Cowboy Gear

Edward H. Bohlin material was the big winner at Brian Lebel’s Mesa Old West Show in Arizona.

Works by Edward. H. Bohlin, the famous saddlemaker and silversmith, always have a big role in Brian Lebel’s Mesa Old West Show & Auction every winter in Mesa, Arizona, but this year’s show had an exceptional showing by the famous artisan.

The top lot of the 2022 show was Bohlin’s personal set of parade spurs in sterling silver and three shades of gold. The spurs were made by Bohlin and his top artists, and were made to match an equestrian outfit that represented 14 years of work. The pieces were estimated at $100,000 to $125,000, but fetched well over that when they closed for $236,000.Edward H. Bohlin (1895-1980), Bohlin’s personal spurs, ca. 1940s, sterling and yellow, red and green gold overlay with accents on stainless spurs. Estimate: $100/125,000 SOLD: $236,000

Another Bohlin item was his personal filigreed gold buckle with nearly 5 ounces of solid gold in rose, yellow and white colors. The front of the buckle not only has large “E B” initials, but also depictions of moose, bighorn sheep, elk, trout, bear and pronghorn. The buckle was estimated at $20,000 to $25,000, but sold for more than $47,000.Close up of Bohlin’s personal spurs, ca. 1940s, sterling and yellow, red and green gold overlay with accents on stainless spurs. Estimate: $100/125,000 SOLD: $236,000

John Wayne’s 26 Bar Ranch 1969 buckle, sterling, 2 x 33/8”, mounted on a Sisco belt presented to Wayne by Ron and Nancy Reagan Estimate: $25/30,000 SOLD: $56,050

Other top lots included a collection of Joe De Yong papers that were part of the Dick Sr. and Daro Flood Family Collection. Flood, a prominent art dealer, had struck up a friendship with De Yong, who had studied under Charles M. Russell. De Yong left him his archives after his death. The mountains of paperwork, which revealed a lot about the artist and his acquaintances, was estimated at $10,000 to $20,000, but sold for $59,000.

Elsewhere in the sale were John Wayne’s personal 26-Bar Ranch belt buckle (est. $25/30,000) that sold for $56,000, De Yong’s Colt single-action revolver (est. $3,5/4,500) that sold for $29,500, and the Joe Beeler bronze Lord of the Southern Plains (Quanah Parker) (est. $10/14,000) that sold for $26,500. Other top items were Pueblo pottery, Navajo weavings, paintings, bronzes, woodblock prints and saddles. The show always a few curious items that draw attention, and this year was no exception with the inclusion of a gold nugget part of the Granville Stuart Estate. The nugget was estimated at just $3,000 to $5,000, but sold for more than $94,000, nearly 19 times the high estimate. Artists represented in the sale included Maynard Dixon, Carl Oscar Borg and Nicholas Firfires.Joe Beeler (1931-2006), Lord of the Southern Plains (Quanah Parker), bronze, 35 x 18½ x 19” Estimate: $10/14,000 SOLD: $26,550

Gold nugget from Granville Stuart Estate Estimate: $3/5,000 SOLD: $94,400Brian Lebel, the show’s owner, was happy with the auction results, with its 97 percent sell-through rate, and also the crowd turnout for the dealer show. “Everyone was thrilled because it was full and people were buying. That’s what you hope for with shows like this,” Lebel says. “The auction had bargains and records, and that’s what makes a great auction. The bargains for the bidders, and the records for the sellers. As long as you have those two things, people will come back.” —