Sunday, December 3, 2023

Glen Baxter: Robin Hood, Impressed

An original 1991 cartoon by Glen Baxter features Robin Hood and his Merry Men indulging in anachronism. It was published in The Further Blurtings of Baxter (1994).



Glen Baxter
AbeBooks listing accessed December 21, 2022





This piece has remained side by side with the Santa Clauses drawing (posted yesterday) thus far. It was originally offered by Chris Beetles, Ltd., of London in 1997. It later went on the auction block at Bonhams London in November of 2022 with a presale estimate of 500 to 700 GBP. It sold for 956.25 GBP, the hammer price of 750 GBP plus the 27.5% buyer's premium. Maggs Bros. listed it in December 2022 with just an 83% markup, keeping it at the same 1,750 GBP price as the Santas (which itself was marked up 292%). It's not an outrageous price; Chris Beetles prices Baxter originals usually at the high end of 1,750 to 2,500 GBP.
Glen Baxter
Bonhams



Note:  There's something perplexing about the 1991 date on this drawing. This cartoon is mentioned in "Gladys Whispered," John Bayley's December 6, 1990 review of that year's The Billiard Table Murders by Glen Baxter. See the London Review of Books article here. Perhaps then there is an earlier version of this drawing. I hope a Baxter aficionado will set me straight on this. I'd also like to hear from anyone with access to the original 1997 price from Chris Beetles.








04518

No comments:

Post a Comment