Jim Butcher Sold at Auction Prices

b. 1944 -

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Spacious Skies"
          Jun. 16, 2024

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Spacious Skies"

          Est: $100 - $1,000

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Spacious Skies/Flag & Eagle over Farm" Signed lower right. Original Oil/Pastel on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 34c Flag over Farm stamp issued February 7, 2001. Most farmers in early America were largely self-sufficient, producing only enough for the needs of themselves and their immediate families. At the beginning of the 19th century, significant changes in farming began to occur. Settlers began to homestead the Great Plains, using horse and mule labor with iron and steel plows, reapers, planters and threshers. In 1862 Congress passed the Homestead Act, which granted 160 acres to settlers who worked the land for 5 years. Within 3 years, over 15,000 homestead claims had been established. Over the next half century, immigrants from Scandinavia, southeastern Europe and Mexico transformed the Great Plains from barren prairies into fertile fields of American bounty. During the 1920s and 1930s the gasoline-powered tractor came into general use. In 1940, the average American farmer supplied food to some 10 people. During the 1950s America experienced an agricultural revolution with the number of tractors on farms exceeding the number of horses and mules. In 1850, some 90 labor hours were required to produce 100 bushels of corn. A century later, only 15 hours were required for the same result. By 1960, one farmer was supplying food to over 25 people. By 1970, this figure had tripled as a result of using better fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and strains of crops. Today, agriculture in the United States continues to be the msot efficient and productive in the world. Image Size: 16.75 x 14.75 in. Overall Size: 20.25 x 18.25 in. Unframed. (B07137)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting
          Jan. 02, 2023

          Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting

          Est: $450 - $600

          ARTIST: Jim Butcher (Maryland, born 1944) NAME: Defenders of Freedom YEAR: 1980 MEDIUM: mixed media on paper. Paper applied to board. CONDITION: Very good. Minor damages to corners of board. SIGHT SIZE: 16 x 16 inches / 40 x 40 cm BOARD SIZE: 20 x 20 inches / 50 x 50 cm SIGNATURE: lower right NOTE: This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 119483 US Shipping $60 + insurance. BIOGRAPHY: Butcher was born in Jarrettsville, Maryland and grew up in Hagerstown, Maryland. He graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1962 and then studied art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating in 1966.Upon graduation, Butcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was trained as a jet engine mechanic. He was assigned to VMCJ-1 photo reconnaissance squadron stationed at Da Nang Air Base in Vietnam in March, 1967. While in Da Nang, he was recruited into the USMC Combat Art Program where he produced works based on his experiences in the field with active Marine combat units and aviation missions.Upon his return from Vietnam, Butcher was assigned to duties as ambassador for the USMC's combat art collection in Washington, D.C., working in public relations with civilian, government, and military organizations. He continued to paint from eyewitness accounts and contributed over 100 works to the permanent collection of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia.After Butcher was honorably discharged from the USMC in 1969, he returned to civilian life as an employee at Major & Keesey, a commercial art studio in Baltimore. In 1971, he embarked on a freelance career producing work for advertising agencies, book and magazine publishers, and art departments of various colleges and government agencies.In 1974, Butcher joined New York Artist Representatives, Inc. and began receiving assignments from NASA, General Motors, CBS Television, Wells Fargo, Clint Eastwood Productions, and others. In the mid-1980s, he began taking formal portrait commissions, and has since painted over 120 portraits.

          Broward Auction Gallery LLC
        • Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting
          Oct. 09, 2022

          Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting

          Est: $475 - $625

          ARTIST: Jim Butcher (Maryland, born 1944) NAME: Defenders of Freedom YEAR: 1980 MEDIUM: mixed media on paper. Paper applied to board. CONDITION: Very good. Minor damages to corners of board. SIGHT SIZE: 16 x 16 inches / 40 x 40 cm BOARD SIZE: 20 x 20 inches / 50 x 50 cm SIGNATURE: lower right NOTE: This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 119483 US Shipping $60 + insurance. BIOGRAPHY: Butcher was born in Jarrettsville, Maryland and grew up in Hagerstown, Maryland. He graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1962 and then studied art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating in 1966.Upon graduation, Butcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was trained as a jet engine mechanic. He was assigned to VMCJ-1 photo reconnaissance squadron stationed at Da Nang Air Base in Vietnam in March, 1967. While in Da Nang, he was recruited into the USMC Combat Art Program where he produced works based on his experiences in the field with active Marine combat units and aviation missions.Upon his return from Vietnam, Butcher was assigned to duties as ambassador for the USMC's combat art collection in Washington, D.C., working in public relations with civilian, government, and military organizations. He continued to paint from eyewitness accounts and contributed over 100 works to the permanent collection of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia.After Butcher was honorably discharged from the USMC in 1969, he returned to civilian life as an employee at Major & Keesey, a commercial art studio in Baltimore. In 1971, he embarked on a freelance career producing work for advertising agencies, book and magazine publishers, and art departments of various colleges and government agencies.In 1974, Butcher joined New York Artist Representatives, Inc. and began receiving assignments from NASA, General Motors, CBS Television, Wells Fargo, Clint Eastwood Productions, and others. In the mid-1980s, he began taking formal portrait commissions, and has since painted over 120 portraits.

          Broward Auction Gallery LLC
        • Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting
          Jul. 03, 2022

          Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting

          Est: $500 - $650

          ARTIST: Jim Butcher (Maryland, born 1944) NAME: Defenders of Freedom YEAR: 1980 MEDIUM: mixed media on paper. Paper applied to board. CONDITION: Very good. Minor damages to corners of board. SIGHT SIZE: 16 x 16 inches / 40 x 40 cm BOARD SIZE: 20 x 20 inches / 50 x 50 cm SIGNATURE: lower right NOTE: This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 119483 SHIPPING: Third Party Shipping Required BIOGRAPHY: Butcher was born in Jarrettsville, Maryland and grew up in Hagerstown, Maryland. He graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1962 and then studied art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating in 1966.Upon graduation, Butcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was trained as a jet engine mechanic. He was assigned to VMCJ-1 photo reconnaissance squadron stationed at Da Nang Air Base in Vietnam in March, 1967. While in Da Nang, he was recruited into the USMC Combat Art Program where he produced works based on his experiences in the field with active Marine combat units and aviation missions.Upon his return from Vietnam, Butcher was assigned to duties as ambassador for the USMC's combat art collection in Washington, D.C., working in public relations with civilian, government, and military organizations. He continued to paint from eyewitness accounts and contributed over 100 works to the permanent collection of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia.After Butcher was honorably discharged from the USMC in 1969, he returned to civilian life as an employee at Major & Keesey, a commercial art studio in Baltimore. In 1971, he embarked on a freelance career producing work for advertising agencies, book and magazine publishers, and art departments of various colleges and government agencies.In 1974, Butcher joined New York Artist Representatives, Inc. and began receiving assignments from NASA, General Motors, CBS Television, Wells Fargo, Clint Eastwood Productions, and others. In the mid-1980s, he began taking formal portrait commissions, and has since painted over 120 portraits.

          Broward Auction Gallery LLC
        • Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting
          Apr. 17, 2022

          Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting

          Est: $525 - $675

          ARTIST: Jim Butcher (Maryland, born 1944) NAME: Defenders of Freedom YEAR: 1980 MEDIUM: mixed media on paper. Paper applied to board. CONDITION: Very good. Minor damages to corners of board. SIGHT SIZE: 16 x 16 inches / 40 x 40 cm BOARD SIZE: 20 x 20 inches / 50 x 50 cm SIGNATURE: lower right NOTE: This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 119483 US Shipping $60 + insurance. BIOGRAPHY: Butcher was born in Jarrettsville, Maryland and grew up in Hagerstown, Maryland. He graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1962 and then studied art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating in 1966.Upon graduation, Butcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was trained as a jet engine mechanic. He was assigned to VMCJ-1 photo reconnaissance squadron stationed at Da Nang Air Base in Vietnam in March, 1967. While in Da Nang, he was recruited into the USMC Combat Art Program where he produced works based on his experiences in the field with active Marine combat units and aviation missions.Upon his return from Vietnam, Butcher was assigned to duties as ambassador for the USMC's combat art collection in Washington, D.C., working in public relations with civilian, government, and military organizations. He continued to paint from eyewitness accounts and contributed over 100 works to the permanent collection of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia.After Butcher was honorably discharged from the USMC in 1969, he returned to civilian life as an employee at Major & Keesey, a commercial art studio in Baltimore. In 1971, he embarked on a freelance career producing work for advertising agencies, book and magazine publishers, and art departments of various colleges and government agencies.In 1974, Butcher joined New York Artist Representatives, Inc. and began receiving assignments from NASA, General Motors, CBS Television, Wells Fargo, Clint Eastwood Productions, and others. In the mid-1980s, he began taking formal portrait commissions, and has since painted over 120 portraits.

