Over 2,500 rare and amazing treasures will cross the block at Red Baron's on June 20-21

June 12, 2009 - PRLog -- (ATLANTA, Ga.) – Over 2,500 rare and amazing treasures will cross the block the weekend of June 20-21 when Red Baron -- the Southeast’s premier auction house -- holds its annual summer auction extravaganza. Items will include a rare collection of three museum-quality heads from different parts of the world; a 1958 Plymouth Tornado concept car; and a rare Heli-Bout combination helicopter and boat.

   “Summer is a magical season, where the days are longer, the nights are hotter and we’re all infused with the spirit of self-indulgence and leisure,” said Bob Brown of Red Baron. “It’s time for everyone to get out and treat themselves to something extra special. I can’t think of a better way to do that than by joining us in the most exciting event of the summer season – Red Baron’s 79th auction.”

   Mr. Brown and the Red Baron team have once again returned from traveling the globe, in search of the grandest treasures and most exotic finds. Many of these were previously unavailable to any buyer, at any price. “But with a little luck, a good eye and some savvy sense,” he said, “we gathered these fine antiques, artifacts, furnishings, vehicles and more. Now, bidders can acquire some magic of their own.”

   The museum-quality heads include an amazingly well-preserved, 2,000-year-old Egyptian mummy of a young person, with skin and eyelashes fully intact; an elongated skull from the Van Watu tribes in the New Hebrides (circa 1880-1920), likely used by a native Shaman to honor a revered person who’d passed on; and a shrunken head from the tribes of South America, perfectly preserved and intact.

   The bright red, fully restored 1958 Plymouth Tornado is a concept car, built on the frame of a Plymouth Fury but wildly futuristic in design, with the characteristics of a rocket ship: a winged back, oversized dual exhausts and a curvaceous body. Like many other concept cars from the era, this one is exceedingly rare. It was not meant as a hot rod, but a peek at what cars of the future might look like.

   The Heli-Bout is also a prototype – a one-of-a-kind helicopter-boat hybrid, created by the world-renowned industrial designer Brooks Stevens in 1960, for Evinrude Motors. The original purpose was to introduce the new Starflight 75hp motor at the 51st National Motor Boat Show, but the Heli-Bout was so over-the-top unique and imaginative, it came to represent what the future of boating could possibly hold.

   Monumental bars – staples at many Red Baron sales – will be in this auction, too. One example certain to wow the crowd is a massive Brunswick “Del Monte” front and back bar with columns and mirrors (circa 1900, 147 inches high by 300 inches wide). Brunswick bars were built in Iowa by skilled artisans, from 1890-1912. Each one was different and featured magnificent hand-crafted workmanship.

   Other noteworthy bars will include a nautical theme pub bar with ship’s wheel, stained glass ceiling, brass lanterns and sink (96 inches high by 155 inches wide); a “Hunter’s Pub” adorned with a large carved deer and lion’s head, and with a floral stained glass dome, doors and windows, marble sink and gun cabinet; and a 20-foot-tall “Wine Bar & Bistro” with two doors, a canopy with stained glass ceiling, a booth with table and bench, a clock, carved lady figures supporting the canopy, and sconces.

   Marvelous outdoor fountains will also be offered. Featured will be a monumental white marble fountain depicting horses, winged lions on plinths, Atlas figures and mythological dolphins, with two bowls towering overhead (approximately 25 feet high and 16 feet in diameter); and a large cut Vincenza stone two-tier stone fountain with three panthers (approximately 12 feet high and 22 feet in diameter).

   Speaking of water, how’s this for a surefire conversation starter: a scale model Ben-Hur boat, inspired by the popular movie from the 1960s and complete with tiny men, their oars and sailing rigs. The oars are motorized, to move in synch, so it looks like the men are actually rowing. It’s about 9 feet high, 105 inches wide and 20 feet long. The lot comes with a Ben-Hur movie poster and a ship poster.

   If rare, vintage firearms are your thing, Red Baron’s got ‘em. Offered will be unique Frankenau’s patent change purse revolver, designed to serve as both a change purse and defensive revolver; an antique ring gun with six-shot barrel and fine foliate carved detail; a Gatling-type revolving cannon patent model made of brass and iron; a factory engraved Colt pocket model 1849 revolver; a Colt model 1848 baby dragoon percussion revolver; and a signed Bottega C. Yiorlanelli Beretta  28-gauge shotgun.

   About 40 rare and collectible cars will be revved up and ready to go. Top lots include a gorgeous 1961 Porsche 356B 1600S/Cabriolet convertible, slate gray, with all matching numbers and just 99,325 certified, actual miles; a 1928 Ford Model A “Red Robin” boatail dirt track race car; a 1924 Chevrolet ”Stovebolt Special” boatail dirt track race car; a 1956 Porsche Speedster replica on a 1969 Volkswagen chassis; a 1987 Mercedes 450SL convertible with hard and soft top; and a black 2000 Bentley Arnage.

   Also to be sold will be two elegant, limited-edition Lalique vases (#7/20 and #11/20); a rare Rolex chronograph watch, pink gold and stainless steel (circa 1955); a finely carved small round table, signed Sevres (1842), with a porcelain bowl top; an English saluting cannon, designed for the Royal Squadron (circa 1920); a private collection of fine wines from a prominent Atlanta collector; wonderful decorative lighting pieces; opulent estate jewelry; beautiful garden statues and decorations; and more.

   Red Baron Antiques is one of the oldest, largest and widely-known fine antiques sources in the Southeastern United States. The firm is celebrating over 35 years of providing its customers with world-class service and one-of-a-kind inventory, displayed at its landmark gallery facility, located at 6450 Roswell Road in Atlanta (open to the public Monday-Friday, 9-6, and Saturday 9-4; closed on Sunday).

   Red Baron also has several affiliate operations, such as The Baron Collection, Gallery 63, Great Gallery, King Galleries and Queen’s Garden. These are profiled in the ‘Affiliates’ tool bar of the Red Baron Antiques website (www.rbantiques.com). Red Baron also owns Southern Seasons Magazine, a high-society lifestyle publication dedicated to promoting arts, culture, entertainment, style and class.

   Red Baron is always in the hunt for quality items for future sales. If you have an item, estate or collection to be considered, you may call them directly, at (404) 252-3770. The e-mail address is info@rbantiques.com. To learn more about Red Baron Antiques and the June 20-21 auction, log on to www.rbantiques.com. A free color catalog for the June 20-21 auction is available upon request.

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Ken Hall writes pre-sale and post-sale press releases for auction houses, for a fee. He writes, submits and tracks stories for clients. Submissions are published in trade magazines, posted on industry websites and appear in local newspapers.