Bonham's - Beware!

[Babin]

Bonham's is holding an Animation Art Auction on June 13, and it includes some comic/cartoon art.. Some of the items struck me as a bit...sketchy. One in particular is described as "A James Thurber cartoon for The New Yorker" and further that it was "Published in the March 27, 1937 issue of the magazine".

 

https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/23420/lot/90/

 

Now, this is one of Thurber's better-known cartoons, and even a cursory comparison with the original in the New Yorker archives makes it obvious that what Bonham's is selling is at best a recreation and at worst an outright though inexact forgery.

 

http://www.newyorker.com/cartoons/cartoons-90th-anniversary-1935-194520-jpg

 

I wrote to the Bonham's "specialist" and she responded "We will look into this and amend the catalog accordingly.". I'm not holding my breath.

 

I am always *very* careful when bidding on anything at Bonham's, and I just thought I would share my caution if anyone else was considering buying from them.

 

 

[pinupcartoonguy]

What makes you leery about Bonham's? Years ago, I wrote Bonham's regarding some fake Nagels, and the pieces were almost immediately pulled.

[glendgold]

Glad you got a response -- I didn't.

[Babin]

What makes you leery about Bonham's? Years ago, I wrote Bonham's regarding some fake Nagels, and the pieces were almost immediately pulled.

 

Yeah, they'll pull 'em if you point 'em out; they'll even cancel a sale if you bid on something and then realize it's not real -- but they don't do any due diligence themselves; it's strictly caveat emptor.

 

It takes 30 seconds of research to find out the Thurber isn't legit -- they didn't bother. This isn't a a mistake made in good faith; this is them not wanting to know.

[BB-Gun]

Is the published cartoon a revision of an earlier cartoon? Just wondering if Thurber made more than one copy. After all, Lincoln wrote 5 versions of the Gettysburg address.

[glendgold]

Is the published cartoon a revision of an earlier cartoon? Just wondering if Thurber made more than one copy. After all, Lincoln wrote 5 versions of the Gettysburg address.

 

No.