Items accumulated throughout the summer from various New England estates and homes are being offered in this fine pre-Fall auction, Sunday, September 8th. The sale consists of a mix of American, English and Continental furniture and decorative accessories; American and European works of art; Asian items including Chinese Export porcelains; American and European silver; and oriental carpets.
    American antique furniture, both formal and country, features two lots of Salem Massachusetts carved mahogany furniture attributed to Samuel McIntire - a ball and claw foot breakfast table with bold grape-carved knees, and a pair of shield-back sidechairs.  Other highlights are an early Queen Anne walnut-veneered Boston highboy of small desirable size from a local Cambridge, Massachusetts home; a Boston Chippendale serpentine chest with ball and claw feet; a set of six Salem Federal mahogany dining chairs; along with a variety of card tables, candlestands and work tables.

    Decorative accessories include two 19th c. painted double-sided trade signs personifying the charm of advertising 100 years ago.  A small but significant 19th c. horse and jockey weathervane stands out.  A Newbury, Massachusetts schoolgirl needlework sampler is dated 1772.  A late 19th c. Navaho Germantown multicolored ‘sampler’ blanket in fine condition will be of great interest to collectors. There are two Nantucket items with historical provenance. One a painted liquor box inscribed S. Barrett.  Samuel Barrett was born in Nantucket in 1793, and was the Whaling Master on the ship Sally in 1820. The other item is a large basket incised on the handle E.M. Hinckley who departed for San Francisco in 1849 on the ship Martha with other Nantucket ‘pioneers’.  

     English and Irish furniture includes a small-sized 18th c. walnut double dome-top secretary/bookcase with original looking glass to the doors; a 3-part Irish George III demilune dining table; and an Irish George II carved walnut gaming table with original inset needlepoint playing surface.  Italian antiques include two large 18th c. walnut commodes.  French antiques include a pair of French bronze and marble pedestals which were part of the original lavish décor of Boston’s Keith Memorial Theater, a vaudeville circuit palace whose gala opening in 1928 was attended, among others, by Al Jolson and George M. Cohan.  There are two 19th c. Black Forest carvings, one a dog with her puppies attributed to Walter Mader; and an ornate mirror with deep carving of a cherub in the moon and a fierce winged dragon.

      There are 70 lots of American and European paintings from the 17th through the 20th centuries in the sale.  American art includes a large oil by Boston artist Lilla Cabot Perry (1848-1933) depicting a woman wearing a kimono painted during her stay in Tokyo from 1898-1910 when her husband had a teaching position there.  Another Boston artist represented is a large and fascinating painting, most likely a study for a mural, by Ives Gammell (1893-1981) titled Study for Destruction 1939.  From a Princeton, New Jersey home is a newly discovered impressionistic still life signed Walt Kuhn (1877-1949).  From a Connecticut gentleman who inherited them are two bronzes by Malvina Hoffman (1885-1966), who studied with sculptor Auguste Rodin from 1910 to 1917.  Also offered are 17th/18th/and 19th c. paintings from various European countries.

      A wide range of Asian items includes various 18th and 19th c. Chinese domestic and export porcelains.  Also offered is a private collection of 18th and 19th c. Thai gilt bronze Buddhas; from India, a large 19th c. bronze of Genesha ; and various Japanese items.

     Silver highlights include a pair of 18th c. candlesticks by a London maker; an impressive tray weighing approx. 175 troy oz.; and an exceptional Japanese silver tea service with chased chrysanthemum decoration and dragon handles.

    The auction will close with a selection of antique and semi antique oriental carpets.

    Previews at the CRN Gallery: Thursday & Friday, Sept. 5th & 6th from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 7th from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

    There is an online catalogue and information on the CRN website: www.crnauctions.com or call 617-661-9582.