Collectors gathered 'round the playing circle to compete for the rarest and best examples at Morphy's April 11 Premier Marbles auctionHighlights: Shrunken core onionskin marble with floating blizzard mica, $36,285; rare pink opaque lutz marble with red bands, $28,290; end of day marble with heavy floating blizzard mica, $20,910. The sale was held online and live in Denver, Pa.
By: Morphy Auctions The wildly-colorful shrunken core onionskin marble boasted the perfect amount of floating mica to allow the core to be seen. It was expected to do well, having a high estimate of $30,000. But eager bidders pushed that to a final price of $36,285, making it the top lot of the auction. The marble, 2¼ inches in diameter and graded 9.7, showed a few as-made indentations. The rare pink opaque lutz marble with red bands also came into the sale with high expectations. It had a pre-sale estimate of $20,000-$25,000, but as was the case with the top lot, bidders surpassed even the high estimate with a winning bid of $28,290. The 7/8-inch-diameter marble, graded 9.7, is very hard to find in the color combination it displayed, and collectors rewarded that with aggressive bidding. A hard-to-find, single-pontil end of day marble with heavy floating blizzard mica sold within estimate for $20,910. Measuring 2¼ inches in diameter with an early, faceted pontil and white base with blue and pink, the marble was graded 9.8 for condition. A stunning, deep four-lobed onionskin marble with a white base and a rainbow of colors, including turquoise, yellow, red and blue, realized $19,680, which was within estimate. The marble was 2 inches in diameter and graded 9.5. It had an early faceted pontil, and the surface showed two minor sub-surface reflections. A scarce single-pontil end of day Joseph's Coat swirl marble in colors of white, green, blue, yellow and red breezed past the $15,000 high estimate to settle at $17,835. Some of the colors in the 2-inch-diameter marble started at the bottom pontil and came back to the same pontil. The surface showed two micro-reflections and one as-made flat spot. To discuss consigning to a future Premier Marbles Auction, or other auction hosted by Morphy's, please call Dan Morphy at 877-968-8880, or email him at info@morphyauctions.com. All enquiries are kept strictly confidential, and there is never an obligation to consign. Online: www.morphyauctions.com. End
|