          Broward Auction Gallery LLC
        • JIM BUTCHER (B. 1944) "SOUTHWESTERN WINDMILL" W/C
          Jan. 09, 2022

          JIM BUTCHER (B. 1944) "SOUTHWESTERN WINDMILL" W/C

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Southwestern Windmill" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 15c Southwestern Windmill stamp issued February 7, 1980. The prairie flower's slender stem reaches skyward while the steel-petaled blossom revolves in the wind. As the endless Texas plain recedes into the distance, this floral species becomes recognizable as an American windmill. Invented around 1860 and used widely throughout the United States, this windmill displays a greater number of blades than its European predecessor. Originally made of wood, but now made of metal, American wind-catchers are not as pretty, nor as graceful as European windmills; but, they have done their jobs for over a century. These scrawny mills have drawn water from the ground that is so valuable to the arid west that it transformed the Great American Desert into the Great Plains. The railroads used the windmills to pump running water into their depot tanks, and ranchers used them to irrigate their land. Windmills supplied water to salt mines in Texas and volunteer fire departments throughout the west. At the end of a hot, dusty day on the trail, sweating cowboys chased their four-footed rivals from the barnyard tank and cooled off in the water the windmills provided. Prairie preachers dunked repentant sinners into water tanks to sanctify them. And, the windmills filled the waiting tanks with water that washed clothes and cooled food. Today, the western prairies are still alive with these whirling windmills, as Americans meet an ancient challenge to capture the restless wind. Image Size: 22.5 x 17.5 in. Overall Size: 28.5 x 23.5 in. Unframed. (B05997)

          Helmuth Stone
        • JIM BUTCHER (B 1944) "FIXING WAGON WHEEL" ORIGINAL
          Jan. 09, 2022

          JIM BUTCHER (B 1944) "FIXING WAGON WHEEL" ORIGINAL

          Est: $250 - $450

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Boy and Father Fixing Wagon Wheel" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media Painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the block of four U.S. 15c Toleware stamps issued April 19, 1979. Few Americans are aware that the famed Conestoga Wagon, the great Prairie Schooner that opened up the American West, is an invention of the Pennsylvania Dutch. In fact, to this day, Pennsylvania Dutch craftsmen build Conestoga Wagons to the very same specifications as when their great-grandparents outfitted them for the long journey west. The first Conestoga Wagons were used to haul freight. The larger versions were pulled by a team of six horses and could carry up to six tons of produce to market and six tons of supplies back to the farm. These wagons had no provision for passengers, and the driver would either walk alongside or ride upon the left wheel horse. A walking driver would sometimes pick tobacco from the side of the road, roll it into a crude cigar, and throw it into the wagon to cure. The resulting cigar was called a "stogie." The design of the Pennsylvania Dutch Conestoga Wagon was carefully thought out. The curved bottom prevented heavy loads from shifting, and the curved fabric top protected the cargo from wind, rain, sun, and dust. The design was so successful, in fact, that until trains were available for long distance shipping, this graceful and carefully crafted conveyance was a common sight on the roadways of America. In the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, farmers still use it to haul produce to market. No longer the Prairie Schooner of the American West, the Conestoga Wagon lives on, fulfilling its original purpose, in the hands of its builders, the Pennsylvania Dutch. Image Size: 19.75 x 19.25 in. Overall Size: 26.5 x 24 in. Unframed. (B05867)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting
          Jan. 02, 2022

