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Click here to subscribeThree early British certificates comprising Monmouthshire Iron & Coal Company one share 183[7] no.2619 issued to Admiral Sir Henry Digby; Reversionary Interest Society one share 182[3] large format black on vellum and Colquitt Street Tontine share no. 54 Liverpool 180[7] black on vellum ink cancelled fine to very fine. (3) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A good collection of British certificates comprising Metropolitan Saloon Omnibus Co. Ltd. 185[7] lovely vignette of horse drawn coach; Norfolk and Norwich Museum share ticket undated but circa 1838; Strand Music Hall Co. Ltd. 1862; Brighton Turkish Bath Co. Ltd. 1869; West Cowes Sea Bathing Co. Ltd. 1870; Mudies Select Library Ltd. 1864 signed by Mudie; Rossendale Union Foundry Co. Ltd. 1861; Inventors Assistance Company Ltd. 1859; Library Co. Ltd. 1862; British Honduras Co. Ltd. 1864; Northern Investment & Discount Co. Ltd. 1866; Drypool Workman`s Club Co. Ltd. 1878; Dumfries Cemetery Co. Ltd. 1881; Continental Mining and Metallurgical Co. Ltd. 1890; Commercial Union Permanent Land Building & Investment Society 1880; Englebourne Slate Quarries Ltd. £20 debenture 1877 and others ( 7) fine to extremely fine. (23) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A group of British share certificates (12) and private loan documents insurance policies and miscellanea (36) dating from the 17th century through to the early 20th century includes Reversionary Interest Society one share 1823 black on vellum; Mediterranean Electric Telegraph share 1853; West Cowes Sea Bathing Co. Ltd. 1870 (2 examples); an office copy of a share transfer in the Portsmouth and Arundel Navigation dated 1821 and Mudies Select Library Ltd. £20 share 1864 an interesting lot worth close inspection varied condition but many very fine. (48) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Cambridge Cemetery Company £10 share 1843 no. 69 issued to Ebenezer Foster and signed by him and George Ebenezer Foster as Directors black on cream paper together with Winchester Cemetery Company share no. 291 184[1] black printing on vellum pink paper and wax seal very fine. (2) The cemetery of some 15 acres was situated on the North side of Mill Road and was consecrated in 1848. The Baptist Foster family were mill owners and founded a very successful bank in the town. They were heavily involved in many local businesses and projects and Ebenezer served as mayor in 1836/37. Fosters bank was sold to Lloyds bank in 1918.Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Chester Race Company Ltd. two certificates each for £100 share 189[3] no.90 and [1922] no.322 both have scrollwork to left and embossed seal together with; Ensbury Park (Bournemouth) Racecourse Co. £1 shares 19[23] no.46 red embossed seal ornate border blue; Greyhound Racing Association (South Wales) Ltd 1 shilling shares 19[27] no.10 decorative title and scrollwork red; Greyhound Racing Association (Liverpool) Ltd. £1 preference shares 19[27] no.70 ornate border and scrollwork red generally very fine or better. (6) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Eastern Telegraph Company Ltd certificate for ordinary stock 18[98] no.6127 ornate border and scrollwork to left blue with yellow underprint printed by Waterlow & Sons together with Electric Telegraph Company of Ireland certificate for five £1 shares 185[2] no.27926-27930 scrollwork at left and Mediterranean Electric Telegraph £10 bearer share 185[-] no.21347 coat of arms and shield under title text in French English and Spanish good very fine to extremely fine. (3) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A.De Micheli y Cia. 100 peso share 1922 no.0312 ornate border vignette above title depicting allegorical figures with torch boats and anchor blue and yellow with coupons about extremely fine. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
S.A. Dock Sud de la Capital certificate for 10 shares of 100 pesos each Buenos Aires 1889 no.3919 vignette of female figure on dock sailing ships in background blue and black together with 15 more South American certificates comprising; Brazil Railway Co. four pieces $100 preference share 1910 two 4 ½ % bonds for 500 francs both 1909 4 ½ % gold bond for £20 1909; Compagnie Francaise de Chemins de Fer Vénézuéliens 1893; Canal Interocéanique de Panama 18[86]; Nicaragua Co. Ltd. 18[90]; Banana du Rio-Grande [1916]; Anglo-South American Bank Ltd. 19[23] and others (5) generally very fine some better. (16) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Compañia San Vincente de Bolivia certificate for one share of 1000 bolivianos 1887 no.24 ornate border vignettes of workers in mine shaft maroon and black with green underprint together with four more Bolivian certificates comprising; Empresa Minera "La Confianza" 50 boliviano shares 1904 no.126 blue and yellow; Credito Hipotecario de Bolivia three pieces 1[909] 18[96] and 19[30] all with ornate borders and vignettes of livestock and female figures the first green latter two brown all extremely fine. (5) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
