Winter Antiques Show

AMERICANA AND MORE
by Brook S. Mason



More than any other fair, the 58th annual Winter Antiques Show, Jan. 20-29, 2012, is a barometer of taste. With 73 dealers elegantly installed at the Park Avenue Armory, the show covers all periods, with an especially strong selection of Americana. What’s especially notable this year is the early colonial art and artifacts, with a lock of President George Washington’s hair, collected shortly after his inauguration on view at the Alexander Gallery, priced at $40,000. Also available is a pair of his dress-coat buttons for $60,000, along with a copy of the 1797 federal budget, which was, at that time, pegged at just a fraction over $10 million.

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