The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-06-07
OLD PICTURE SALES.

Masterpieces Sold Tor Chrome Pr1ces-kSe-
miniscences of Art Auctions
Long before the duke of Durcals col
lection Of paintings had been taken from
the ancestral walls to be brought across
the Atlantic, New York was noted as a
picture buying town, and many of the
auction sales of rare and antique paint
ings of fifty years ago were quite as far
cical as those of today. Excellent pic
lures were brought from the other side
by chance frequently, but the critical eye
of art lovers of that time was too practi
cal to allow any undue indulgence where
more than a trifiing sum was asked for a
work even of unusual merit.
It's nothing new in New York that
the works of old masters should 60
begging for price even near their
value said an old artist. as he proceeded
to tell q story of some peculiar auction
sales of years ago. several prominent
actors in which may be familiar to old
New Workers of today.
In the early forties an understood, dark
browed. keen eyed art dealer. Levy by
name, opened small auction room foz
the sale of paintings on Broadway. near
Cortlandt street There he sold at auc
ton every Saturday night old paintings.
many of which bore the names of world
renowned artists of past generations.
Paintings of all kinds, many merely old
scrolls of canvas and some framed, were
knocked down at prices that would not
stagger a dealer in chromos nowadays.
One day traveller, whose funds had
run short, called on Levy and offered
him twelve panel portraits of the Caesars
for an old song. AS Levy never told
what he paid, nobody ever anew, but
certain it is that he bought them at a
low figure, and on the following Satur-
day night placed them in row on the
wall and asked the assembled critics
consisting mostly of neighboring shop
keepers, what am | offered for the
whole Caesar family by Raphael"
Mr.. Levy couldn't sell them very ca
silly, but finally bid of five shillings
apiece bought the collection.
A year or two later Brett, London
picture dealer of some note. whose spe-
cialty was collecting the lost works OF
great masters for private collections OF
the nobility. came to New York on a
hunt for the Caesars. After long search
he found them in a small restaurant on
Nassau street. He offered the proprie-
tors $50 for the lot. The offer was &C.
copied promptly. but two of the por-
traits were missing. Inquiry developed
the fact that the thrifty restaurateur had
used them to kindle fire during q
heavy snow storm when it was difficult
to get wood.
The ten portraits accompanied Brett
on his voyage back to London, and were
handed over to a delighted purchaser fol
$4,000. Pierre Flandin. the old time
dry goods prince, was at that time ar
art dealer, as were also Paff and Beau
mont. At a sale in the auction room Of
the latter work by Durand was sold fol-
$3.50, and for days the sale was the tall
of the town.
One of the largest collectors of pic
lures at that time was Luman Reed, s
successful merchant who lived in Green
witch street. Mr.. Reeds gallery con
sisted almost entirely of works by Ameri
can artists. Many we'll known people a
that time were visitors at his gallery
These pictures are now in the possession
of the Historical society. at Second ave
hue and Tenth street.
About 1910 Ernstpusch. German i'm
porter of pictures. brought over thu
greatest collection of pictures ever i'm
ported at one time. In all there wer,
10000, mostly by German artists. bu
among them the works of Spanish, Ital
ian and French artists. Levy sold nearly
the entire collection at auction at price
of from shilling to 500.
The last really large auction sale O
pictures was the sale of the Robert Smith
collection about twenty-five or thirty
years ago. The Smith collection wa
mercilessly assailed on all sides and the
prices realized, with few exceptions
were ridculouslv low One picture by
Van Dyke. l!.v,,., brought a very
good price. New York Commercial Ad
vertiser.