(x) Bella Raquel Company share 184[7] no.285 signed by John Taylor Jnr as secretary thin ornate border at left black printing embossed seal depicting `Bella Raquel` bottom right transfers on reverse good very fine. Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Cia. Salitrera "Maria Teresa" de Aguas Blancas a small group of certificates for 1 share (3) and 10 shares (2) of 20 pesos Santiago 19(07) attractive vignette of Nitrate works scrollwork and monogram at either side ornate borders blue and brown respectively with coupons about extremely fine one only very fine. (5) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Cuba Railroad Co. a pair of Improvement and Equipment 5% 50-Year Gold Bonds for $1000 1910 both signed by W.C.van Horne as President steam train at top green and black with coupons together with Ferro-Carril de Guantanamo 100 peso share 1882 ink burns at top; Cienfuegos Palmira & Cruces Electric Railway & Power Co. $1000 bond 1918; Mexico City of Oaxaca de Juarez 1000 pesos 1910 and Buenos Ayres Lacroze Tramways Co. £100 debenture 1910 generally fine to very fine the first two better. (6) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Empresa del Ferro-Carril Urbano y Omnibus de la Habana 500 peso share 18[76] no.0541 horse drawn tramcar in centre black ink cancelled and single hole cancel unfortunately through the vignette counterfoil re-attached tiny chip from bottom edge the ink has burned very slightly very fine. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A small collection of Cuban Oil and Mining certificates (7) comprising Petrolera Nacional de Motembo S.A. 5 peso share Havana 19[39] no.000074 border depicting drilling work underprint vignette of oil derrick in oilfield brown on yellow paper with coupons together with Union Oil Co. S.A. 1 peso shares 191[7] attractive piece olive green; Guanabacoa Oil Co. 1000 shares [1918] green; Cia. Minera "Aida Rosa" S.A. 100 peso share 1916 brown; Cuban Oils Co. 100 peso shares 19[38] green; Cia. Minera "La Corona" S.A. 1 peso shares 191[8] green and; Cia. Minera "La Preciosa del Mabay" S.A. 50 peso share 1916 black and red very fine or thereabouts. (7) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Mexican Central Railway Securities Co. Ltd. `B` debenture for £100 18[99] no.13344 ornate border green and black with coupons together with Cia Minera Nacional Anonima El Callao a group of certificates for 1 share (2) and 5 shares (10) 1887 ornate border with coats of arms at sides miners at work at top with coupons and a Roumanian bond 4½% 1934 1200 francs very fine to extremely fine. (14) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Banco Hipotecario de Credito Territorial Mexicano S.A. 100 peso share 1914 no.54962 ornate border vignette of female bust under title black and blue with coupons together with 5 more Mexican certificates comprising; Banco Central Mexicano S.A. one series A share 1908 no.263195 ornate border green and black with coupons; Compañia Azucarera del Panuco S.A. 100 peso share 1900 no.6274 ornate border vignette depicting woman beside Mexican Eagle with plantation and river in background black and blue with coupons; Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México 10 shares for 200 pesos 1909 no.P39586 ornate border male bust at top green and black with coupons; Compañia Minera y Beneficiadora El Coloso y Anexas S.A. 50 peso share 1910 no.05323 ornate border brown with coupons and Compañia Petrolera Mexicana Faros de Aztlán S.A. 20 peso share 1916 no.0480 decorative Aztec style border brown and blue with coupons very fine to extremely fine. (6) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
El Buen Tono; Cia Manufacturera del Cigarro Sin Pegamento 50 peso share Mexico 1912 vignette of cigar making machine in centre eagle above ornate border blue brown and red impressed revenue stamps together with Cia Azucarera del Panuco $100 share mexico 1900 lovely vignette of allegorical figure with sugar cane to left and loading river boat to right blue and black and Negociacion Agricola `La Sautena` $100 share large format piece with map in top half small vignettes in corners all with coupons very fine to extremely fine. (3) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Negociacion Agricola "La Sautena" a group of 9 certificates for $100 share Mexico 1907 large format with very large map of the Sautena hacienda in the State of Tamaulipas steamship and steam train lower corners green black red and blue impressed duty stamp printed by Giesecke & Devrient