          Jim Butcher (MD,b 1944) mixed media painting

          Est: $525 - $675

          ARTIST: Jim Butcher (Maryland, born 1944) NAME: Defenders of Freedom YEAR: 1980 MEDIUM: mixed media on paper. Paper applied to board. CONDITION: Very good. Minor damages to corners of board. SIGHT SIZE: 16 x 16 inches / 40 x 40 cm BOARD SIZE: 20 x 20 inches / 50 x 50 cm SIGNATURE: lower right NOTE: This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. PROVENANCE: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 119483 US Shipping $60 + insurance. BIOGRAPHY: Butcher was born in Jarrettsville, Maryland and grew up in Hagerstown, Maryland. He graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1962 and then studied art at the Maryland Institute College of Art, graduating in 1966.Upon graduation, Butcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was trained as a jet engine mechanic. He was assigned to VMCJ-1 photo reconnaissance squadron stationed at Da Nang Air Base in Vietnam in March, 1967. While in Da Nang, he was recruited into the USMC Combat Art Program where he produced works based on his experiences in the field with active Marine combat units and aviation missions.Upon his return from Vietnam, Butcher was assigned to duties as ambassador for the USMC's combat art collection in Washington, D.C., working in public relations with civilian, government, and military organizations. He continued to paint from eyewitness accounts and contributed over 100 works to the permanent collection of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia.After Butcher was honorably discharged from the USMC in 1969, he returned to civilian life as an employee at Major & Keesey, a commercial art studio in Baltimore. In 1971, he embarked on a freelance career producing work for advertising agencies, book and magazine publishers, and art departments of various colleges and government agencies.In 1974, Butcher joined New York Artist Representatives, Inc. and began receiving assignments from NASA, General Motors, CBS Television, Wells Fargo, Clint Eastwood Productions, and others. In the mid-1980s, he began taking formal portrait commissions, and has since painted over 120 portraits.

          Broward Auction Gallery LLC
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Wright Brothers"
          Nov. 14, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Wright Brothers"

          Est: $250 - $450

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Winter Mischief" Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. From the beginning of civilization, man has been fascinated by the dream of flying. By the mid-19th century, the Union Army had used balloons for reconnaissance of the Confederate forces, and by the end of that century inventors everywhere in the Old World and the New were trying to construct airplanes. Wilbur and Orville Wright, two children born of a Bishop of the Church of the United Brethren, were among these inventors. When scarcely grown out of kneepants, they built themselves bicycles and then balloons, and in the early 1890s they built a model biplane with a five-foot wingspread. A few years later, with their inventive minds dedicated now to the airplane, they moved to Kitty Hawk in North Carolina where they set up what amounted to an airplane laboratory. After hundreds of experiments with glider planes in a specially built wind-tunnel, they managed to build a plane powered by a motor which provided twelve horsepower, but had to be launched by a catapult. In 1903, Orville -- the elder and the leader of the two -- launched a gasoline-powered plane and sent an historic wire: "Success four flights Thursday morning against 21-mile wind. Average speed 31 miles. Longest 59 seconds." Though this first success attracted little attention at the time, the brothers were able to raise enough money to carry on their experiments. By 1905, one of their planes had stayed aloft for thirty-eight minutes and they took out a patent on their airplane -- soon to remake the world. Image Size: 16.5 x 21.25 in. Overall Size: 20 x 23.25 in. Unframed. (B05976)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Claus Painting a Toy"
          Nov. 14, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Claus Painting a Toy"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Santa Claus Painting a Toy" Signed lower left. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally used on the Fleetwood First Day of Issue Maximum Card for the U.S 20c Santa Claus stamp issued October 28, 1983. One of America's most hearwarming traditions during the delightful season of Christmas is the legend of a plump, rosy-cheeked man named Santa Claus. This jolly, grey-haired man...dressed in a warm, red-flannel suit...is said to live at the North Pole, along with an ambitious host of elves. There he and his helpers work all year long, building millions of toys and presents. Then, as Christmas Eve approaches, he takes all the gifts he made and hops into his sleigh, where eight magical reindeer pull him high over the rooftops of homes all over the world. He lands on each roof and springs down the chimney with his bag full of presents. For all the deserving, he leaves wonderful surprises. However, naughty people may awake Christmas morning to find no more than a large lump of coal in their Christmas stocking. Image Size: 14 x 19 in. Overall Size: 21.75 x 27.5 in. Unframed. (B08489)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Claus"
          Nov. 14, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Claus"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Santa Claus" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the Great Britain 11.5p Santa Claus stamp issue of November 18, 1981. Christmas is a magical time when children reveal their fondest desires. They place their infinite childhood faith in the mail, dreaming of a snowy Pony Express between the warm hearth of their home and the frozen tip-top of the world. The very holiday atmosphere tingles with anticipation of wishes that might come true ... little girls ask for ponies and little boys dream of rockets they can fly to the moon. The joyous magic of Santa Claus is powerful indeed. At Christmas time the world is Santa's province; he knows his territory better than astrologers or meteorologists and knows each child by name and age. And good children everywhere are made even better by the knowledge that Santa is watching. Even sensible adults are caught up in the spirit of what might be. For at Christmas it is possible to hear the jingle of sleigh bells on an endless night of waiting as the moon shines big and bright in the sky. With crisp, sparkling snow covering the ground, Santa Claus cracks his whip and speeds away into the quiet world beyond. His big, roomy sleigh is filled to overflowing with huge sacks of toys. And jolly old Santa laughs, whistles and sings for joy. For in all his merry life this is the one day of the year he is happiest -- the day he lovingly bestows the treasures of his workshop upon the little children of the world. Image Size: 12 x 14 in. Overall Size: 18.5 x 20 in. Unframed. (B06199)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Defenders of Freedom" Orig.
          Sep. 26, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Defenders of Freedom" Orig.

