Visbids is pleased to present the second sale of Vintage Lionel trains and accessories. If you were a bidder in our spring Lionel Train auction, you are aware of the quality and condition of this collection. Many of the trains are vintage stock, new in box, and sure to delight any beginning or experienced train enthusiast. Along with trains, we have a wide ranging and eclectic selection of items from several estates. From the primitive simplicity of our folk art pieces, to the beauty of our finely crafted, formal furniture, there is a range of items to appeal to any taste or passion.
The traditional Imari 3 colour scheme of red, blue and gold stretches back over many centuries, and was imported to England from the Japanese port of Imari beginning in the 1700’s. When Robert Bloor took over the failing Derby porcelain factory in 1815, he quickly realized that cashing in on the popularity of “Japan Patterns”, was going to be the solution to his problems.He initially used seconds of “whiteware”, and hired a full time team of hand painters to paint the Imari designs, and was soon churning them out and auctioning them to the highest bidders. There was a gradual evolution in the method of production, from being entirely hand painted, to today, when the base layers are printed and fired in several stages, and then hand finished with gold. The tea set which Visbids has on offer is the “Traditional Imari” pattern, #2451, first introduced in 1880. Truly stunning, in traditional “Derby” red and burnished with 22 carat gold, it would be a worthy addition to any formal table setting.
For the Canadiana collector, we have two Sibley chairs. Joseph Sibley settled in Nova Scotia in 1812, and along with his father and brothers, were the first settlers in what is now the small town of Wittenburg. Along with farming, he became renowned for his woodworking abilities, creating many items for local sale that were needed in pioneer homes. Along with butter tubs, spinning wheels and looms, he became known especially for his chairs, gradually settling on what became known as the typical Sibley chair, with slat backs and turned finials. The uprights were usually made of green maple, which as it dried, would shrink and securely clamp the ends of the stretchers, resulting in a remarkably sturdy chair. Joseph’s son Michael began working with his father in the mid 1800’s, and by 1878 the operation had expanded, producing wood seated chairs, often stencilled on the underside with “Manufactured by Sibley Brothers, Lower Stewiacke, Colchester County, N.S.”. The chairs we have for auction date from this period. Another unique early Nova Scotia piece from Lunenburg is a painted, carved wooden coat rack. In a turquoise green paint, with carved medallions on either end, and hand made metal hooks, it is another fine example of the beauty to be found in a simple, utilitarian, handmade wooden piece.
At quite the opposite end of the spectrum from “useful” antiques, is our collection of Victorian fairings. These are small souvenir china boxes that were sold at country fairs – hence the name “fairings- in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Unsophisticated in production, they depicted a variety of subjects, humorous, political and domestic. Highly collectible, most were lidded boxes with a mirror, usually white with painted details. Along with these decorative pieces, we are offering the first of a large collection of glass paperweights. These pieces are truly stunning, and include a Webb Corbett faceted, yellow spider paperweight in its original box, and an unusually shaped, millefiore “twist scramble” paperweight from the St. Louis Exposition in 1904. The craftsmanship of these pieces of glass, whose sole purpose is to hold down a piece of paper, is remarkable!
We have a large selection of art in this auction,from prints to watercolours, oil paintings and photos. One of our favourites is ” The Eel”, a colour enhanced photograph by JJ Kenyan. Kenyan was a Canadian painter and photographer from Oxford County, 1862-1937. He followed the grand circuit and attended fairs to capture images of prize winning animals. The Eel was foaled in 1902 In Michigan, and acquired in 1903 by Frank W. Entricken of Tavistock. He proceeded to smash records throughout the US and Canada, becoming known affectionately as “The Grey Ghost”. Legendary writer John Hervey, in a 1941 retrospective, described The Eel as “in many ways one of the most wonderful that the standard breed has produced”. This signed, evocative photograph of him with his jockey, after an award winning race, was taken the year he died, 1912.
As always, we encourage coming to view this auction in person. Please give John a call at 416 453 0920 to set up a preview time.
