Spectacular R. J. Horner three-door mahogany bookcase fetches $22,425 at Stevens Auction, March 17 A spectacular, all-original three-door mahogany bookcase, crafted around 1890 by R. J. Horner, sold for $22,425 at a sale of the living estate of Brenda McCarthy, held March 17 by Stevens Auction.
Yet more Horner offerings included a mahogany high-back bed with faces carved into the crown ($4,600), a mahogany bookcase with standing ladies on each side and ladies’ faces carved on the feet ($4,600), an oak sideboard with winged griffin crown and china cabinet top ($4,025), and a beautiful oak curved glass china cabinet with Atlas carved columns and claw feet ($3,450).
Furniture pieces not made by Horner featured a massive four-piece burl walnut half tester Aesthetic Movement bedroom suite with marble top, circa 1875 ($17,250), a mahogany banquet table, 16 feet 1 inch long with fanciful carvings, twist corner legs and a giant center leg ($6,325), and a primitive cherry corner cupboard with column front, circa 1820, 87 inches tall ($4,025).
Non-furniture lots included a mahogany pillar-and-scroll antique clock with a painted scene on the glass door and the original weights and winder, circa 1820 ($1,265), a four-volume set of books on the life of Robert E. Lee, by Douglas S. Freeman, published in 1948 ($1,150), and the only Confederate flag ever flown over Washington, D.C. - at a 1961 centennial ($1,150).
Rounding out the day’s top lots was a group of five Confederate bills, in denominations of $10, $20 and $100 ($1,035), a mahogany period Empire pumpkin base center table, circa 1840 ($1,380), a rare program sold as a promotion in 1939 at the premiere of Gone With the Wind ($805), and a 1906 book by Cyrus T. Brady, about Robert E. Lee and titled The Patriots ($460).
Stevens Auction Company’s next big auction will be the living estate of Mrs. Nell Howell of Aberdeen, Miss., to be sold on Saturday, April 21, at 10 a.m., at Mrs. Howell’s home on South Franklin Street in Aberdeen. The home, built in 1895, is called “Silk Stocking Row.” It contains fine Victorian, Empire and Federal furniture, china, sterling silver, old clocks, original works of art, hand-made Persian rugs and hundreds of rare collectibles. All of it will be sold.
The sale of Mrs. Howell’s home is being managed by Marsha Ballard, a broker with Southern Realty & Management Company. The residence is currently available for showing. For more information on the sale of the home, you may call Ms. Ballard at (662) 369-7061. An open house preview will be held Friday, April 20, from 10-7, and on April 21 (date of sale) at 8 a.m.
Stevens Auction Company is always accepting quality consignments for future sales. To consign a single item, an estate or a collection, you may call them directly, at (662) 369-2200; or, you can e-mail them at stevensauction@bellsouth.net. To learn more about Stevens Auction Company and the firm’s calendar of upcoming events, log on to www.stevensauction.com.