          Est: $250 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Army/Defenders of Freedom" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood Commemorative Cover for the Army Defenders of Freedom issued July 21, 1980. The history of the uniform of the U.S. Army began during the Revolutionary War, when the typical member of General George Washington's Continental Army was a brave farmer or woodsman turned militiaman. If he was properly outfitted he wore a blue cutaway coat faced in the color that identified the region he came from: white for New England, buff for Pennsylvania and vicinity, and red if he was from the South. In addition he wore a white shirt and breeches. But, because necessary cloth and leather were lacking, few were able to wear the first "proper" uniform. By 1775, cloth shortages were so severe that not enough uniforms were available to distinguish officers from their men, and General Washington was obliged to devise badges so rank could be identified by sight. The Civil War ushered in the Union Army uniform of dark blue flannel blouses and forage caps worn with light blue trousers. After the rigors of the Civil War, the dashing epaulettes and sashes on the uniforms appeared more handsome than ever, and officers proudly wore gold sword knots and shakos decorated with plumes or gilt. By the onset of World War I, the uniform had evolved into the "Doughboys" khaki uniform. The emphasis on the protective coloration and simplicity of style continued through World War II. Today's U.S. Army serviceman wears a dark green single-breasted coat and trousers in winter and green shirt with dark green trousers for the summer. Army women wear green two-piece uniforms with white shirts and black berets. Image Size: 15.5 x 15.5 in. Overall Size: 20 x 20 in. Unframed. (B06443)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B 1944) Social Security Act, Original
          Sep. 26, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B 1944) Social Security Act, Original

          Est: $250 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Franklin Roosevelt Signing Social Security Act" Signed and dated lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was used on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 22 Social Security Act stamp issued August 14, 1985. With the industrialization of America in the late nineteenth century, more and more Americans became totally dependent upon wages for a living. However, very few families had any protection against the loss of their income due to old age, death or disability. Indeed, most welfare and retirement plans were the responsibility of the worker and his family. When a family's resources became insufficient, many were forced to depend on churches for charity. Finally, in response to the devastating effects of the Great Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt set up a committee which recommended the establishment of the Social Security Act of 1935. Designed to provide workers and their families with insurance for a safe and secure future, this act provided an umbrella of essential protections for American workers. The newly enacted Social Security program provided benefits for old age, survivor and disability insurance; hospital insurance; compensation for unemployment; and public assistance and health and welfare services -- all of which were financed by payroll taxes. Because most workers were without an organized pension plan, millions of Americans became eligible for a retirement plan for the first time under the provisions of the act. Today, 37 million people benefit from America's Social Security programs. Image Size: 16.5 x 16.25 in. Overall Size: 24.25 x 22 in. Unframed. (B09744)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Amber Waves of Grain" Oil
          Sep. 26, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Amber Waves of Grain" Oil

