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Antique West
September 2005

A Charles M. Russell (1864-1926) oil painting titled Piegans sold for $5.6 million in Reno at a July 30 sale conducted by Coeur d'Alene Art Auction. "It was a world record price for a Russell," said Stuart Johnson, one of the company's principals, "and it shows the strength of the art market for fresh, quality Russells."

The previous record for a painting by the Great Falls, Mont., artist was $2.3 million for the watercolor A Disputed Trail, which sold in July 2001, also in an event produced by Coeur d'Alene Art Auction.

Piegans - a 24 by 36in oil on canvas painted in 1918 and whose subject is four Piegan (Blackfoot Nation) Indians on horseback - had been estimated to sell for $3-5 million. With the addition of a 12 percent buyer's premium, its closing price escalated beyond expectations, to $5.6 million.

In the opinion of Coeur d'Alene partner Bob Drummond, Piegans represents "the best period of (Russell's) life. This is one of the few (from that period) ... in private hands." He added that artworks from Russell's later years hardly ever come up for sale, especially examples as substantial in size as Piegans.

Another Russell highlight in Coeur d'Alene's July 30 sale was Crow Scouts in Winter, an 18 by 13in watercolor painted in 1907, which sold for $952,000 against a presale estimate of $400,000-600,000. The auction included 272 pieces of 19th and 20th century Western, wildlife and sporting art that, by the end of the day, had grossed $20,969,940.

Originally, Coeur d'Alene Art Auction held its annual sale in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. As it grew in size and popularity, the event began attracting many more deep-pocketed buyers, who arrived in private jets. Of necessity, the auction was later moved to Reno because the Coeur d'Alene airport couldn't handle the increased level of jet traffic. The 2006 auction will take place on July 22 at the Silver Legacy Resort in Reno.

Article, "Charles Russell painting sets record," by Catherine Saunders-Watson.