This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/29/2019
De Kolta, Buatier. Portrait of Buatier De Kolta, Inscribed and Signed by his Wife. Los Angeles: Marceau, ca. 1900. Seated portrait of the famous and inventive magician. Embossed photographer’s mount. Framed to 17 x 13”. Frame worn. Inscribed and signed in the lower margin: “To Mr. F.J. Werner, in memory of my much esteemed husband De Kolta, who departed this life on the 7th October 1903, New Orleans LA. Presented by his loving wife, Olive B. de Kolta October 22, 1903, New York.” Accompanied by a letter of provenance signed by Jay Marshall. For years, this portrait hung in Chicago in the front room of Magic Incorporated. It was part of the collection of the magic shop’s owner, ventriloquist and magician Jay Marshall, who purchased it from Al Flosso. The inscription, made a scant few weeks after de Kolta’s death, is to a founding member of the Society of American Magicians, Francis J. Werner.