with coupons all extremely fine. (9) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Compañia Nacional del Ferrocarril Mineral de Pasco certificate for 500 sol Lima 1872 no.271 ornate border and vignettes of steam train running through agricultural land mountains in background at top and mine worker at bottom blue and black with coupons together with four more Peruvian certificates comprising; Compañia del Ferrocarril de la Oroya y Mineral de Pasco £100 share Lima 1878 no.2965 vignettes of steam train farmers with livestock and mine workers brown and black; Banco La Providencia 400 sol share Lima 18[71] no.2341 black; Compañia Territorial de la Bella Union £5 share Lima 190[5] no.56 ornate title with vignette of mine workers brown and yellow; and Corocoro United Copper Mines Ltd. £1 bearer share Paris 19[22] no.A11733 vignette of mine workers red and black with coupons first four extremely fine last only very fine. (5) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
(x) Peruvian Mining Company one share London 1825 no. 4581 issued to David Barclay Chapman Banker ornate scrollwork at left black printing extremely fine. Subject to 5% tax on Hammer Price in addition to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Port Royal & St. Andrew`s Copper Mining Company of Jamaica a group of 20 certificates for 1 share 5 shillings paid all 1853 scrollwork at left embossed seal bottom left corner black very fine to extremely fine. (20) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Dobrolet bearer certificate for 1 gold rouble share Moscow 1925 aircraft top centre ornate border brown extremely fine.The company was Russia`s first Civil Aviation company it`s name was changed to Aeroflot in 1930. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Russische Aktiengesellschaft zur Entwickelung und Vergrösserung der Zahl der Verkehrsmittel und zur Exploitation derselben in Russland "Ssudowagon" 500 rouble share 1st series St.Petersburg 1910 no.1558 ornate borders blue and black text in Russian German and French with coupons extremely fine. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
S.A. de la Manufacture de Moscou pour le Tissage de Laine a group of 9 certificates for 375 rouble share Moscow 1898 ornate border blue and black 2000 issued no coupons remain mixed condition some with edge nicks and creases soe very fine. (9) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Soc. des Aciéries et Chantiers de Paratoff 187.50 rouble share Moscow 1901 together with other Russian companies (4) comprising Fabriques de Sucre D`Alexandrovsk 250 rouble share 1913; Miniere et Metallurgique Volga-Vichera 125 rouble share Moscow 1897; Produits de Tanneries "Charles Lapovitz" 125 rouble share Moscow 1911 and Northern Wood Pulp and Paper Manufacturing Co. "Sokol" £100 bond Archangel 1912 all with coupons the last with edge tears at right otherwise extremely fine and generally scarce. (5) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Sociéte des Conduits D`Eau a Kiew 100 rouble share Kiev 1906 no.15898 ornate border green and black with coupons dampstaining at bottom right and split along fold otherwise almost extremely fine. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Soc. Russo-Hollandaise de la Première Fabrique de Ciment Portland en Sibérie "Kamyschet" 500 rouble share Warsaw 1897 no.2197 ornate border blue and black with coupons about extremely fine. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
French and Belgian Companies operating in Russia; a duplicated collection of 93 bonds and share certificates some with vignettes better pieces include Charbonnages de Varvaropol 1896 and 1902; Ateliers de Constructions Mecaniques de Soumy 1897 (5 examples); Soc. d`Etudes des Entreprises Russes 1913 only 500 issued; Cie Metallurgique d`Odessa 1895 and 1897 and Krinitchnaia S.A. des Produits Refractaires et Ceramiques de Donetz mixed condition but many are very fine and better. (93) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A small group of British Companies operating in Russia (17) together with Dutch certificates and receipts for same (7) some duplication includes St.Petersburg Land & Mortgage Co. Ltd. £20 debentures 1912 (2) large vignette of the City red and black; Tustanovice Petroleum Ltd. 5 shares of £1 1907; Cheleken Oilfields Ltd. £1 share 1913 and Russian (Smieloff) Chain Anchor & Testing Works Ltd. 1 share of £10 2 examples) mixed condition but several are very fine and better. (24) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Nederlandsch-Siberische Goudvelden-Maatschappij "Minoessinsk" 250 gulden share Amsterdam 1899 ornate border black and red with green underprint text in Dutch Russian and French together with Hollandsche Maatschappij tot Zout-Exploitatie in Rusland share of 500 silver roubles Haag 1910 ornate border orange brown and black both good very fine. (2) Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Baltimore Insurance Company one share [1796] no.198 issued to Robert Smith scrollwork at left black attractive embossed seal at lower left very fine and rare. This marine insurance company was incorporated in the state of Maryland with a capital of $300 000 on 26th December 1795 just two days after the state`s first such company. The United States` only two other joint stock companies offering marine insurance at the time had been incorporated in Pennsylvania in the previous year. