 – $25,000. Wowza! That’s two home runs in a row to start the sale. It set the tone for aggressive bidding throughout the sale.
The sale was so strong that even a so-so example of a Tiffany Studios 16″ diameter Daffodil table lamp sold for $62,500, including buyer’s premium; approximately double its high estimate of $30,000. The lamp was a marriage, as the shade had an original gold finish and the base had an original patina. If it were me, I would separate the parts and try to find a nice gold base for the shade and an appropriate patina shade for the desirable tree trunk base.
Lot #7 was a Tiffany Studios wood and Turtleback inkwell. Tiffany used wood in very few items, making this inkwell very rare and very cool. It was made of oak, with brass corners and a glass Turtleback lid. I just loved it. I thought I had a chance to buy it because I was willing to pay about $7,500 and the estimate was only $1,000 – $2,000. No luck at this sale. It sold for $22,500, including buyer’s premium. Another wowza!
Congrats to John Walcher and the entire team at Toomey & Co. for a job well done.
No shows until October 20, 2022, when we’ll exhibit at the Baltimore Art, Antique & Jewelry Show. Two weeks later we’ll exhibit at the Antiques + Modernism Show in Winnetka, IL, starting on November 4, 2022.
Let me know what interests you, even if you don’t see it on my website. I’ve got lots of items that I haven’t listed yet and I know how to locate what you desire.
I listed some of the new items on my website and will list more every week. Click Philip Chasen Antiques to take a look. I will make every effort to actively list new items as often as time permits. I always strive to offer the finest objects for sale on my website and at every show. There are many items for sale, sold items with prices and free lessons about glass and lamps. And remember to keep reading my blog.
The blog is informative and will be missed IF you stop as you say you will. Perhaps a “rest” and when you restart only do so without the self- imposed pressure of each week.
You chose to not write that your blog builds a larger base for collecting in your field. Success creates crosses… . Like blogs.
Thank you very much for your amazing blog. I have followed it for years and it has great fun to see so many beautiful treasures and to also learn. I often considered how much time and energy you have put into it. You created a great resource and I know that so many have enjoyed it as I have. It is unfortunate we all have not let you know ho much it has been appreciated.
Regards and continue the joy of treasure hunting. If only I had been born ten years earlier and had been one of the lucky ones who could find Tiffany and all of the treasures of that period – which could – in the 1950s – be found in yard sales, junk & antique shops, the goodwill, or often during the 1940s …. At curb- side on trash pickup day.
John Kuzich