Estate of Jimmy Pippen to be sold in Natchez, Oct. 3-4 The estate of Jimmy Pippen, the legendary interior designer and antiques dealer who died recently at age 53, will be sold October 3-4 at the new Natchez Convention Center in Natchez, Mississippi.
THE ESTATE OF JIMMY PIPPEN -- A LEGENDARY AND RENOWNED INTERIOR DESIGNER
FROM NATCHEZ, MISS. -- TO BE SOLD IN NATCHEZ OCTOBER 3-4 BY STEVENS AUCTION
(Natchez, Miss.) - The estate of Jimmy Pippen – one of the most legendary and renowned interior designers and antiques dealers in the South – will be sold the weekend of October 3-4 at the brand-new Natchez Convention Center in Natchez, Miss. Mr. Pippen recently passed away at age 53, of a massive heart attack. He was originally from Alabama, but lived most of his life in the Natchez area.
“Jimmy Pippen was without a doubt one of the most talented designers of our times,” said Dwight Stevens of Stevens Auction Company of Aberdeen, Miss., the firm selected by Mr. Pippen's heirs to conduct the sale. “He used both old and new to create tasteful ambiences in some of the finest homes in the Southeastern United States. He was a friend and client who died at the top off his game.”
Some of Mr. Pippen's shining achievements over the last fifteen years, all in the Natchez area, included the lobby of The Eola Hotel and lavishly furnished antebellum homes like Ravennaside, The Orchard, Magnolia Hall and Cherokee. He also decorated the Cypress Pond Plantation in Albany, Ga., and at the time of his death was helping to restore the Nottoway Plantation House, near Baton Rouge.
The sale will comprise the contents of his two stores (Pippen Antiques and Pippen Interiors); items from his personal residence (which he considered a perfect creation and called “Paradise”); the contents of another home (a three-story, 1850s townhouse called “The Vineyard” that he restored with spectacular appointments and rented to friends and associates); and treasures from several warehouses.
Mr. Pippen spared no expense when it came to his homes and lifestyle. He poured a small fortune into his “Paradise” residence, going so far as to airlift palm trees in by helicopter. “He did work at just about all the important homes throughout Mississippi, as well as Memphis and Alabama,” said Mr. Stevens. “He was as well known a personality in Natchez as anyone who ever hailed from there.”
The Friday session (October 3, starting at 10 a.m.) will feature decorator items, such as lamps, fine porcelain, bronze statues, decorative accessories and lighting. The Saturday session (October 4, starting at 10 a.m.) will feature beautiful antique furniture, 19th-century lamps, hand-made wool rugs, oil paintings by listed artists, silver, crystal, 19th-century porcelains and, art objects and accessories.
Following is just a sampling of what bidders will be vying for from Mr. Pippen's vast estate:
5-piece rosewood Renaissance Victorian bedroom suite, attributed to John Jelliff.
5-piece salon set (settee and four chairs) with period depictions on gold upholstery.
19th-century Old Sheffield plate epergne, silver on copper.
19th-century marble sculpture of two figures, with a green marble pedestal.
19th-century rosewood tester bed, 9 feet 4 inches tall, attributed to Prudence Mallard.
Hand-painted ivory of a
