The Spectacular Collection of Harriet and Seymour Koenig Highlight Cowan’s Spring American Indian & Western Art Premier Auction

The collection features nearly 90 pieces from the southwestern United States including art and artifacts from the Navajo, Zuni, Apache, and Hopi tribes.

An exceptional collection of pottery, textiles, fine art, and katsinas from the southwestern United States highlights Cowan’s Spring American Indian & Western Art: Premier Auction on April 5, 2019. The auction will feature over 400 lots of art and artifacts that span the entirety of human history on the North American continent, with pieces crafted by prehistoric man to works of art created by contemporary artist.

Lot 243, Zia Polychrome Pottery Olla, From The Harriet and Seymour Koenig Collection, NY; Estimate $15,000-$20,000

“This auction has something for every kind of American Indian art collector imaginable,” said Danica Farnand, Cowan’s director of American Indian & Western Art. “We have spectacular prehistoric birdstones, incredible Plains material, vibrant, contemporary paintings and everything in between.”

The highlight of the auction is the Harriet and Seymour Koenig Collection of Southwestern Art. Seymour Koenig was a research physicist that frequently consulted at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico in the 1950s and 1960s. The family’s trips to the southwest led Seymour and his wife, Harriet, to develop a passionate interest in the art and history of the indigenous peoples of New Mexico and Arizona. Many of the pieces offered in the auction from the collection were purchased either directly from the artists or from local trading posts during these trips.

Lot 200, Zuni Polychrome Pottery Olla, From The Harriet and Seymour Koenig Collection, NY; Estimate $4,000-$6,000

“Harriet and Seymour assembled one of the most spectacular collections we’ve ever had the fortune of offering at auction,” said Farnand. “You can see the passion and the love of the region in the pieces they carefully curated over a lifetime of collecting.”