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Amber Waves of Grain" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c "...for amber waves of grain" stamp issued April 24, 1981. For Americans, faith in the future has historically been closely tied to a faith in the boundless land reaching from sea to shining sea. As Americans gradually unfolded the continent's wonders -- discovering what crops would grow on it, what riches lay buried beneath its soil and how one could most conveniently move across its vast expanses -- they reinforced their faith in their homeland as a boundless treasure house to be explored and discovered at their will. This faith in their country led Americans to tame the frontier, overcoming seemingly insurmountable barriers to develop their land into the proud, rich nation it is today. Nowhere is this faith in America more perfectly put to song than in the favorite anthem America the Beautiful. From spacious skies above to purple mountain majesties and fruited plain, the song paints a vivid, colorful picture of America in all her vastness and beauty. America the Beautiful is a song of patriotism -- patriotism for the nation's wealth of natural resources, unspoiled beauty, and abundant food supplies. However, it is no less an anthem of thanksgiving for the unmeasured blessings Americans reap by being part of this great land. Penned by Katharine Lee Bates with melody by Samuel Ward, America the Beautiful captures through moving literary phrases and melodious musical chords the essence of the American people's faith in their beloved homeland. Image Size: 16.75 x 14.75 in. Overall Size: 20.25 x 18.25 in. Unframed. (B07138)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Alberta Farming" W/C
          Aug. 01, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Alberta Farming" W/C

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Alberta Farming" Signed and dated (1986) lower right. Original Mixed Media/Watercolor painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the Canadian 17c Alberta stamp issued August 27, 1980. In 1857, John Palliser led a British survey party into Alberta. His conclusion was that this province was semi-desert, almost unfit for human habitation. But, in 1870, determined Canadians set out to prove how wrong a man could be. The Canadian Confederation bought three prairie provinces, including Alberta, from the Hudson Bay Company. This purchase multiplied Canada's land mass over six times. And, at only one-tenth of a cent per acre, it was one of the best real estate transactions in history. Alberta, Canada's western prairie province, bordered on the east by Saskatchewan and on the west by British Columbia, joined the Canadian Confederation in 1905. Since that time it has become a bulwark of prosperity. Initially, Alberta was an agricultural area where successful irrigation turned the and southern section into rich farm land. Today, cowboys and ranch houses still decorate the landscape, but they compete with oil refineries and mining operations that have brought sudden wealth to Alberta, Canada. The magnificent Rocky Mountains, unseen by Palliser in 1857, are Alberta's greatest resource. The rugged Rockies provide the geological foundation for the rich minerals buried beneath the ground, while supporting the timbered forests that support a thriving lumber business. John Palliser would be shocked to see the land he once labeled a semi-desert. And, as if to taunt him with his errant prophecy, Calgary, Alberta's fastest growing city, named her new urban center Palliser Square. Image Size: 17.5 x 14 in. Overall Size: 24.75 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06809)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Church in the Winter" Oil
          Aug. 01, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Church in the Winter" Oil

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "View of Church in the Winter" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Masonite. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. The magical season of Christmas is a time of merriment; but it is also a time for sincere reverence. On Christmas morning, churches all over the world hold special, joyous services to celebrate, with rich ceremony, the humble birth of the Savior of the World ... Jesus Christ. Merriment and reverence are united by a special bond during this sacred time of the year. The sincere, yet joyful worship of Jesus Christ as the Babe of Bethlehem ... born in humility ... was especially stressed by St. Francis of Assisi. This Holy Saint is associated with Christmas because of his great love of the simple religious songs which were the forerunners of our modern Christmas carols. He once advised a devout Brother to mix lighthearted singing with his preaching for what are the servants of God if not His minstrels, who ought to stir and incite the hearts of men to spiritual joy? When St. Francis celebrated Christmas in Greccio in 1223 it was humble indeed ... especially when compared with the Christmases of today, which partake of diverse customs developed through two thousand years. But all Christmas customs, whether rooted in pagan festivals, folklore, or church rituals, express that spiritual joy of which St. Francis spoke ... a joy which we glory in manifesting during the magical season of Christmas. Even a young child, as depicted in this artwork, can enjoy the heart warming spirit of Yuletide Worship, especially with a nice, sweet candy cane that will see him joyfully through the service. Image Size: 16.5 x 14.75 in. Overall Size: 24 x 18 in. Unframed. (B10656)

          Helmuth Stone
        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Purple Mountains Majesty"
          Aug. 01, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Purple Mountains Majesty"

