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Taking the title of highest price of the sale was a copper Merck inverted display jar, which still contained its original copper contents. Listed as “probably the rarest of these inverted Merck jars known” in the auction catalog, it had a complete label and measured 4¾ inches tall. It landed on the shelf of a new owner for $1,904, a little over three times its high estimate ($400/600).
Review by Kiersten Busch
KIRKWOOD, N.Y. — On June 29, McMurray Antiques & Auctions conducted Auction #82, which offered an assortment of patent medicines, pills, tins, apothecary/drugstore and advertising items. “I was very pleased with the final outcome as most lots sold at above estimated prices,” said Terry McMurray, the owner of McMurray Antiques & Auctions, when Antiques and The Arts Weekly caught up with him after the sale. “Bidding on the labeled patent medicines and advertising is very competitive right now along with the veterinary items. This sale also featured the first offering from a 50-plus-year private collection that is fresh to the market. This always generates interest when it happens.”
There were more than 125 active bidders involved in the sale, with only two lots receiving no bids. McMurray added, “Bids were taken over the phone and by email and were primarily from collectors here in the United States and Canada, with one item going to the Smithsonian in Washington, DC.”
Two “rare” and “unusual” lots led the auction, earning the same price of $1,904. First was a copper Merck inverted display jar which still contained its original copper contents. The 4¾-inch-tall jar had a complete label and was previously sold by the firm approximately 10 years ago. Tied for best-selling lot was a reverse on glass advertising Coles Peruvian Bark and Wild Cherry Bitters, which were used as a nerve and blood tonic to cure debility and dyspepsia. It came in an original Eastlake wooden frame, measuring 13 by 7 inches, and had its original wood backing. It was the first of its kind seen by the auction house, as usually these advertisements came in blue porcelain.
An “unusual” example of an advertisement for Coles Peruvian Bark and Wild Cherry Bitters, this also received the highest bid of the sale, going to a new home for $1,904. Terry McMurray explained that it was the first reverse on glass example of these advertisements he’s seen. It measured 13 by 7 inches framed ($500/700).
A 9¼-inch-tall bottle of Dr Townsend’s sarsaparilla from Albany, N.Y., was the second highest selling lot of the sale. It was wrapped in a 90 percent complete label which showed an image of the Dr Townsend factory with only light staining and paper losses. According to McMurray, these types of bottles are “scarce to find labeled.” Even though the medium green bottle had straw lines and a few interior bubbles, bidders still pushed this “hard to find” bottle to $1,288, almost doubling its high estimate.
A paper sign from H.H. Warner & Co’s Physicians advertised they were “Seeking and Investigating The Old Log Cabin Remedies of 100 Years Ago.” The remedies were listed at the bottom of the advertisement, and included things like “Log Cabin Sarsaparilla,” “Log Cabin Scalpine For The Hair” and “Log Cabin Liver Pills.” Listed as being in overall good condition, the 13-by-20-inch paper centered an image of four friends sitting at a table in a log cabin, with stoneware scattered around the surrounding floor and shelves. Cataloged as “rare,” it went to a new home for $1,232, just over estimate.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, 607-775-5972 or www.mcmurrayauctions.com.
