Rafael Osona 42nd Annual Christmas Stroll Auction

November 12, 2022, Nantucket, Massachusetts  – The halls are decked, and this Osona auction is loaded for the holidays: During 42 years of Nantucket auctioneering, Rafael Osona’s December event has earned rightful standing as a mecca for serious collectors, designers, and holiday shoppers. Fine art, maritime arts, American and Continental furnishings, and décor span the 18th-21st centuries with in-depth offerings from leading Nantucket artists and beyond, plus maritime artifacts, antiques, and collectibles sourced from Island estates and collectors.

Lot 113, Ralph Eugene Cahoon Jr. (1910-1982) Oil on Masonite "Sailors Cavorting with Mermaids at Ship Tavern", 15 gentlemen sailors and pearl adorned mermaids celebrating at Ship's Tavern. 

Leading the sale among solid offerings in regionalist art are 3 exceptional paintings by Ralph Eugene Cahoon each a teasingly eloquent ode to 19th century American sailors’ longings.

Emile Gruppe’s expressive brushwork shapes light with the dynamism of Realism in two commanding paintings, “Rockport Street Scene” and “Fishing Boats Docked.” 

9 Clark Voorhees Jr. whale carvings are as impressive in the singular as they certainly are en masse, and Nantucket baskets - 34 of them - the world-recognized phenomena for which the phrase “Nantucket Mink” was coined - range from early and post Lightship era work baskets to José Formoso Reyes’, Bill Sevrens’, and others’ Friendship baskets, Paul Willer’s and Georgia Axt’s late 20th century miniatures, to contemporary designs.

Nantucket painter Robert Stark Jr. sets his iconic red sail amid a brilliant sunset with dense atmospherics. It’s 1 of 2 Robert Stark Jr. lots. For enthusiasts of Nantucket’s art history, painter June Coolidge’s modernist sensibility captures Island Service Wharf on canvas during changing times, circa 1933 when the island’s fledgling artist colony was just taking shape.

Of note: a rare, early 19th century Nantucket coin silver ladle by James Easton II and six Nantucket coin silver teaspoons by William Hadwen, circa 1820-1838 shine among silver offerings that include flatware services by Cartier, Steiff, Reed & Barton, and ram’s-head master salts by Tiffany & Co., plus period pieces that include George III and IV, and more.

Lot 182, Pair of Signed Stephen Swift Mahogany Rocking Chairs, circa 1999

Modern furnishings include Stephen Swift’s extremely rare settee and pair of rocking chairs, both lots signed and dated, among 9 bench-made lots by the esteemed Nantucket and Pomfret, CT designer/craftsman. Highlights among period American and English furnishings include campaign, Hayward Wakefield, vintage bamboo, and Smith & Hawken outdoor teak.

Not to be missed: a rare pair of George III Garden cisterns, dated 1757, of cylindrical lead form and cast in relief with cartouche-framed galleons, anchors, mermaids, scallop-shells, starfish, and scrolled acanthus chutes.

Two sailor's valentines beckon  alongside maritime related lots, including walking sticks and canes - 18 lots – a ship portrait by Georgina Nemethy, models and dioramas, half hulls, lantern lights, and more.

There are British Regency tea caddies, Steuben, jewelry, 19 vintage patchwork quilts, Tony Sarg memorabilia, 23 Doorstops, 19th c. Canton, a 149-piece Spode Blue Trade Winds dinner service for twelve, 13 pairs of vintage or antique andirons, fireplace fenders, hand knotted Oriental carpets and hooked rugs.

Rafael Osona is highly regarded for consistent and exceptional offerings in designer furnishings, Nantucket art & artifacts, fine art, Nantucket baskets, Americana & folk arts, maritime, scrimshaw & decorative arts, estate jewelry, carpets and more. He is a third-generation antiquarian, a respected expert in the fields of Maritime and Nantucket collections. Rafael is a 42-year master in the discrete sale of privately-owned antiques, fine art, and custom décor to global patrons.