Lot #: 48A
Price Realized: $143.75
($125 hammer, plus 15% buyer's premium)
PLEASE NOTE: This result is 14 years old, and the American ceramics market frequently changes. Additionally, small nuances of color, condition, shape, etc. can mean huge differences in price. If you're interested in having us sell a similar item for you, please contact us here.
Unique and Important Wedding Certificate of Richard Franklin Bell and Bettie Cooley, Dated May 28, 1879, certificate includes a colored engraving of a man and woman on a swan-shaped boat, flanked by flowers, underscored by a Bible verse from Genesis 2:18. Below this verse is an original photo of Bettie Cooley, beside an oval opening for a picture of Richard Franklin Bell, which has since been lost. Section below the pictures is inscribed "This Certifies that Richard F. Bell of Shenandoah County State of Virginia AND Bettie B. Cooley of Warren County State of Virginia." Inscription is underscored by a large colored engraving of a tree, which reads "WERE UNITED IN HOLY MATRIMONY." Inscription below reads "According to the Ordinance of God and the Laws of the State of Virginia at Middletown on the Twenty-Eight day of May in the year of OUR LORD, One-Thousand Eight Hundred and Seventy Nine. Witnesses Charlie R. Campbell / Emma V Cooley / W.A. Wade Pastor / Frank Cooley / Fannie Bowman." The words "Marriage is honorable to all. Heb. 13.4" at base. Printed at base "Lith. by A. Hoen & Co. Balto." and "Crider & Bro. Publishers, York, PA." Bells relationship with Cooley is outlined in Rice and Stoudts The Shenandoah Pottery, pp. 57-59. While details are mentioned in this book of Bells courtship of Cooley, along with information about their subsequent wedding, this document is not mentioned. Picture of Richard F. Bell missing. Long vertical crease. Wrinkles, creases, and short tears. Small tape repair to tear on one side. H 16" ; Width 11 1/2".
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