USA – -(Ammoland.com)- Copley’s Sporting Sale 2017 took place on July 27 and 28 in Plymouth, Massachusetts. A packed house enthusiastically competed for over 500 lots, leading to total sales of $4.7 million with over 92% of lots sold.
Sessions I and II of the Donal C. O’Brien, Jr. Collection of Important American Sporting Art and Decoys were 100% sold with an outstanding average price per lot of over $27,000 per decoy. This smashed the average price per lot from the sale of the Distinguished Collection of Dr. James M. McCleery held in 2000, making the sale of the O’Brien Collection the most successful decoy auction of all time.
Three out of the five cover lots more than doubled their high estimates. Of the other two, the Canada goose by Charles E. “Shang” Wheeler (1872-1949) shot well above its high estimate, landing at $198,000, and the Crowell plover “lagged” behind, (missing its high estimate by $1,000!) selling for $174,000. Great decoys with strong provenance and exceptional form led Copley’s most successful sale in the company’s eleven-year history. To view auction results, click here.
Lot 6, a pinnacle wood duck by Canadian carver Thomas Chambers (1860-1948), set the first high water mark, selling for $270,000, a record for the carver and also a national record for any Canadian maker.
The John English (1848-1915) pintail drake sold for $246,000, shattering the old record for the maker, and becoming the highest priced decoy ever to come out of the Delaware River region.
The Barber-O’Brien Ruddy Duck by Lee Dudley (1860-1942) nearly doubled its high estimate and brought $234,000.
The Canada goose by Charles E. “Shang” Wheeler (1872-1949) shot to $198,000, smashing the world record for this important carver as well as for the Connecticut region.
Supper in Camp by A.B. Frost (1851-1928) soared above its estimate to $168,000, achieving the world record for a gouache by the artist.
About Copley Fine Arts
Copley Fine Art Auctions is the world’s leading American sporting art auction company. Located in Boston, Copley specializes in antique decoys and 19th- and 20th-century American, sporting, and wildlife paintings. Copley’s bi-annual sales are the premier events for collectors of sporting art, decoys, fishing collectibles, and other related folk art. Quality objects start at $100 and range to over a million dollars. Visit : www.copleyart.com