Evening star., 1949-07-10
Art

Parke.Bernet Sales
: Reach Lowest Total
In Last Six Years
By Florence S. Bergman
The annual report Of public
auction sales Of art and literary
property Of the long established
Parke-Bernet Galleries. Inc, 80
East Fifty-seventh street. New
York City. reflects each year the
general state Of economic affairs.
Although 1t is not q wholly &C
curate barometer, because of vari-
ations In the quality Of different
seasons offerings. nevertheless the
report Is Of considerable interest
to collectors, dealers and the art
world generally.
A year ago. the total sales
amount was under $6.000.c00 for
the first time since 194S. $685.
21e. For the 1859 season, which
began September II, 1948. the
gross total was $6,6l8,62s.60, an
increase Of nearly 100000 over
last season. Hiram H. Parke.
president OF the galleries. said:
"Analyzing the results Of the sea-
son. I flnd the prices for middle
bracket property continued q de-
cline, first evident two years ago,
rejecting the general deflationary
trend; prices for superior and
rare objects were more stable and.
on the whole, high by any
standard"
Drummer Works
Major public interests were
modern paintings in the fine arts
field and 18th century furniture
in the antiques field. The dis
persal of the large and valuable
collection Of the late Joseph
Drummer, internationally known
New York art dealer, was the out
standing event of this art auction
season. It realized $739.510. Here
was the most important offering
Of early Christian and Byzantine
material held In this country dur
ing the past 20 years, and leading
museums bid spiritedly. Incl
dentally. the Metropolitan Mu-
scum Of Art. New York City. is
showing throughout the summer,
at its Cloisters branch, treasures
bought from the Drummer collec-
tion. Besides the above-men-
toned classes, the collection in
cluded Gothic and Renaissance
sculpture. tapestries. jewels, enam-
els. Egyptian. Greek. Roman and
pre-Columbian antiquities.
The highest individual price Of
the season was not for an art,
but for a literary property-the
nth and final holograph manu-
script Of Lincoln's Gettysburg
Address" which fetched $4,000.
Tho second highest individual
price was $4,000 for . pair Of
Burgundian Gothic tapestries de-
picting the grape harvest (from
the Drummer sale).
During the season, 90 sales with
1872 sessions were held. Other
collections Of fine and decorative
arts obtaining high totals included
one Of jewelry. silver. porcelain.
glass and Oriental rugs, sold by
the international Refugee Organi-
zation Of the United Nations for
the benefit of Nazi victims, $685.
407, and two collections Of French
furniture. decorations and works
Of art. $136,530 and $132.952, re-
spectively.
SIS, 900 for Degas
Paintings made a somewhat bet
ter showing this season than last
(when $15,500 was the highest
individual price given for an old
master work.. This year Degas'
'L'Ecole de Ballet" fetched
$25,00; "A Voice From the Cliffs. I"
water color by Winslow Homer
$4,000: Renoir's Young Bather," {"
$10,500: Among the Led Horses" {"
by Frederic Remington. $1,000,
and 1.-THE Birthplace Of Herbert
Hoover" by Grant Wood. $500
Other outstanding individual
prices were for . Saxon 18th
century champleve enamel plaque
(Brummer), $1,000: . French
Romanesque stained and painted
glass window, $1,000; pair of cans
by Paul Revere (patroit), $1,000; a
Mary I chased and gilded silver
communion tankard, $1,000; the
Sir William Pepperrel kettle base
secretary, 18th century, Boston or
Salem, $3.50.
Those who have seen the old