New Legislation Troubling for Ivory Collectibles

  

The United States has been a longtime proponent in the fight against illegal ivory trade.  However if changes announced by the current White House administration this month (February 2014) remain unchanged, this announcement will have a huge impact upon the sale of ivory items within the United States.  According to a White House fact sheet, federal agencies have new guidelines drafted which are designed to reduce ivory trafficking.  All commercial import of ivory will be banned, including the import of antique ivory pieces.    Guidelines for the sale of ivory items across state lines will be drafted, and the sale will be limited to items classified as “Antique.”  The guidelines go on to clarify “Antique” as an item which is more than 100 years old and which meets other requirements under the Endangered Species Act.  If guidelines remain unchanged, the onus will now fall on the importer, exporter, or seller to demonstrate that an item meets these criteria.    

So, what does this mean for us?  While all of us support laws against the slaughter of animals, especially elephants, this new law regulating pre-ban ivory goes way beyond effective anti-slaughter efforts. A recent post by The Magazine Antiques indicates that “the rules, say dealers in historic works of art, denigrate cultural heritage while failing to stop poachers, who will likely find ready markets for ivory elsewhere in the world.” The policy change in its current state will have a huge impact upon ivory collectibles market; sales across state lines of elephant ivory items will be limited to items which are over 100 years old only.  To further complicate matters, these new guidelines will be enforced at the state level and this will impact inter-state and intra-state sale if ivory further. 

The variety of ivory items in the market place is huge!  Some items are easily identified as antique, such as Okimono figurines, scrimshaw, snuff bottles and jewelry.  But, even then, the age of ivory of these items will have to be proven before any resale is attempted.  And what about items that have some ivory in their composition, i.e. musical instruments, toys, canes, guns, and the like?  Think about those teapots with ivory insulators; can they be resold or repaired?  What about all of these beautiful mid-20^th century carved ivory chess sets?  What about pianos with ivory keys that are less than 100 years old?  The ramifications of the law change are massive.

As collectors and estate executors, it will be your responsibility to accurately identify the type of ivory items you have and their age, prior to attempting any sale.  Preliminary information is non-existent about what Fish & Wildlife or each state will accept as proof of age and legality.  However, documents you may want to begin finding that may be helpful include sales receipts with dates and item descriptions, previous CITES documentation, old appraisals, old photographs with the ivory item, notarized statements from elderly individuals stating how long items have been the family, etc.  Of course, style and age cracks will help identify antique ivory, but often can be difficult, especially when items were revived after World War II.  Under the proposed guidelines, the burden of proof will be on the owner to prove their age.

So, what happens to value if these guidelines remain unchanged?  Many antique ivory pieces are true works of art and will remain collectible unless the government enacts an all-out ivory ban, but will their marketability be the same?   Early Asian carvings such as netsuke, Okimono, screens, jewelry, and snuff bottles have a special beauty unique to themselves and collectors will continue to value these items. The availability and legal sales channels of antique pieces will be limited and it is impossible to predict the impact these new policies will have upon value.  Certainly, newer pieces of ivory carvings lacking documentation run the risk of losing a portion or all of their resale value.

If you are a collector of ivory, take time now to organize your documentation, just in case the policy remains as announced.  You can even register your collection. Estate executors need to be diligent in their search for evidence that documents age.  As an appraiser, I will need your assistance to identify and prove age, especially if the law remains unchanged and the interstate sale of ivory under 100 years old becomes illegal.

There is current pressure on the Obama administration to withdraw the guidelines, and of course, congress could intervene.  It is not too late to contact the president, Fish and Wildlife, your congressional representative and your governor to express your thoughts.    Fish and Wildlife are still working to clarify the policy, so there is time for your voice to be heard. Good intentions protecting endangered wildlife will play havoc with cultural artifacts owned by both private collectors and public institutions, and many of these were items that were carved well before all of us were born.  Again, while all of us are against the slaughter of elephants, banning the trade of historical and cultural items is like “throwing out the baby with the bathwater.”  

