APPRAISER: This man came up to the desk and he had this painting and a cardboard box. And he
kept pulling it up and down, and I noticed that there was a foam core in
front of it and every time he pulled it up I would see more and more of that
magnificent sky. Finally I said, "get the painting out of that box and stop
putting it back in and out of that box before you get it damaged," and he did and
it was more than I could have dreamed up. It was a fabulous late 19th-century
Remington portrait. You're the first for me, I've never reprimanded a guest for
manhandling a painting before. GUEST: I'm glad you're taking care of my painting. APPRAISER: (laughs) I'm trying to.
So what could you tell me about this lovely Frederick Remington portrait. GUEST: Well,
Lea Febiger was my great-grandfather. APPRAISER: That is this is this gentleman? GUEST: This is this gentleman, and he was a
friend of Frederick Remington who in 1896 painted his portrait as part of a
military series in El Paso. APPRAISER: And he was captain in the infantry. As you know
Frederick Remington is one of the most important Western artists of the turn of
the century. He didn't have a tremendous amount of training but a natural
instinct for the vitality and the style of the west and this portrait is a
terrific example of that. It also comes with this letter from Remington to your
great-grandfather. The letter was Remington speaking to the sitter and how
much he enjoyed their time together and there was a lot of meat in it, which is,
which is really what you want. There was no anonymity to it at all, it
was personal for Remington and it was personal for the sitter. When Remington
died and I think people will be surprised that he died in his
mid-forties from a appendix operation that didn't go well. When he died this
painting was in his home in upstate New York. His home and studio in upstate New
York became the Frederick Remington Museum. And the family of the sitter
tracked down the painting to be there. And
they went to the museum and said, you know, "hey this is our, this is our folk we
would really love to have this painting." The family came into negotiations with
the group and in the late 1940s were able to get the painting. Now you had
this appraised a while ago correct? GUEST: I did. APPRAISER: And what was the value at that point? GUEST: It was in
1960s and the value was $7,500. APPRAISER: Well the years have been
kind to you and Frederic Remington. The letter itself is worth probably about
$2,000. GUEST: Really? APPRAISER: Yeah, he really is an iconic figure in American painting and
this piece with the very dashing figure, the beautiful shadow, the abstracted
landscape behind, it's really a wonderful example of Remington's work at the turn
of the century. And this piece together with the letter would be something that
I would value at auction between $600,000 — GUEST: Oh my goodness! APPRAISER: —
and 800,000. GUEST: I was hoping I would be wildly exuberant, I am! (laughs) APPRAISER: And certainly for
insurance at in excess of $800,000. GUEST: My goodness. APPRAISER: I think he knew it was valuable.
I think he may have been thinking around 30,000, 25, $30,000
but not got that level. I can only speculate that he came home told
his family what it's worth and they said, "get it out of here," because something
like that is subject to any sort of mayhem in a private home and it's much
safer in a museum. He had the painting restored,
professionally restored, and it's now in the Birmingham Alabama Museum for
everyone to see. The market has gone up for Western art and the market is still
very strong for Remington and in today's market in 2019 I would value the
painting between 800,000 and 1.2 million dollars.