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NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY TO DEACCESSION OBJECTS
In March 1993, the Board of Trustees of The New-York Historical
Society accepted the report of a special Advisory Committee charged to
devise a plan to ensure the financial stability of the institution in
anticipation of reopening the museum galleries in May 1995. The committee
determined that for the Society to continue to exist and for it to provide
greater access to and preservation of its collections, certain measures
would be necessary. At the heart of the Advisory Committee's plan was a
recommendation for a refined mission statement that focuses collections and
programs on New York City, the State, and the surrounding region. Adopted
by the Board of Trustees in May 1993, the newly refined mission caused a
reassessment of the entire museum and library collections. Collection
refinement, along with monetization of real estate assets and a revitalized
fundraising campaign, form a three-point plan to create a restricted
endowment for care and maintenance of the Society's unparalleled
collections.
Under supervision of the New York State Attorney General's Office,
The New-York Historical Society has identified a substantial body of
objects that do not relate to the institution's refined mission or that
represent redundancies. After thorough and rigorous review, these
collection objects have been deaccessioned by the Board of Trustees and
will be offered for sale at public auction. Sotheby's has been selected to
handle the sales of these items, that are described below. Three important
sales composed of deaccessioned New-York Historical Society collections are
planned for January 1995: "Important European Old Masters,"
"Paperweights," and "Decorative Arts and Paintings."
Recognizing a commitment to keep materials removed from the
Historical Society's collections available to New York audiences, The
New-York Historical Society has devised an unprecedented set of incentives
to encourage New York museums, libraries, and archives to purchase its
deaccessioned collections. These incentives include:
1) Qualified New York museums, libraries, and archives may exercise a
"pre-empt" bid within fourteen days after each auction and purchase any lot
sold at the hammer price, plus the buyer's premium as specified in the
catalogue for the sale, less the discounts described below.
2) If the hammer price of the lot is: a) below $25,000, N-YHS will
discount the hammer price by 10%; b) between $25,000 and $100,000, N-YHS
will discount the hammer price by 5%; c) above $100,000, N-YHS will
discount the hammer price by 3% provided that the lot sells above the high
estimate published in the catalogue for the sale (or as amended by any oral
or posted notices). In all cases, the buyer's premium will be paid by any
pre-empting institution on the hammer price, not the discounted number.
3) N-YHS will offer extended payment terms to qualifying New York
institutions that can, in its opinion, demonstrate an ability to meet a
payment schedule of 20% of the discounted price as a down payment, plus 20%
in each of the four succeeding years, plus interest. The buyer's premium
is not subject to financing and will be paid in full in accordance with the
Conditions of Sale governing the auction.
If two or more qualified New York institutions wish to exercise
their pre-empt rights for the same object or objects, each institution will
be informed and given opportunity to increase its bid at customary bidding
increments. If no institution increases its bid, then the first
institution that submitted its bid in accordance with the pre-emption
process shall be deemed the successful bidder. Institutions that purchase
objects under their pre-empt rights must agree to retain ownership of the
objects for at least ten years.
In addition to broad pre-sale publicity, Sotheby's, in conjunction
with the Society, has created a special bidding package for New York
institutions that contains complete details about this extraordinary sale,
the pre-emption process, and a more detailed listing of objects offered for
sale at auction. Sotheby's has also named a special sales representative
team to answer questions and to meet special institutional needs, including
tracking individual objects throughout the process and early viewing
privileges for potential institutional buyers. Please contact Sotheby's
Museum Services Department, (212) 606-7303, 1334 York Avenue, New York, NY
10021, if you wish to receive a bidding package or wish assistance of any
kind with respect to this sale.
Objects Approved for Auctioned in January 1995
227 American and European Paintings: 203 important European Old Master and
nineteenth-century paintings from the Thomas Jefferson Bryan Collection,
Louis P. Durr Collection, Thomas Moore Collection and others; 21 American
19th-century marine paintings by John and James Bard, Thomas Birch and
Antonio Jacobsen; 3 American 19th-century portraits; 1 American
19th-century Hudson River landscape, previously attributed to Thomas Cole.
498 Glass Paperweights: 409 European (primarily French-including Baccarat,
Clichy, St. Louis) and 89 American (including examples from Millville, Mt.
Washington, and Sandwich companies) glass paperweights from the Mrs. F.
Macdonald Sinclair collection, the Edwin Waitsill Orvis Collection and
others.
19 Ship Models: Period and later ship models of a variety of vessels
including early frigates, mid-19th century steam-powered four-masters, 20th
century builder's models of freighters and others.
82 Pieces of sets of American and European (primarily English) Silver
Hollowware: American and European 18th and 19th-century presentation
pieces, tea sets, bowls, tureens, casters, trays, candlesticks, mugs,
pitchers in sterling and silver plate as well as 2 Tiffany sets (finger
bowls and trays).
109 Pieces or sets of American and English Silver flatware: American and
European 18th and 19th-century pieces by Gorham, Ball/Black, Tiffany,
Marquand, Reed and Barton, Black Starr and Frost, and others.