The complete White House fact sheet can be found on the following link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/02/11/fact-sheet-national-strategy-combating-wildlife-trafficking-commercial-b

Other relevant articles and websites include the following:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dougbandow/2014/02/17/obama-administration-treats-antique-collectors-and-dealers-as-criminals-new-ivory-rules-put-elephants-at-increased-risk  

http://www.fws.gov/home/feature/2014/trafficking/impact-of-actions-on-commercial-elephant-ivory-trade.pdf

http://www.themagazineantiques.com/news-opinion/the-market/2014-02-24/banning-ivory/

http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2014/02/oppose-obama-administrations-war-us-antique-collectors-wont-save-single-elephant-africa/

http://www.ivoryeducationinstitute.org/

Vicky Nash Shaw
ISA CAPP, Certified Antique and Art Appraiser

919 475-6930

"Art In Clay" – The Best of North Carolina Colonial Ceramics

St. Asaph's (Alamance County)  Sugar Bowls

If you like ceramics, have an interest in North Carolina history, or are interested in Moravian and Quaker ceramics, the “Art in Clay” exhibit at MESDA (Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts) is a must see exhibit. Even if you haven’t previously had an interest in North Carolina redware, this exhibit may pleasantly surprise you.

Moravian Owl Bottle

As the culmination of four years of work, research and study, the “Art in Clay” exhibit showcases early North Carolina pottery by presenting examples from some of the premier collections in the country. Ok, so you’ve seen North Carolina early pottery before, so, what’s the big deal about “Art in Clay”? It’s just mud, correct? Redware? Think again. What makes this project and exhibit unique is that the work and research culminating with the exhibit has literally re-written history. And then there’s the fact that this slip decorated redware North Carolina pottery is some of the most beautiful pottery every made! Plain redware it is not.

Due to the combined efforts between ceramic experts, potters, historians, archeologists, and chemists, this pottery from the Piedmont area has unquestionably been identified, dated and attributed, even reattributed in some instances. Moravian pottery has been appreciated for many years due to its originality, beauty and form, but now we know that some of this previously attributed Moravian pottery was actually made by German immigrants who lived and worked in other areas of North Carolina, particularly in the St. Asaph’s area of Alamance County. That’s what has changed history!

Moravian Aust Shop Sign

And now the WOW factor kicks in; we are talking about highly decorated slip pottery, dating to the 1770’s into the early 1800’s. And this is not plain, glazed pottery, but beautifully decorated and brightly colored pottery. There are not only plates and mugs, but these really cool lidded storage containers that we now know are sugar bowls, animal forms and flasks. Very little of this pottery is signed, and attributions have been made by researching potters’ kiln sites, inventory records and other early documented sources. By comparing signed or known pieces and using pottery sherds from the archeological digs, dating and geographic attribution of the pottery can be determined. And the Moravian Aust shop sign, a cornerstone piece of the exhibit, is a fabulous one of a kind ceramic bowl style sign that will dazzle you when you walk into the exhibit room.

Work by the early Moravian Potters of Aust and Christ are included in the exhibit…no surprise there. But, works by the German potters from the Loy family living and working in the St. Asaph’s area of Alamance County, and works by Quaker Potters, have also been identified and are included in the exhibit. And these Quaker made pieces are also highly decorated and beautiful. There are about 120 items included, many borrowed from private collectors (some being heirs of the original potters), the Henry Ford Museum, MESDA, Colonial Williamsburg and others. And the items from private collections will be returned to their owners at the end of the exhibit; this two year travelling exhibition is the only way to ever see these privately owned pieces.

Punch Bowl

I was fortunate to attend a symposium dedicated to this exhibit, and heard from some of the researchers who worked on this project. There were seminars by ceramics experts, potters, archeologists and historians, all of whom contributed to the research. I participated in special curator led tours of the exhibit, including a tour by Joanna Brown and one by Luke Beckerdite. According to Luke Beckerdite, this collection includes “the best slip decorated colonial ceramics in America.” And coming from a nationally renowned ceramics expert, that’s a pretty good endorsement for North Carolina redware!