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Kennebeck Bridge one share [1897] no.86 issued to Edmund Bridge of Lincoln County scrollwork at left black paper seal attached to upper left second page with printed transfer dated 1828 and a further transfer on the reverse which looks to replicate that on the printed form some remains of wax seal on the inside leaving the second page with some thinning slight split at fold but about very fine and rare. Company incorporated in Maine on 8th February 1796 to build a toll-bridge across the Kennebec River at Fort Western (now preserved as the oldest log fort in the US) in Hallowell Augusta. $19 800 was subscribed in $100 shares. The bridge was completed in November 1797 at a cost of $27 0 the resulting debts meaning that no dividend could be paid for eight years. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
Panorama National des Etats-Unis (National Panorama of the United States) certificate for one share of 100 francs or 100 dollars Paris circa 1870 no.3311 very large format piece with bald eagle at top text in English and French black with brown underprint with coupons very fine and scarce. Subject to 20% VAT on Buyer’s Premium. For more information please view Terms and Conditions for Buyers.
A Victorian Mahogany Roll Top Bureau Bookcase, featuring four shelves to top an the interior fitted with four drawers, eight pigeon holes having a share arched top, pull out writing slide having leather inserts with lift up writing slope to centre. Cupboards below with two shelves enclosed, arched panels to doors, 224 x 54 x 120 cms, on a plinth base.
Colin Middleton MBE RHA (1910-1983) SEATED FIGURE: 6.72 [1972] oil on gesso-prepared board signed in monogram lower right; signed again on reverse and inscribed with title [Seated Figure: 6.72]; with inscribed Arts Council of Northern Ireland label on reverse; also with [1985] Studio stamp on reverse 36 by 36in., 90 by 90cm. L Collection of the artist;His sale, Christie`s, London, 4 October 1985, lot 177 (full colour illustration in catalogue); with Jorgensen Fine Art, Dublin;Where purchased by the previous owner;Thence by descent Colin Middleton`, David Hendriks Gallery, Dublin, January to February 1973, catalogue no. 3;`Colin Middleton`, David Hendriks at the Cork Arts Society Gallery, Cork, until 21 July 1973, catalogue no. 2;Colin Middleton Retrospective, Arts Council exhibition, Ulster Museum, Belfast, and Municipal Gallery of Modern Art, Dublin, 1976, catalogue no. 173 (loaned from the collection of the artist); Seated Figure 6.72 is part of an ambitious series of large paintings of the female nude that Colin Middleton completed in the early 1970s. While the female figure occurred frequently in his work from previous decades it was often seen in a more narrative or symbolic context. These paintings depict a female figure, highly abstracted and depersonalised, with no setting or attributes that identify her. Even the titles of the works refrain from any detail, conceding only the most basic details of the subject and the date of its production. It is interesting to compare the series of work to which Seated Figure 6.72 belongs to the single figure paintings of the early 1950s, such as Gypsy, Ardglass or Teresa, both of which remove all context from the actual painting and concentrate almost entirely on the sitter, but also suggest a specific identity, place or narrative in the title.Seated Figure 6.72 is more schematised than these in its treatment of the female figure, although it retains the strong sense of physical presence that these earlier works share. The figure is sexualised but not eroticised and the interlocked hands evoke a more awkward presence and a suggestion of tension. While many of the Seated Figure group use an extremely reduced palette there is a much stronger and wider range of colour in the present painting. Rather than looking back at the formalised synthesis of nude with landscape that Middleton experimented with in the 1960s Seated Figure 6.72, in its palette and stronger forms, seems to look forward to the often vibrantly colourful and more geometric female figures of Middleton`s late Spanish paintings.Blocks of flat colour and shape reiterate the flatness of the picture plane and contrast with the