34 Spinning Wheels and Spinning-related objects: American 19th-cenutyr
clock reels, flax wheels, temples of loom, hetchels, and miscellaneous
spinning implements from the George A. Nash Collection and others.
84 American ceramic objects: 54 pieces of 19th-century Redware (dishes,
molds, bowls, toys, sgraffito plates and other forms); 29 pieces of
19th-century yellowware, including pieces from Lyman-Fenton and Rockingham
Pottery companies (bottles, dishes, candlesticks, and other forms), and 1
piece of early 20th century Lenox porcelain-from the Elie Nadelman
Collection and others.
41 American stoneware objects: 19th century American stoneware jugs,
pitchers, crocks, bottles and other forms by such makers as Crolius,
Remmey, Lewis & Gardiner, Norton from the Elie Nadelman Collection and
others.
57 Chinese export porcelain objects: Miscellaneous Chines export porcelain
objects, including bowls, dinner services, trays, cups and saucers and one
cup date circa 1800 decorated with the New York state coat of arms.
73 pieces of American and European Furniture: 18th and 19th century
chairs, desks, tables, shelves, sideboards, and other case pieces from the
Elie Nadelman Collections and others.
2 American Tall Case Clocks: One by Simon Willard.
14 American and 34 European Firearms: Late 18th and 19th century rifles,
flintlock and percussion pistols, muskets, and revolvers.
16 Powder Horns: 19th-century horns including pieces from the Elie
Nadelman Collection and from the artist John Ward Dunsmore.
71 pieces of Historic transfer-printed blue Staffordshire: Platters,
plates, tureens, and other forms with depictions of historic sites and
events.
Architectural Collections: 29 Piranesi Views of Rome, 7 A.J. Davis
drawings and lithographs and Rural Residences, 4 20th century American
elevations.
Bound Volumes and Americana:
* Delft Bible
* 13th century Book of Hours fragment, and 14th century illuminated page,
probably Decretals of Pope Gregory IX.
* Besancon Book of Hours, ca. 1400, containing 9 miniatures.
* U.S. Department of the Treasury report, printed September 1789.
* Manuscript volume describing 1774 voyage to Tahiti and adjacent islands.
* Presidential and other autographs.
* Misc. European prints and Americana items.
Photographic Items:
* 113 loose photographic plates from Gardner's Sketchbook of the Civil War.
* 5 Watkins/Weed mammoth views of Yosemite.
* Clarence Copeland album; Gov. Sulzer portraits by Edward Curtis.
* South American albums.
* Misc. photomontages, advertisements, stereographs, other photographs.
Objects for Sale after January, 1995
The items below will be sold at public auction or privately after January,
1995. New York institutions will be given preference. Specific
information is available from Sotheby's Museum Service Department or The
New-York Historical Society Deaccessioning Project, 170 Central Park West,
New York, NY 10024, (212) 873-3400.
John Dunlap, Philadelphia, printing of the Declaration of Independence.
551 American and European Wine Labels and Bottle Tickets: Silver, gilt,
porcelain, bone, and ivory items from the Raphael A. Weed Collection.
Library Items:
* 250 European and South American 17th-19th century maps including some
manuscript maps.
* 1,800 Dutch and European 17th-19th century history books from the Gen,
John Watts de Peyster Collection.
* 19,500 bound volumes of British and European books, periodicals, and
official records from the 16th-20th centuries.
* European 18th-19th century almanacs; Colonial newspapers and negative
prints; comic and science fiction books; late 19th-20th century children's
books; modern sheet music; library and trade publications, superseded
reference books (1,100 volumes).
Photographic items:
* 19 silver gelatin photographs by Arnold Genthe and Irving Underhill.
* Sufcliffe "Water Rats," dated 1886.
* Misc. photomontages, advertisements, stereographs, other photographs.
12 Carriages: Including gigs, broughams, Landaus, and Phaetons and the
renowned French mail coach "Lightning," from the Harris Fahnestock, Henry
O. Havemeyer collections, and others.
7 Sleighs: American and Dutch 19th-century sleighs and sleigh perambulators.
32 American and European modern firearms: 4-barrel pistols, revolvers,
rifles, shotguns, flare guns, and line-throwing guns.
Prints: 32 Civil War posters, 88 American art posters, 545 World War I
posters, 53 World War I sheet music items, 215 World War II posters, 49
Frederic Remington wood engravings, 56 presidential, naval & military
portraits, 54 other wood engravings.
Photographs: 875 Grand Union Hotel and other items, 359 cabinet cards,
Charles Messer Stow decorative arts and architecture collection (9,500
items).
28 Model Cars: Hand-made wood and paper models of antique cars such as the
1914 Stutz-Bearcat, a Model-A Ford, and the 1906 Columbia Electric.
For more information, contact the Deaccessioning Project Manager:
Philip D. Zimmerman, Consultant
New-York Historical Society Deaccessioning Project
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024
(212) 873-3400.
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