‘Lady of the evening’ box may earn $4,000
A unique piece of history is among the headlining lots of Crescent City Auction Gallery’s June 4-5 auction. The item, a ‘lady of the evening’ box, featuring the ‘essentials’ of a prostitute of the 1900s heads into the auction with an estimate of $2,000 to $4,000.
NEW ORLEANS — A “prostitute’s box” from Dodge City, Kansas dating to around 1900, a fine collection of 20th century Meissen figures, a handsome 19th century English George II-style inlaid carved walnut chest-on-chest, and a bronze sculpture by 19th century French artist Henri Emile Adrien Trodoux, titled “Boxer Dog and a Rat,” will all come up for bid June 4-5.
The weekend estates auction will be presented by Crescent City Auction Gallery in the firm’s gallery at 1330 St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans. Internet bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com, and Bidsquare.com. Phone and absentee (left) bids will also be accepted
One of the unique items of the auction, a prostitute’s box, is a carved wooden container that a lady of the evening might use to store her essentials. In this case, the lady was named Alice (her name is carved into the lid) and her box held a perfume bottle, a wood-handled brass derringer with mini-balls, an Art Nouveau match safe and powder flask, a sterling-handled dagger and a flask to hold liquor. It has an estimate of between $2,000 and $4,000.
The auction will be packed with original artwork (much of it by New Orleans and other regional artists); French, English and American period furniture pieces; antique French clocks; lamps and lighting; mirrors and early 20th century Mardi Gras collectibles.
Jewelry will include diamonds, emeralds, tanzanites, sapphires, rubies, Tahitian pearls and stylish 14kt antique pocket watches.
Paintings by noted local artists include an oil on canvas by Jack R. Myers (1930-1994), done in 1977
and titled “Cotton Picking” ($3,000-$5,000); and a watercolor by New Orleans artist William Woodward (1859-1939), “Feeding Ducks by the Pier, New England,” signed, dated 1890 ($2,500-$4,500).
Among the furniture lots are are French period items including a Louis Philippe carved oak buffet a deux corps from around the mid-18th century, 103 inches tall ($1,200-$1,800); and an early 19th century directoire Louis XV-style carved double-door Bordelaise armoire, 115 1/4 inches tall by 72 1/2 inches wide ($3,000-$5,000).
A selection of English and French clocks, including an Edwardian George III-style carved mahogany tall case clock, circa early 19th century ($1,200-$1,800) and a three-piece French Louis XVI-style green onyx clock set, circa 1880 ($800-$1,200), will also come before bidders.
For more information, visit www.crescentcityauctiongallery.com, call 504-529-5057 or email info@crescentcityauctiongallery.com.
