Catlins Indians Lead Jackson Sale

In many ways frontier artist George Catlin was a man ahead of his time. Convinced that America’s Westward expansion spelled certain disaster for its native peoples, Catlin viewed his work as a way to “rescue from oblivion their primitive looks and customs.”

Catlin journeyed west five times in the 1830s to paint the Plains Indians and their way of life. He admired them as the embodiment of an ideal enlightened natural man – living in harmony with nature. Catlin’s paintings capture the fateful encounter of two vastly different cultures on a crash course with disaster.

In 1844, Egyptian Hill Piccadilly published Caitlin’s North American Indian Portfolio, intended by Catlin as the first in a series, but ultimately the only one produced. On Tuesday, June 16, a first edition of this seminal work, comprising 25 hand-finished colored lithographed plates, sells as Lot 400 in Jacksons International Auctioneers and Appraisers’ World Treasures with Important Americana sale.

Lot 445, an oil on canvas by Vietnamese great Le Pho

The sale contains over 600 works of art from Russia, Europe, America and Asia. These include 200 oil paintings and original works by artists such as Grant Wood, Edward K. Williams, Le Pho and Ilya Repin. There’s also an exceptional offering of over 100 Russian icons plus fine Russian enameled silver and works by Fabergé, 18th & 19th century ecclesiastical works and sculpture.

Lot 539, an 8 piece Tiffany Favrille art glass cordial set

Add to that a collection of historical Americana including signed letters by political heavyweights G. Washington, A. Lincoln, B. Franklin, high quality American and European decorative arts, Norwegian folk art, Louis XVI style furnishings, American and European Art Glass, Chinese decorative arts, and a fine collection of high quality 19th & 20th century jewelry.

Look now at the full catalog for Jacksons International Auctioneers and Appraisers’ World Treasures with Important Americana sale.