volumetric female form. The physical surface of the prepared board is also noticeable across the work, maintaining the sense of controlled design. The repeated vertical strokes of various scales that run throughout the work recall Middleton`s landscapes of the period, suggesting spatial depth, but ultimately the isolation of the figure is deliberate and adds to the focus on the formal construction of the work. Clearly Middleton felt that this group of female nudes was at the heart of his work at this time, as the earlier Seated Figure K.371.1 was selected to represent him in the 1971 publication Causeway. In addition, Middleton selected the present work to be included in the Arts Council`s 1976 touring retrospective of his work. Dickon HallApril 2014
Opkomts, Midden, en Geen Eynde van den door Trapte Jan Lauw This engraving is from the important account of one the most infamous financial meltdowns in history, known as the Mississippi Bubble incident. The central vignette depicts John Law taking leave of the Dukes of Orleans and Bourbon in Paris. A medallion with a portrait of Law appears at top, surrounded by spider webs, snakes, thorns, and fishing rods. Sixteen additional vignettes show scenes from John Law`s career.John Law, a Scottish financier, established the Banque Generale (central bank) in France. He was then granted control of Louisiana and founded the Compagnie de la Louisiane d`Occident, in 1717. Law developed an elaborate plan to exploit the fabulous resources of the region, which quickly gained popularity and people rushed to invest, not just in France, but throughout Europe. This resulted in the development of several other overseas companies, such as the English South Sea Company and a number of smaller companies in the Dutch Republic. The share prices rose dramatically in a frenzy of speculation. In 1720 the bubble burst; speculators cashed in, caused a run on the shares, and the company went bankrupt. As a consequence of the failure, confidence in other similar companies failed, and thousands of individual investors across Europe were ruined.See also lot 7 for a portrait of John Law. A fine impression with a few faint spots and a small abrasion in sky of central vignette. Backed in Japanese tissue to repair a few tears in blank margins. 11.3 W x 14.7 H Anon., 1720
De Vervallen Actionisten, Hersteld, door den Triompheerden Arlequin This satirical engraving is from the important account of one the most infamous financial meltdowns in history, known as the Mississippi Bubble incident. This engraving illustrates the investors and dealers during the crisis having their losses restored by Harlequin. Harlequin rides in a horse-drawn carriage distributing documents to a crowd of men, with Mercury at right, pointing towards a pile of goods. There are four columns of verses in Dutch below the scene. With text it measures 13.5 x 10.8"".John Law, a Scottish financier, established the Banque Generale (central bank) in France. He was then granted control of Louisiana and founded the Compagnie de la Louisiane d`Occident, in 1717. Law developed an elaborate plan to exploit the fabulous resources of the region, which quickly gained popularity and people rushed to invest, not just in France, but throughout Europe. This resulted in the development of several other overseas companies, such as the English South Sea Company and a number of smaller companies in the Dutch Republic. The share prices rose dramatically in a frenzy of speculation. In 1720 the bubble burst; speculators cashed in, caused a run on the shares, and the company went bankrupt. As a consequence of the failure, confidence in other similar companies failed, and thousands of individual investors across Europe were ruined.See also lot 7 for a portrait of John Law. A dark impression with marginal soiling and pencil notations in bottom blank margin. 9 W x 13.5 H Anon., 1720
Original Hand Drawn Zip Nolan Story Board Artwork: Original Pen & Ink By George Heath for 1963 Lion Comic, 2 story boards for 30th November 1963. Renowned for their comical strips, that is not to say that they were without their fair share of adventure strips, and one of the best adventure artists of this period was George Heath who contributed work to the comic weeklies of both Amalgamated Press and D.C. Thompson. (2)
A WWI poster To My People, address by George V To My People....I appeal to you...men of all classes, to come forward voluntarily and take your share in the fight... etc, signature George RI (folding crease, water stain right), 30 x 20 framed; the same text translated into Welsh; and Let there not be a man or a woman among us who, when the war is over, will not then be able to say I was not idle etc, The Prime Minister, May 4th 1915, PRC No 98, 30 x 20; the two latter in a sleeve. GC (3)
