Holabird Americana's sales cover a lot of collecting ground. There are always some numismatic items on offer along with a fascinating array of other collectibles and ephemera including stock certificates, postcards and a host of items numismatists often acquire as association items. Here's the press release for their upcoming sale.
-Editor
HOLABIRD WESTERN AMERICANA COLLECTIONS WILL HOLD A HUGE, FIVE-DAY
AUTUMN SPLENDOR WESTERN AMERICANA AUCTION, OCTOBER 28-NOVEMBER 1
The auction has more than 3,200 lots in a wide array of collecting categories and at price points
that will appeal to both novices and veteran collectors alike. Important collections will be sold.
Holabird Western Americana Collections' five-day Autumn Splendor Western
Americana Auction, October 28th -November 1st , is packed with over 3,200 lots of Americana,
railroadiana, mining collectibles, numismatics, stock certificates, rare books, art and more, online
and live in the Reno gallery at 3555 Airway Drive, starting at 8 am Pacific time all five days.
The massive sale will feature several important collections, beginning with the Stuart Scotty
MacKenzie Montana collection. Stuart was a lawyer, inveterate collector and dealer. He
scoured the backroads of northern Montana looking for documents, archives, company files,
libraries, correspondence – most anything historical except bottles and tokens.
After Stuart's death, we brought back two 28-foot trucks and a large, tall van full of goods,
probably 18-19 tons of collectible material, said Fred Holabird of Holabird Western Americana
Collections. A local auction was held for some of the items in his store, which had been closed
for about ten years.
Stuart had a strong love of mining items. He acquired major collections in Butte, Virginia City,
Pony, Helena and many other towns. We put together a massive Montana town document
collection of over 500 different locations – nearly 600, Mr. Holabird remarked. There are
document archives from many of Montana's most famous towns that are being offered in this
sale and upcoming sales.
Another major holding are his fruit labels and other labels, from the 1870s through about 1950
that came from all over America and even Europe. MacKenzie also acquired a major printer's
archive of Victorian wall art, mostly pretty ladies in attire of the times, the kind put up in saloons
or used today in interior decorating. There are also postcards, postal history, bird prints and a
fantastic Montana library.
In another major collection, Shirley Bovis was a mainstay in Tombstone, Arizona – an avid
collector and part-time dealer. She bought longtime Tombstone dealer Joe Soebbing's adobe
in the middle of town and quickly turned part of it into a museum. Her collection of gambling
items, saloon, cowboy, Native American – pretty much everything that is and was Tombstone –
will be in this and upcoming auctions.
The Ken Prag collection is the gift that keeps on giving. We picked up another large group of
cards and stocks from Ken and by publication time may not have had time to process much, but
it's coming, Mr. Holabird said. This sale features a large batch of California postcards, plus
more rare autograph stocks including American Express, Wells Fargo, Robert Morris and more.
Holabird continues to get in great collections of tokens, medals and bullion coins from a wide
variety of Western coin dealers and collectors. This sale will feature a great batch of so-called
dollars. Also offered will be consignments from three important railroad pass and stock
collections, as well as nearly 200 lots of lock keys and lamps, as wells as a huge railroad library.
The mining category will include Western mining photographs, documents and publications, and
carbide lamps. Mining stocks will feature a spectacular issued Bodie stock signed by Leland
Stanford and a collection of Canadian stocks. Hollywood and Disney autographs and ephemera
will feature a big group of autographed pictures and cuts from Hollywood's biggest stars, plus
rare collectibles.
Also up for bid will be Native Americana; jewelry; belt buckles and other cowboy collectibles;
bottles and saloon collectibles; rare Western documents and photos; militaria, including Civil
War knives; gaming and circus collectibles; art and advertising; and the auction's star lot: an
exceptional and rare William Shakespeare original first folio fragment from The First Part of
Henry the Fourth.
Day 1, on Thursday, October 28th , will contain 651 lots of General Americana, led by Alaska and
Wyoming collectibles and Part 1 of the MacKenzie Montana collection; bottles, saloon and cigar
items; marbles and toys. A featured lot is a signed print of 1920s actress Nita Naldi by the iconic
American artist Alberto Vargas (estimate: $3,500-$5,000). Signed prints by Vargas are very rare.
Also offered on Day 1 will be an interesting array of covers and letters addressed to Ruth Disney
(Beecher), Walt Disney's sister; and to Elias Disney, Walt and Ruth's father – eight items in all,
from 1918-1965 (estimate: $2,000-$2,500); and a pair of trays, one for Old Judge Whiskey
(Rothenberg Co.) and one for Wieland's Beer (both San Francisco) (estimate: $1,000-$1,700).
Day 2, Friday, October 29th , will have 632 lots, led by Part II of General Americana, featuring
gaming, circus and cowboy collectibles, jewelry, general foreign and books, which will include
Montana directories and, of course, the Shakespeare first folio fragment, which could easily sell
for $50,000-$100,000. Also being sold will be firearms, military and political memorabilia.