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Purple Mountains Majesty" Signed lower right. Original Oil Pastel on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 6c & 18c America the Beautiful stamp issued April 24, 1981. Hailed as America's second national anthem, America the Beautiful first appeared in the Congregationalist magazine dated July 4, 1895. The song's poignant words -- descriptive of the nation's great natural beauty -- were written by American author Katharine Lee Bates. Its melody is the creation of Samuel Ward. Miss Bates, who taught English at Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts, wrote a number of fine literary works during her lifetime. Among these are The Pilgrim Ship, From Gretna Green to Land's End, and the scholarly studies English Religious Drama and History of American Literature. However Miss Bates' most celebrated work, without doubt, is the inspired America the Beautiful honored in a stamp and painting. The author's love of her homeland shines clearly through each line of the song and the reader gets a sense of the vastness, the richness and the beauty of America. It is a song close to the heart of everyone who loves his homeland. It is a song of peace, a song that calls Americans to give thanks for the rich blessings that are theirs and seek brotherhood among the people. For a host of reasons, America the Beautiful is a song as dear to the hearts of Americans as any song sung to honor this proud nation. Image Size: 16.75 x 14.75 in. Overall Size: 20.25 x 18.25 in. Unframed. (B07135)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Farm Children on Fence"
          Aug. 01, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Farm Children on Fence"

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Farm Children on Fence" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. Most farmers in early America were largely self-sufficient, producing only enough for the needs of themselves and their immediate families. At the beginning of the 19th century, significant changes in farming began to occur. Settlers began to homestead the Great Plains, using horse and mule labor with iron and steel plows, reapers, planters and threshers. In 1862 Congress passed the Homestead Act, which granted 160 acres to settlers who worked the land for 5 years. Within 3 years, over 15,000 homestead claims had been established. Over the next half century, immigrants from Scandinavia, southeastern Europe and Mexico transformed the Great Plains from barren prairies into fertile fields of American bounty. During the 1920s and 1930s the gasoline-powered tractor came into general use. In 1940, the average American farmer supplied food to some 10 people. During the 1950s America experienced an agricultural revolution with the number of tractors on farms exceeding the number of horses and mules. In 1850, some 90 labor hours were required to produce 100 bushels of corn. A century later, only 15 hours were required for the same result. By 1960, one farmer was supplying food to over 25 people. By 1970, this figure had tripled as a result of using better fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and strains of crops. Today, agriculture in the United States -- with its fertile soil, moderate climate and widespread use of applied science and technology -- continues to be the most efficient in the world. Image Size: 16.5 x 17.75 in. Overall Size: 20 x 22.5 in. Unframed. (B05269)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Southwestern Windmill" W/C
          Jun. 06, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Southwestern Windmill" W/C

          Est: $250 - $450

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Southwestern Windmill" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 15c Southwestern Windmill stamp issued February 7, 1980. The prairie flower's slender stem reaches skyward while the steel-petaled blossom revolves in the wind. As the endless Texas plain recedes into the distance, this floral species becomes recognizable as an American windmill. Invented around 1860 and used widely throughout the United States, this windmill displays a greater number of blades than its European predecessor. Originally made of wood, but now made of metal, American wind-catchers are not as pretty, nor as graceful as European windmills; but, they have done their jobs for over a century. These scrawny mills have drawn water from the ground that is so valuable to the arid west that it transformed the Great American Desert into the Great Plains. The railroads used the windmills to pump running water into their depot tanks, and ranchers used them to irrigate their land. Windmills supplied water to salt mines in Texas and volunteer fire departments throughout the west. At the end of a hot, dusty day on the trail, sweating cowboys chased their four-footed rivals from the barnyard tank and cooled off in the water the windmills provided. Prairie preachers dunked repentant sinners into water tanks to sanctify them. And, the windmills filled the waiting tanks with water that washed clothes and cooled food. Today, the western prairies are still alive with these whirling windmills, as Americans meet an ancient challenge to capture the restless wind. Image Size: 22.5 x 17.5 in. Overall Size: 28.5 x 23.5 in. Unframed. (B05997)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Saskatchewan Harvest" W/C
          Jun. 06, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Saskatchewan Harvest" W/C

