Wickliff Auctions, Carmel, Indiana

On the last day of February, 2015, Wickliff Auctions produced a good sized estate auction in Carmel, Indiana. The auction was primarily jewelry and wall art, but there was a smattering of early American art pottery from several major manufacturers. The facilities were excellent as always, the staff was very professional and friendly, and the participants were of the highest caliber. Refreshments were provided throughout the auction, and a security officer was ever-present to ensure the safety of all involved. Catalogs were provided to all participants, with excellent descriptions and each lot sequentially numbered. Two large monitors provided images of the items as the came up for bid so that everyone could clearly see the items.

Sadly, there was only a single Roseville Pottery lot available that day.

The green Pinecone cup (#960-4) had a pretty serious base chip, and oddly enough the bottom was unglazed. The mold was very weak as well, so we had no interest in it. The mock orange console bowl (#929-10) had some deep calcium deposits on the interior from use, but it was cleanable with a little elbow grease so we gave it some consideration. Unfortunately, the bidding jumped quickly to $40, and with a 12% buyers premium and 7% sales tax if was futile to bid any higher since the current bidder was already spending almost $50.00. We figured retail on the mock orange at about $40.00 -$50.00 and maybe $10.00 - $15.00 for the chipped cup so we let this lot pass.

We did manage to pick up some Lalique  and Steuben pieces at good prices so the day was not bad in the end. Always a pleasure to come to Wickliff and spend the afternoon, even if the Roseville Pottery for sale did not come home with us.