The Santa Fe Trail is one of the great routes that connected travelers from the East to their destinies in the West. The famous trail began in Missouri and ran through the frontier, a rugged path that led people, goods and dreams into the great beyond of the American West.
Will James (1892-1942), Untitled drawing on paper, 21 x 22” Estimate: $15/20,000
The trail famously ends at the Santa Fe Plaza in the heart of one of the Southwest’s most iconic cities. Several hundred yards down the street is the Santa Fe Community Convention Center, which will host Brian Lebel’s Cody Old West Show & Auction. Although the trail has been replaced by highways and airline routes, Brian Lebel is bringing people and goods together under the banner of the West with his annual show, this year taking place June 23 through 25.
William Moyers’ Edward H. Bohlin silver show saddle Estimate: $25/30,000
“Because of the wide variety of material available at the show—from cowboy to Native American, from old to new, and from inexpensive to lavish—it’s often difficult to explain to people what exactly the event is like,” says Lebel, who started the show 34 years ago in Cody, Wyoming. “But one thing is certain: after someone’s first visit, they come back every year. It’s a special event with a community like none other.”
Western Great Lakes ball-headed club, 23 x 6½ x 3” Estimate: $150/200,000
The show is set up in two parts: a dealer show with booths in the convention center on June 24 and 25, and a 300-lot auction on June 24. There is also a special early-bird opening for the show on June 23 for VIPs and vendors. Between the various events, collectors will have many chances to add a huge variety of Western material to their collections—from fine art paintings and sculpture to cowboy gear, Native American pottery and weavings, decorative objects, books, boots, hats and historic memorabilia on artifacts.
Will James (1892-1942), Untitled drawing on paper, 24 x 28” Estimate: $15/20,000
The sale is frequently a major draw for this show, with a massive selection of Western art and objects. This year will be no exception with a stunning mixture of material that will fit within many collections. Highlights in the sale include a significant batch of items related to cowboy artist Will James. Two works on paper, both valued separately at $15,000 to $20,000, will be available, as well as a Fritz Scholder lithograph titled Galloping Indian No. 2,estimated at $1,200 to $1,800.
Navajo pictorial rug, 49½ x 66¾” Estimate: $4/6,000
In the category of Western gear, there are several highlights, including painter William Moyers’ Edward H. Bohlin’s silver show saddle. The saddle, estimated at $25,000 to $30,000, is featured in a photo of the artist in his studio. Also available to collectors is a pair of child’s angora pinto woolies (est. $6/7,000) dated to the early 1900s, dyed purple and pink, and an Bohlin “Marietta” parade saddle from around the 1930s. “[It is] profusely and elaborately tooled with bucking horses, Texas longhorns and covered wagons, and lavishly mounted with silver conchos separated by silver spots,” the auction house notes. “The corner mountings feature repousse figures of various rodeo scenes on all 12 sterling silver corner plates including roping, bucking horses and bulldogging.” The saddle, estimated at $30,000 to $40,000, was once part of the Guess Jeans Collection. Finally, a pair of Snake G. S. Garcia spurs will be available with estimates of $20,000 to $30,000.
Cheyenne beaded cradleboard, ca. 1870-1880, fully beaded cradle with blue beaded background and decorated with geometric patterns in colorful patterns, mounted to wood slats studded with brass tacks, beaded cover is 25” long with the sticks being 40½” tall. Estimate: $25/35,000
In the category of Native American art will be several key lots, the most prominent one being a Western Great Lakes ball-headed club measuring 23-inches long. “A fine example of an Ojibwa carved club with incised floral and figural decoration on the flat-sided handle and the ball. The ball shows use but the paint is overall smooth and even,” the catalog notes. “Elegant but deadly, ball-headed clubs are seen as an art form but had the efficiency of a very deadly weapon in the hands of a Native American warrior. These clubs were popular for 200 to 300 years and were associated with mostly peoples of the Northeast and Great Lakes regions before pipe tomahawks gained preference around the beginning of the 1800s.” The estimate on the item is $150,000 to $200,000.
Fritz Scholder (1937-2005), Galloping Indian No. 2, signed, ed. 31 of 50 Estimate: $1,200/1,800
Snake G. S. Garcia spurs, 5½ x 11½” each Estimate: $20/30,000
Also available is a Parker Field & Co. 1864 tack gun (est. $50/60,000), an exceptionally fine Cheyenne beaded cradleboard from 1870 to 1880 (est. $25/35,000), a Plateau beaded cradleboard from the 1880s (est. $15/25,000), a Lakota beaded bridle from around the 1880s (est. $10/15,000), a beaded pictorial vest (est. $20/25,000) and a Navajo pictorial rug (est. $4/6,000).
“Native American artifacts are particularly strong this auction,” adds Lebel.
Parker Field & Co. 1864 Indian tack gun, 42” barrel, 58” overall Estimate: $50/60,000
This year’s event will mark the first collaboration with Morphy Auctions, which Lebel and his Old West Events have partnered. Collectors can expect to see all of Lebel’s high-quality material and dealers, and also Morphy’s expanded opportunities in the auction world. —
Brian Lebel’s Cody Old West Show & Auction
June 23-25, 2023
Santa Fe Community Convention Center, 201 W. Marcy Street, Santa Fe, NM 87501
(480) 779- 9378, www.oldwestevents.com
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