Bidders Strike Gold in Heritage Auctions’ $1.2 Million Fine Silver Auction

Pieces from America, Asia and England finish strong in the November event DOWNLOAD DIGITAL PRESS KIT DALLAS, Texas (November 19, 2021) — Heritage Auctions continued its sterling record of exceptional silver sales on Tuesday when its Nov. 16 Fine Silver & Objects of Vertu Signature® Auction soared to nearly $1.2 million. Leading the sale was a 12-piece Gorham Mfg. Japonesque fruit knife set that fetched a world-record $45,000. The circa 1880 silver and mixed metal set came from the collection of Dr. Charles Venable, a former museum curator who amassed an enviable assemblage of American-made silver from the late 19th and early 20th century. "Several American museums have sets of these knives, and I have always loved them," Venable says, "especially the fact that the handles were patterned on imported Japanese examples." Another big seller from Venable's venerable collection included a large William Gale & Son tray that sold for $20,000 and was purchased by the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute in Utica, N.Y. Emblazoned with engraved animal images, as well as architectural scenes such as Conwy Castle in Wales, George Washington's Mount Vernon and Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, the 1851 creation is, in Venable's estimation, "one of the great masterpieces in American silver." It wasn't just American pieces that performed well, however. Also finishing strong were several English designs, including a set of 12 Paul Storr gilt silver plates from 1817 that realized $31,250, as well as a Thomas Powell reticulated silver epergne from 1766 that sold for $25,000. The sale also featured a strong group of Asian silver, such as a massive Arthur & Bond silver wine cooler with three dragon-form handles. Hailing from Yokohama, Japan, the piece realized $17,500. Other top lots included a Monumental Gorham Mfg. Co. Silver Two-Handled Covered Trophy Bowl, which sold for $21,250; a 14K Vari-Color Gold, Guilloche Enamel, and Diamond-Mounted Box in the Manner of Fabergé, which fetched $20,000; a Two Hundred Sixty-Nine-Piece Wallace Silversmiths Grande Baroque Pattern Silver Flatware Service for Thirty with Twelve Metal Table Articles, which sold for $20,000; anda Six-Piece Tiffany & Co. Bird's Nest Pattern Partial Gilt Silver Tea and Coffee Service, which also realized $20,000. Heritage Auctions is the largest fine art and collectibles auction house founded in the United States, and the world's largest collectibles auctioneer. Heritage maintains offices in New York, Dallas, Beverly Hills, San Francisco, Chicago, Palm Beach, London, Paris, Geneva, Amsterdam and Hong Kong. Heritage also enjoys the highest online traffic and dollar volume of any auction house on earth (source: SimilarWeb and Hiscox Report). The Internet's most popular auction-house website, HA.com, has more than 1,400,000 registered bidder-members and searchable free archives of five million past auction records with prices realized, descriptions and enlargeable photos. Reproduction rights routinely granted to media for photo credit. For breaking stories, follow us: HA.com/Facebook and HA.com/Twitter. Link to this release or view prior press releases. Steve Lansdale, Public Relations Specialist 214-409-1699; SteveL@HA.com