KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Once more Pence Auctions proved you don’t need Internet and phone bidding in order to have a great auction. Adding to the excitement is the fact that Pence offers every item without reserve.

“One of the best sales we have had,” said Rick Pence, owner of Pence Auction. “The banquet room at KCI Expo Center in Kansas City was filled with a large crowd of buyers from several states and the bidding was strong for the entire auction. Nearly 450 lots sold to the highest bidder in the quick paced four-hour auction and the crowd was enthusiastic. People are willing to travel for good fresh estate items and love the atmosphere where everyone has an equal opportunity to bid and buy when present at the auction.”

The sale was comprised of a diverse selection of antiques from three prominent Kansas City estates and represented several private collections that included Native American Indian pottery, rare books, and more than 50 canes. Additionally, more than a dozen Navajo rugs, many pieces of French, Chinese, and American period furniture, oil paintings, Oriental rugs, a large selection of fine English Georgian silver, and American sterling, art glass, cut glass, porcelains, and jewelry rounded out the comprehensive sale.

Book collectors were in their element and aggressive bidding yielded $11,550 for a set of nine volumes of Journals of Congress. A rare first edition of the Edward Everett oration delivered at Gettysburg sold for $8,925. Everett, a Massachusetts statesman and renowned orator, famous for his in-depth and moving speeches that left his audience choking back tears, was the obvious choice for the main address at the Gettysburg National Cemetery dedication held on Nov. 19, 1863. While he gave a gripping 13,000 word address that took approximately two hours and captivated those in attendance, its popularity has historically been all but forgotten. President Lincoln, who was asked to deliver a few remarks following Everett, spoke for two minutes in a 272 word address that rocked the nation.

Highlights among the Native American Indian pottery included a storyteller figure by Helen Cordero that brought $4,450. Helen Cordero (1915 – 1994) was a Pueblo potter from Cochiti, N.M., who became famous for her innovative creation of storyteller figurines, which she made for the first time in 1964 in honor of her grandfather, who was a tribal storyteller. Since then the storyteller has become a favored motif among potters and collectors of Native American Indian artifacts.

An early Acoma pottery pot was decorated with birds and flowers in colors of honey beige, rust, and black against a neutral background. It sold to a local collector for the sum of $3,675.

Among a large collection of English Georgian silver was an 18th century cake basket by Herbert & Co. that generated spirited bidding. The basket was heavily embellished with C-curves and floral design elements and sold for $2,625.

Furniture included an Italian burlwood and inlaid four-drawer chest. It was mounted on bold lion paw feet and each drawer had a shield shaped escutcheon made in a darker wood. The handsome piece realized $2,835. An Empire chest, with columnar corner mounts and heavily filigreed drop pulls, stood on brass casters and brought $1,260.

One of the buys of the day was a Thai carved Buddha that sold for $840. The figure was portrayed in the seated position with one leg raised on the seat as his arm rested on his knee.

Prices include a 5 percent buyer’s premium.

For more information visit www.penceauction.com or call (816) 820-3175