Dan,
Thanks for posting the pictures!
Mike,
I'm glad that you were able to get a chance to see them for the last time before they were all split up!
Bob,
No worries, to answer your questions:
1. I would echo what Adam said. They are are almost all in excellent condition with the exception of the bullwhip that was chewed up pretty badly. It doesn't appear that Cooley cracked them all that much. If I owned them all, I would feel comfortable lightly lightly cracking them every once in a while, but like Adam said, they are so rare and valuable I would be extra gentle and careful as not to risk damaging them in any way.
2. They have been treated with care, and have not had any "repairs" done on them since I received them so as to keep them exactly as they were historical wise. The only thing that I did was to give them a treating of leather dressing to keep them from drying out any more since they've been out in the dry desert area after coming in from Florida. I am almost certain that they weren't treated at all since Cooley passed away, and whatever climate situation the owner of the collection kept them in all these years seems to have really helped to preserve them well. Some of them almost look as if they are brand new! (with the exception of the color darkening over time)
3. There is a reserve set between the owner of the Collection and myself, but if the bidding on a certain item is lower than expected, we may decide to accept a bid lower than the starting price or the reserve price, or we may decide to schedule a second auction period for that item instead. It just depends on how it goes. As far as I know there hasn't been a large collection of historic whips like this sold before, so we don't really know what to expect, but I am excited to see what happens!
If you have any other questions, just let me know.
ST,
I have been taking an incredible amount of pictures, notes, etc... over the past year trying to document everything I can, so I would imagine I have a pics of the strand drops, but I'll have to check. And if not, I'll be sure to take some. I still have some more notes on the whips that I want to take, and more pictures as well, one can never have enough, ;-). Also, I will be eventually putting up everything I have on the Cooley Collection, as well as everything I have gathered over the years on Henderson, his whips, etc... That will likely be what the whip history blog will mostly consist of at first. Just have to find the time between everything else to get it put up there, ;-).
Marhala and JP,
No worries, I'm glad you are both enjoying it!
Adam,
Thanks for weighing in! I haven't had a lot of time lately to keep up with the forums, and it's great for someone else who has seen them up close to share their opinions.
Allen,
No worries, and you are quite right, I wish I could afford to just buy the whole collection outright so as to keep the collection all together, and I have to say I will be very sad to see them go.
( I don't want to have to think about that just yet, lol.
Thanks for the comments and questions everyone! The first items up for auction start tomorrow:
H-2: Cecil Henderson - 24 plait 16 foot Bullwhip
Suggested Starting price - $2,100
AE-2: Austral Enterprises (David Morgan) – Wood Handled 12 plait English Stockwhip produced by Zair's of England
Suggested Starting Price - $275
ZE-4: Zairs - 12 plait Steel lined stockwhip crop (handle)
Suggested Starting Price - $35
I'm a bit anxious not knowing what to expect, lol. It's going to be fun and interesting for sure!
Regards,
Paul Nolan
www.MidWestWhips.com
