Lot 707

EXTRAORDINARY "GODDESS OF LIBERTY" FOLK ART LIFE SIZE CARVED AND POLYCHROME PAINTED PATRIOTIC ALLEGORICAL WOOD FIGURE ATTRIBUTED TO NEW YORK, NEW YORK.

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EXTRAORDINARY "GODDESS OF LIBERTY" FOLK ART LIFE SIZE CARVED AND POLYCHROME PAINTED PATRIOTIC ALLEGORICAL WOOD FIGURE ATTRIBUTED TO NEW YORK, NEW YORK.

Estimate: $60,000 - $90,000

Starting Bid: $30,000

(0 Bids)

by Amelia Jeffers
July 31, 2026 11:00 AM EDT
Live Auction
620 E Weber Road
Columbus, OH, US 43211

EXTRAORDINARY "GODDESS OF LIBERTY" FOLK ART LIFE SIZE CARVED AND POLYCHROME PAINTED PATRIOTIC ALLEGORICAL WOOD FIGURE ATTRIBUTED TO NEW YORK, NEW YORK.
American, 19th Century. Wood. Full-bodied carving of a robed woman bearing a red sash and wearing a red and gold liberty cap, holding a sword in her proper right hand and a laurel wreath and shield (shield with red and white vertical stripes and gold six-pointed stars above) in her proper left hand. Fitted to a stepped white plinth with gold swags and carrying handles on the sides. 53"t. With base, 71"t. Base, 25"w. 25"d. Exhibited extensively and published: A Shared Legacy: Folk Art in America (Richard Miller, Avis Berman, Cynthia G. Falk, Lisa Minardi, and Ralph Sessions).

Cataloguer's note: By tradition, this carving was found and sold by Helena Penrose, noted folk art dealer and peer of Abby Aldridge Rockefeller. A recognized authority on figural carvings, Penrose represented that the carving had originally resided in New York City's Tammany Hall headquarters circa 1916-1919. For a related example, see Colonial Williamsburg object number 1962.701.1, "Columbia". From the museum catalog, "Sometimes marketed under the alternative title "Goddess of Liberty," similar cast zinc figures were fabricated by many foundries. The Museum's woodcarving likely derived from a casting that was created by M. J. Seelig and Company of Williamsburg, New York, and retailed by William Demuth and Company of New York City...The Museum's woodcarving probably functioned much as did its cast zinc sisters, which are known to have been carried in parades and displayed in public or semi-public spaces, where they reminded Americans of not only their commitment to liberty but also (through the symbol of the sword) the cost of maintaining it."

Provenance: George Viener (Leesburg, Virginia); Antique Associates at West Townsend (Massachusetts); Barbara L. Gordon (Bethesda, Maryland); James D. Julia (Rockland, Maine), August 27, 2008 (lot 2174); Private Collection; Private Collection; Helena Penrose (New York); Unknown, but including (by tradition) The Society of St. Tammany (New York City).

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $499 $25
$500 $1,499 $50
$1,500 $2,999 $100
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $29,999 $1,000
$30,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000