And since I am an appraiser, people always ask me about value. Is this old North Carolina pottery valuable? You bet. In 2001, Sotheby’s sold a female figural flask, modeled as a girl standing with a small flower spray clasped before her with her long dress covered in a rich green glaze, and dated 1800 for $31,800 including the buyer’s premium. Now, this is really a one of a kind, very rare item; the other more common pieces are less expensive. In 2010, Brunk Auction sold a simple 7” brown squirrel bottle for $700.00 plus buyer’s premium. And the squirrel had some chips and cracks, and the date was not authenticated! But still, very impressive values!

But this is something you need to see for yourself! We are fortunate that this exhibit is currently at MESDA (Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts in Winston Salem) and will be there until August 14, 2011. This is a fabulous opportunity to see our North Carolina redware at its best, and to educate yourself about Moravian, St. Asaphs, and Quaker North Carolina pottery. More information on the exhibit can be found at http://www.oldsalem.org/artinclay.html. In a future blog post, we’ll talk a little more about how the slipware pottery was made, but don’t miss the opportunity to see the real stuff. As you walk through the exhibit cases, see if you can tell how the Moravian, St. Asaphs, and Quaker pottery differ from each other. And enjoy them for their beauty; they are truly works of art!

Vicky Nash Shaw,

ISA CAPP Certified Antique and Art Appraiser

919 475-6930

http://www.theauthenticappraisal.com/

EMYL JENKINS BOOK SIGNING

Noted author and former antique appraiser Emyl Jenkins spoke and autographed her new book book, The Big Steal, in Clarksville, Virginia, on Saturday August 8th. The event was hosted by Strum & Co. antique store, which is located on Virginia Avenue in downtown Clarksville. Local Virginia and North Carolina residents attended to meet Ms. Jenkins and to hear about her plans for more Sterling Glass Mysteries. Ms. Jenkins is a retired antique appraiser, formerly of Chapel Hill and Raleigh, who now esides in Richmond.

I attened the event and am pictured here with Emyl; I enjoyed her last book, and am looking forward to reading the lastest mystery about the world of antiques. I met Emyl a couple of years ago, and she is bright, charming and certainly understands the world of antiques. I hope you read her book!

Appraisals are an important part of collecting, and if you need information on art and antique appraisals, see our website at http://www.theauthenticappraisal.com/.

(c)2009 Vicky Nash Shaw, ISA AM
Accredited Antique and Art Appraiser
Downsizing & Brokering Consultant

Appraisal Studies Journal Presented to North Carolina Art Museum

The Carolinas Chapter of the International Society of Appraisers (ISA) recently donated a copy of the new 2009 Journal of Appraisal Studies to the North Carolina Art Museum Reference Library in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Journal is published by the Foundation for Appraisal Education, a nonprofit organization where the proceeds of the Journal are directed to appraisal educational initiatives and scholarships. The new edition contains 20 articles which focus not only on appraisal theory, but includes diverse topics such as map valuation, autograph forgeries, illustration art resources and photograph appraisals.

The presentation was made to Ms. Natalia Lonchyna, librarian of the art reference library, by art and antique appraiser Vicky Nash Shaw, ISA AM. Vicky is a member of the ISA Carolinas Chapter, and is a full time personal property appraiser working in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area. The Journal was purchased by the ISA Chapter specifically for donation to the Art Museum Reference Library. According to Shaw, “The library’s reference collection is a great asset for collectors and researchers, and our local ISA Chapter wanted the Appraisal Journal to be part of the collection.”

The Art Reference Library of the North Carolina Museum of Art is a non-circulating research collection open to the public. According to the museum’s website, the library’s holdings exceed 37,000 volumes, and include books and exhibition catalogues. The library has a large collection of reference material on European and American art. More information on the Museum can be found on its website www.ncartmuseum.org.

The International Society of Appraisers is a professional association that requires the successful completion of specialized course work and standard examinations by their accredited and certified members. The ISA has developed the most comprehensive personal property appraisal education program in America. Vicky Nash Shaw has been an accredited member of ISA for five years. She can be reached through her website www.TheAuthenticAppraisal.com or by phone at 919 475-6930.

Vicky Nash Shaw ©2009