PROBABLY ATLANTIC CITY, NEW JERSEY, CIRCA 1925

Details

A CARVED AND PAINTED 'BATHING BEAUTY' LAMP BASE
PROBABLY ATLANTIC CITY, NEW JERSEY, CIRCA 1925
46 1/4 in. high

Provenance

Rafael Osona Auctions, Nantucket, probably 1983 or 1984
Hill Gallery, Birmingham, Michigan
Acquired from the above in 1995

Special notice

Please note lots marked with a square will be moved to Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS in Red Hook, Brooklyn) on the last day of the sale. Lots are not available for collection at Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services until after the third business day following the sale. All lots will be stored free of charge for 30 days from the auction date at Christie’s Rockefeller Center or Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS in Red Hook, Brooklyn). Operation hours for collection from either location are from 9.30 am to 5.00 pm, Monday-Friday. After 30 days from the auction date property may be moved at Christie’s discretion. Please contact Post-Sale Services to confirm the location of your property prior to collection. Lots may not be collected during the day of their move to Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS in Red Hook, Brooklyn). Please consult the Lot Collection Notice for collection information.

Conditions of sale

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Julia Jones Associate Specialist

jjones@christies.com +212 974 4474

Lot Essay

One of three known examples, this lamp base is thought to have been displayed in Atlantic City, host of the Miss America Pageants from 1921 to 1927. Contestants were referred to as "bathing beauties" and these lamps may have adorned one of the venues, such as the Million Dollar Hotel on the city's boardwalk. For the two other examples see Roger Ricco and Frank Maresca, American Primitive (New York, 1988), p. 17, figs. 7 and 8.

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