Other Day 2 star lots will include the 1886 edition of The History of California in 23 volumes by
Hubert Howe Bancroft, covering the history of the Golden State from 1542-1890 (estimate:
$2,000-$2,500); and a group of four first edition books, three of them classics by Dr. Seuss and
one by P. D. Eastman, titled Are You My Mother, published in 1960 (estimate: $2,500-$3,500).
Other Day 2 offerings will feature a Haag Bros. Circus poster (date unknown), printed on heavy
canvas measuring 29 inches by 44 inches and boasting vibrant colors (estimate: $1,000-$4,000);
a Civil War-era Bowie presentation knife made in Sheffield and used by the 9 th Corp under Gen.
Ambrose Burnside, acid etched Victory to Our Brave Volunteers (estimated: $2,000-$3,000);
and a beautiful 14-18kt gold Art Deco style brooch with multiple dangling ornamentation and a
central clear faceted stone, in a burgundy velveteen drawstring bag (estimate: $1,500-$2,500).
Day 3, Saturday, October 30th , will be bursting with 661 lots of art and advertising, Native
Americana, transportation (air, auto, steamer, railroadiana and passes), ephemera, keys, lamps
and model trains. A lot to watch is the hollow silver bead necklace with six bear claws capped
with silver adornments, plus a central turquoise cabochon set in silver (estimate: $2,000-$4,000).
Day 4, Sunday, November 1st , will be just as busy, with 618 lots of mining ephemera and
collectibles, stocks and bonds (mining, oil, railroad and miscellaneous, to include autographs,
early American and Express), and numismatics (to include ingots, currency, scrip, ephemera,
coins, medals, so-called dollars and tokens. Ingots have done especially well in prior auctions.
Stock certificate from 1863 for the Alta No. 2 Copper Mining Co. (Del Norte County, Calif),
signed by American short story writer and poet Bret Harte (estimate: $6,000-$10,000).
An expected Day 4 top achiever is a stock certificate signed by Bret Harte from 1863 for the Alta
No. 2 Copper Mining Company (Del Norte County, Calif). This important and rare certificate
was signed by the American short story writer and poet Bret Harte as secretary best. Harte was
best known for his short fiction works featuring miners and gamblers of the California Gold
Rush (estimate: $6,000-$10,000).
Other Day 4 highlights include a round container of 21.2 grams of gold and silver amalgam
(estimate: $1,200-$1,200); an 1898-S $20 Liberty Head gold piece belt buckle and Western belt,
by Silver Creek Collection, accented with lizard skin (estimate: $3,000-$4,000); and a 1947 50-
peso Mexican gold coin (90 percent pure gold) with a 14-carat bezel (estimate: 2,600-$3,000).
Day 5, Monday, November 1st, will offer 648 lots of philatelic (postcards, covers and stamps),
and bargains and dealer specials, which include general Americana, stocks and bonds, and
numismatics. Sold on Day 5 will be a collection of Humboldt and Del Norte (Calif.) counties
postcards, showing NorCal redwoods scenery along US 101, 125 pieces (estimate: $300-$600).
Online bidding via iCollector.com, LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com and Auctionzip.com.
The full catalog can be viewed online now, at www.holabirdamericana.com. For those planning
to attend the auction in person, regulations and protocols regarding COVID-19 will be enforced.
Color catalogs are available by calling 1-844-492-2766, or 775-851-1859. Also, anyone owning
a collection that might fit into an upcoming Holabird Western Americana Collections auction is
encouraged to get in touch. The firm travels extensively throughout the U.S., to see and pick up
collections. The company has agents all over America and will travel to inspect most collections.
Holabird Western Americana Collections is always in the hunt for new and major collections to
bring to market. It prides itself as being a major source for selling Americana at the best prices
obtainable, having sold more than any other similar company in the past decade alone. The firm
will have its entire sales database online soon, at no cost – nearly 200,000 lots sold since 2014.
That's great news about the sales database - this will be a great tool for researchers and cataloguers.
Don't forget Bret Harte's numismatic connection - he served as secretary to the Superintendent of the San Francisco Mint from 1863-1869.
As a bibliophile, my non-numismatic fave is probably that Shakespeare folio fragment. See the earlier E-Sylum articles for a discussion of Henry Folger's quest for Shakespeare folios.
-Editor
For more information, see:
https://www.holabirdamericana.com/
To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
ROCKEFELLER'S SHINY DIMES
(https://www.coinbooks.org/v20/esylum_v20n08a17.html)
MEDALS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
(https://www.coinbooks.org/v20/esylum_v20n09a24.html)
Wayne Homren, Editor
The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization
promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.
To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor
at this address: whomren@gmail.com
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