Americana art and antiques plentiful in April 25 auction
Folk art carvings of two Carolina parrots and a pickerel, are among the Americana art and antiques from a single-owner estate coming to auction April 25 at Pook & Pook.
DOWNINGTOWN, Pa. — Pook & Pook, Inc. will present the collection of Anne and J. Jefferson Miller, II of Baltimore, Maryland for auction on April 25 at 10:00 a.m. Jefferson
Miller was a leading figure in the antiques community and a preeminent Americana scholar.
The auction will be held at the Pook & Pook Inc. gallery, 463 East Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, Pa. In addition, phone and absentee bids will be accepted, and Internet bidding will be facilitated by Bidsquare.com.
The auction features several pieces of fine American furniture, including a handsome folk art carved and painted hanging shelf, the crest adorned with three high-relief carvings of an eagle flanked by the busts of two stags. An 18th century New England Queen Anne tiger maple tavern table and a rare Boston bentwood side chair by Samuel Gragg are other strong examples, as is a Lancaster County painted pine dower chest. Painted by the “Embroidery Artist” and dated 1785, the chest is decorated with three tulip panels on a blue ground above two ivory drawers.
After practicing law for several years, including service as an assistant U.S. attorney, Miller, a World War II veteran, accepted an American decorative arts fellowship at the Winterthur Museum, followed by working at the then Smithsonian Museum of History and Technology, as a curator of ceramics and glass. He also served on many arts and community boards and committees, and his appreciation for nature and the outdoors is represented in the auction.
Additional featured lots of the April auction include:
• Two Berks County, Pa. carved and painted Carolina parrots
• Group of Liverpool Herculaneum Pottery pitchers
• North Carolina slip-decorated dish, circa 1830
• Painted poplar dresser box by the skilled “Compass Artist”
• New England basswood dome-lid box with large tulips
• An oil on canvas still life attributed to Severin Roesen
Gallery preview is April 22 and April 23, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m., April 24 and April 25, 9 a.m.-10 a.m. For more information, visit www.pookandpook.com, call 610-269-4040 or email info@pookandpook.com.