The Mary Lawrence Carved and Painted Oak "Hadley" Chest, c. 1708, Hatfield, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, façade with tulip flower and leaf design, central panel with the initials "ML" under a heart, later hinged lid inscribed "AOS 1844", pine secondary wood, height 34 in., width 47 3/4 in., depth 20 3/4 in.; accompanied by a copy of The Hadley Chest by Clair Franklin Luther, 1935, Copy no.459. Provenance: Probably made for the 1708 marriage of Mary Lawrence (1688-1713) and John Allis Jr. (1682-1773). Acquired by James Fenimore Cooper (1858-1938) before 1929; thence by descent within the Cooper family, to James Fenimore Cooper IV. Published: Luther, Clair Franklin, The Hadley Chest (Hartford: 1935), p.138, no.47; Kane, Patricia E., "The Seventeenth-Century Furniture of the Connecticut Valley: The Hadley Chest Reappraised," in Ian M. G. Quimby, ed. Arts of the Anglo-American Community in the Seventeenth Century (The Henry Francis DuPont Winterthur Museum: 1975), pg. 119, no.126. Note: In 1883, pioneer collector Henry Wood Erving purchased an early American joined and carved chest out of a house in Hadley, Massachusetts, and ever since, this group of related chests has been referred to as Hadley chests. To date, there are over 250 pieces of related joined furniture that survive from this area of Western Massachusetts-stretching from Enfield to Northfield-along the Connecticut River. i In 1935, the present chest was recorded in the first comprehensive study of the form by Reverend Clair Franklin Luther, who used genealogical records in an attempt to match the initials carved into the fronts of the chests to contemporary local women`s birth and marriage records. Dr. Luther identified Mary Lawrence (1682-1713), who married John Allis Jr. (1682-1773) in 1708, as the original owner of this chest. This early provenance is strengthened by the survival of an almost identical chest, carved with the initials "RA," that descended in the family of Rebecca Allis (Ichabod and John Jr.`s sister) and her husband Nathaniel Graves (fig 1). That chest was given to the Memorial Hall Museum in Deerfield, Massachusetts in 1887 by Chester Graves Crafts, Rebecca and Nathaniel`s great-grandson.ii Both chests feature identical overall design of flat tulip flowers with leaves and scrolls, what Patricia Kane termed "the Hadley Motif,"iii repeated five to a row on the drawer front and medial rail and four at the top of the chest, leaving the area surrounding the lock uncarved. The same pattern templates were used on both chests, which is most evident in the carving surrounding the central incised tulip motif on the drawer front and medial rails. Additionally, the bottom rail of both chests is narrower than on other Hadley chests and unusually carved with a pattern of reverse C-scrolls separated by gouge marks. There are subtle differences in the incised scrolling and the placement and number of gouge marks throughout both chests, particularly around the flat tulip heads. The ML chest does not have gouge marks decorating the tulip heads as the RA chest does. In 1975, Patricia Kane categorized the known 126 Hadley chests into six distinct groups by related style and carving. She assigned the RA chest to subcategory C, "Crescent-shaped gouge carvings on both tulips and leaves," of minor group 5, called the Scribed Line Type, which included a total of six related chests. The ML chest, which had previously been in group 8, "Unidentified Hadley Chests," should be moved to group 5 subcategory B "Crescent-shaped gouge carving on the leaves".iv Both chests have flat leaf and tulip carved decoration that was laid out with templates and the designs on each rail confined within incised borders, an unusual feature on Hadley chests that these two related chests share with another Hadley chest with the initials HA, possibly for Hannah Allis, Rebecca`s sister, who married John Broughton Jr. in 1691.v Though free-hand carving is liberally sprinkled throughout the panels, there is no free-hand carving across the joints on any of the three chests as there is on other Hadley-type chests. The rails and panels were designed, carved, and painted before the chest was assembled and the stippling in the carved areas unified the design as well as hid the tool marks.vi The ML chest has the typical construction that is found in most Hadley chests. The four stiles have five sides and the framing members are all chamfered. The upper back board is framed into place, and a lower backboard, typically covering the drawer cavity, is missing here, perhaps removed when the drawer was repaired. The bottom of the chest compartment is comprised of three pine boards, with grain running from front-to-back, while the drawer bottom is constructed with two boards joined by a lap joint with the grain running from side-to-side. The drawers are side-hung, with a single large dovetail joining