COMPLIMENTARY COPY
Broadway Cooler Nears New Record For Stoneware At Auction Crocker Farm Sells Masterwork For $480,000 By Karl Pass
FRIDAY JUNE 19, 2020 • VOL. 51, NO. 25
Revolutionary War Tomahawk Auctioned In Pennsylvania For World Record $664,200 Made By Future General Richard Butler While An Armorer At Fort Pitt (1765-70), Signed And Inscribed Tomahawk Was Carried To Battle By Lt. John McClellan A ca. 1765-70 Revolutionary War presentation pipe tomahawk made by future Army General Richard Butler and inscribed to Lieutenant John McClellan of the Pennsylvania Riflemen was sold by Morphy Auctions in Lancaster County, Pa., for a staggering $664,200, inclusive of buyer’s premium. It is a worldrecord auction price for any tomahawk.
Born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1743, Butler moved with his family to Lancaster, Pa., at age 5. Around 1760, the Butlers relocated to the settlement of Carlisle, where his father worked as a gunsmith. The younger Butler apprenticed under his father at the gun shop, which still stands near the
Crocker Farm held an internet, phone, and absentee auction from April 6 to May 1, with a special live callback session on May 2 for lots that achieved a bid of $1,000 and over. The speciality auction company originally planned to hold its sale on March 21 at its facility in Sparks, Md. Among the highlights, and one of the most exciting pieces of American stoneware to ever sell at auction, was the “Broadway Cooler.” Recently discovered out West, the 26-inch-high seven-gallon stoneware water cooler with phenomenally detailed incised and impressed decoration of New York City’s Broadway, stamped twice, “W.H. FARRAR & CO. / GEDDES, N.Y.,” dated 1846, the ovoid cooler with stepped pedestal base, tall, flaring collar, and rope-twist handles was a new discovery to the world of pottery collectors. It sold for $480,000 (est. $100,000-$200,000) to New York state collector Adam Weitsman, underbid by a another collector. The cobalt-highlighted street scene design depicts the celebration of the Great National Jubilee of the Order of the Sons of Temperance, a fraternal organization founded on the principle of abstinence from alcohol in New York City
AAN Current News Movie Poster For “The Invisible Man” Sells For $182,400 on page 2
Continued on page 3
The extremely important and fine silver-mounted and inlaid presentation pipe tomahawk signed “R. (Richard) Butler” and inscribed to “Lt John Maclellan (sic.),” extensively exhibited, including at the Smithsonian and the Tower of London, depicted on the cover of “Indian Tomahawks & Frontiersman Belt Axes,” and in other reference books, sold on May 27 for $664,200 at Morphy Auctions. “Because of its historical importance and incomparable line of previous ownership, there was great interest in the tomahawk in the days leading up to the auction. We knew ahead of time that a couple of serious players would be competing for it,” said Morphy Auctions founder and president Dan Morphy. “There were six phone lines in use when the bidding opened at $240,000. It quickly escalated and was sold to an American buyer.” According to Morphy, the most important and best-known American tomahawk in existence, it was featured in the 2005 “Clash of Empires: The British, French & Indian War, 1754-1763,” an exhibition of French and Indian War items commemorating the 250th anniversary of the conflict. Exhibition stops included the Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh, the Canadian War Museum/Museum of Civilization in Ottawa, and The Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. Displaying extremely fine workmanship, the silver-mounted and inlaid tomahawk was hand-forged and signed by Richard Butler, a respected armorer at Fort Pitt (Pa.), between the years 1765-70. Butler’s daybook, which is held in Carnegie Library, gives a record of his time at Fort Pitt and lists the many pipe tomahawks he made.
town’s Court Square. In 1772, following his time at Fort Pitt, Butler was commissioned as a captain in the Pennsylvania Militia. Over time, he gained the trust of Native Americans in the region and, in partnership with his brother, conducted fur trading with the tribes and also provided gunsmithing services. In 1775, Butler left the Pennsylvania Militia and became an agent of Indian Affairs for the region. He strengthened relations with the Shawnee and Delaware Indians, signing a Treaty of Neutrality with them. In 1776, he was commissioned a major in the Continental Army’s 8th Pennsylvania Regiment. He fought with the riflemen at Saratoga and commanded the 9th Pennsylvania Regiment at Stony Point. Subsequently, he served as colonel of the 5th Pennsylvania regiment at Yorktown, and afterward remained in the Continental Army. In 1783, he was given an honorary promotion to brigadier general. He was one of five brothers who all served in the military and were known collectively as “The fighting Butlers.” Richard Butler was killed in 1791 at the Battle on the Miami River in Ohio. Lieutenant John McClellan, the original owner of the tomahawk Continued on page 2
Seagreaves Redware Dog Brings $1,813
Haddon Heights To Celebrate The American Spirit on page 4
Pook & Pook Sells Moyer Estate Items By Karl Pass Pook & Pook of Downingtown, Pa., held an online-only decorative arts auction on May 20 with a wide array of quality antiques, much of it from the Dennis and Linda Moyer estate. The auction house will hold a two-day catalog sale for the Moyer collection on Friday and Saturday, July 10 and 11. Among the things sold were multiple lots of pottery, such as Stahl, Keyser, Breininger, and Seagreaves. One of the highlights of the regional pottery was a handbuilt redware dog by Jim Seagreaves, dated 1957, which brought $1,813. James Christian Seagreaves (1913-97), known as Jim to many, and his wife, Verna, lived in Breinigsville, Pa. Jim was exempted from the draft during World War II because his work at the Bethlehem Steel plant was considered essential to the war effort. Later, he was a machinist for Air Products and Chemicals Inc. prior to retiring in 1976. According to local historian Richard Orth, Seagreaves began experimenting with making redware pottery in the late 1940’s. Considered a revivalist craftsman, his work had a unique style, incorporating a thenmodern 1950s aesthetic
and early Pennsylvania German motifs and techniques. Seagreaves was known for his sgraffito decorating and use of bold, colorful glazes. He was especially known for his press-molded birds that were cast from original molds he created. Following his death, the majority of molds were destroyed so they could not be used again. Aside from the molded work, he was very skilled at creating hand-built work and throwing on the wheel. Among the rarer items he created were face jugs, fish whistles, and figural dogs, such as the one sold. Early in Jim’s potting career, he had a source for locally dug clay. Jimmy Epler dug clay for him in the 50’s in Fetherolfsville (Kempton) at the site of a short lived 19th century pottery. He signed work with his
In Memoriam: Nelson Williams (1927-2020) on page 4
Continued on page 3
Major Americana Auction Set For June 20 At Pook & Pook on page 9
In This Issue SHOPS, SHOWS & MARKETS . . . . . . . . . . starting on page 3 SHOPS DIRECTORY . . . . . . . . . on page 5 EVENT & AUCTION CALENDAR . on page 6 AUCTION SALE BILLS . . . starting on page 6
FEATURED AUCTION: William Bunch Auctions - June 23 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania - Page 10
AUCTIONEER DIRECTORY . . . . . on page 7 CLASSIFIEDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . on page11