the drawer sides to the drawer façade. The groove in the drawer sides and its relationship to the single large dovetail varies from chest to chest; in this particular example, the dovetail is just above the groove. The "ML" chest was most likely made as a engagement or wedding present for Mary Lawrence and might have carried her dowry to her new life, just as chests have done throughout ages and cultures. The heart and tulip motif are both symbols of love, and the tree of life motif carved and incised into each inset panel is symbolic of fertility and longevity. The strong provenance of the RA chest, together with the shared templates and free-hand decoration on the two chests suggest that they were made by the same hand. John Jr., his brother Ichabod and his father, John Sr., have long been known as joiners who made these types of chests and it is tempting to speculate that either Ichabod, John Jr., or both, were the craftsmen who made these chests. At the time of Dr. Luther`s study, the ML chest was owned by James Fenimore Cooper (1858-1938), grandson of the author and great-grandson of the founder of Cooperstown, NY, where this chest was purportedly found in an old farm house. The top, a later addition, is painted with the initials AOS and the date 1844. Neal Auction Company would like to thank Seth A. Thayer Jr. for his invaluable assistance with this catalogue entry. References: i. Safford, Frances G. American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: 1. Early Colonial Period: The Seventeenth Century and William and Mary Styles (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York: 2007) p. 227. ii. Zea, Phillip and Suzanne Flynt, Hadley Chests (Pucumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield, MA: 1992), p. 10, cover and title page. iii. Kane, Patricia E., "The Seventeenth-Century Furniture of the Connecticut Valley: The Hadley Chest Reappraised," in Ian M. G. Quimby, ed. Arts of the Anglo-American Community in the Seventeenth Century (The Henry Francis DuPont Winterthur Museum: 1975), p.85. iv. Ibid, pp. 116-119 v. The HA chest is in the Wadsworth Atheneum Collection. Though the free-hand carving appears to be by another hand, the same templates may have been used to carve this chest as well. Patricia Kane assigned this chest to Group 5, subcategory C. Correspondence with Alyce Englund, the Richard Koopman Associate Curator of American Decorative Arts, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, March 18, 2014. vi. Zea, p.13.
Loading...![Three early British certificates comprising Monmouthshire Iron & Coal Company one share 183[7] no.2619 issued to Admiral](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/522-2014530103556_468x382.jpg)
![A good collection of British certificates comprising Metropolitan Saloon Omnibus Co. Ltd. 185[7] lovely vignette of horse dra](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/523-2014530103557_468x382.jpg)
![Chester Race Company Ltd. two certificates each for £100 share 189[3] no.90 and [1922] no.322 both have scrollwork to left a](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/529-201453010369_468x382.jpg)
![Eastern Telegraph Company Ltd certificate for ordinary stock 18[98] no.6127 ornate border and scrollwork to left blue with y](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/532-2014530103615_468x382.jpg)
![Edison Telephone Company of Glasgow Ltd. certificate for 1 share of £100 18[80] no.15 scrollwork at left and right black two](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/533-2014530103617_468x382.jpg)
![Tynemouth Aquarium and Winter Garden Co. Ltd. £10 share 18[77] no.3624 vignette of the glass covered Winter garden building](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/544-2014530103636_468x382.jpg)
![(x) Bella Raquel Company share 184[7] no.285 signed by John Taylor Jnr as secretary thin ornate border at left black printi](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/585-201453010379_468x382.jpg)
![Empresa del Ferro-Carril Urbano y Omnibus de la Habana 500 peso share 18[76] no.0541 horse drawn tramcar in centre black ink](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/594-2014530103724_468x382.jpg)
![Baltimore Insurance Company one share [1796] no.198 issued to Robert Smith scrollwork at left black attractive embossed sea](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/697-2014530104026_468x382.jpg)
![Kennebeck Bridge one share [1897] no.86 issued to Edmund Bridge of Lincoln County scrollwork at left black paper seal attach](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/1141/2907593/700-2014530104032_468x382.jpg)
![Colin Middleton MBE RHA (1910-1983) SEATED FIGURE: 6.72 [1972] oil on gesso-prepared board signed in monogram lower right; s](http://lot-images.atgmedia.com/SR/10092/2903219/67-20145622209_468x382.jpg)