          Est: $250 - $450

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Saskatchewan Harvest" Signed and dated lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the Canadian 17c Saskatchewan stamp issued August 27, 1980. In Saskatchewan, where winter temperatures sometimes plummet to 50 below zero, and summer temperatures rise to a scorching 110 degrees, only the strong survive. After the Canadian government purchased this land from the Hudson Bay Company, in 1870, settlers flocked from everywhere. In response to pamphlets printed in twenty languages, they arrived to claim their land. Requirements were minimal, insisting only that the settler live at least part-time on his land and turn over thirty acres of ground in the first year. Doukhobors fleeing Czarist Russia, hard-working tenant farmers from Scotland, city-slickers from eastern Canada, and Ukrainian peasants -- they all came to Saskatchewan as if it were the promised land. They camped in front of land offices for days to be sure they would have the pick of the best parcels of land. Despite the loneliness and hardship, most of the settlers stayed. Today, seventy-five years after Saskatchewan joined the Canadian federal union, this province, a melting pot of nations, is one of Canada's most prosperous areas. Bordered on the east by Manitoba and on the west by Alberta, Saskatchewan is the heartland of the Canadian breadbasket. While the plains continue to produce over sixty percent of the country's wheat, the rocky hinterlands, rich with natural resources, promise to provide the wealth of the future. But, even today, Saskatchewan's most important resource is her people -- the descendants of the strong pioneers who first challenged this forbidding frontier. Image Size: 16.5 x 14 in. Overall Size: 24.75 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06808)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Children Sledding" Original
          Jun. 06, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Children Sledding" Original

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Children Sledding" Signed and dated lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. It is not certain why December 25 was chosen as the day to celebrate Christ's birth. Scholars hypothesize that early Christians chose the date to coincide with a pagan Roman holiday marking the "birthday of the unconquered sun," which was a festival celebrating the winter solstice. This event occurred annually between the fall harvest and the spring planting. Taking all this into consideration, in 350 A.D. Pope Julius I declared December 25 the official day of the Nativity. This meant that in many parts of the world Christmas would be celebrated in winter. Not surprisingly snow on the ground, especially fresh snow, became part of the magic of Christmas. In parts of Scandinavia, sleighs were the most efficient method of travel during the winter and gained a holiday appeal. Even Santa Claus is portrayed delivering Christmas cheer in a sleigh. In parts of the United States where the climate is temperate, artificial icicles and snow are manufactured on Christmas to incorporate that all-important aspect of the season. Traditionally on Christmas morning, children would wake to find sleds under the tree. After all their gifts were opened and Christmas dinner was consumed, they would bundle up from head to toe to test the new toy on the snow-covered hills. The excitement of sledding has been captured in this artwork. Image Size: 16.25 x 13.75 in. Overall Size: 24.5 x 22 in. Unframed. (B07725)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Frosty the Snowman"
          Apr. 18, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Frosty the Snowman"

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Frosty the Snowman" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. Nature fashions each small snowflake with delicate beauty as it drifts down silently to blanket the waiting earth in a thick cloak of whiteness. It fills the cold crisp air with cheer and wonderment, and boldly announces the most heartwarming holiday season of the year ... Christmas. The snowy wonderland of Christmastime is also a time for winter fun ... for skates and skis ... for shimmering icicles and roaring fires ... and for the very special magic of plump, jolly snowmen! The thrill of building snowmen during the chilly Christmas season has long been a tradition that rekindles the childhood spirits of both young and old. The delightful magic of turning soft, fluffy snow into a plump, jolly friend has led many to wonder if there could be any truth in the popular Christmas song about the most famous snowman of all ... Frosty the snowman, was a fairytale they say. He was made of snow, but the children know how he came to life one day ... There must have been some magic in that old silk hat they found, for when they placed it on his head, he began to dance around ... Even though all snowmen are not as magical as Frosty was, each one is just as delightful. Every snowman ever made reflects the unique personality of that special person that creates it. Although, in some very rare instances, as depicted in this artwork, the same plump, jolly snowman may have a split personality. Image Size: 11.75 x 14 in. Overall Size: 18.5 x 20 in. Unframed. (B06204)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Harvesting Hay"
          Apr. 18, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Harvesting Hay"

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Harvesting Hay" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. Image Size: 15.75 x 18 in. Overall Size: 20 x 22.5 in. Unframed. (B95372)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Spacious Skies"
          Apr. 18, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Spacious Skies"

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Spacious Skies/Flag & Eagle over Farm" Signed lower right. Original Oil/Pastel on Cold Press Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original which was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 34c Flag over Farm stamp issued February 7, 2001. Most farmers in early America were largely self-sufficient, producing only enough for the needs of themselves and their immediate families. At the beginning of the 19th century, significant changes in farming began to occur. Settlers began to homestead the Great Plains, using horse and mule labor with iron and steel plows, reapers, planters and threshers. In 1862 Congress passed the Homestead Act, which granted 160 acres to settlers who worked the land for 5 years. Within 3 years, over 15,000 homestead claims had been established. Over the next half century, immigrants from Scandinavia, southeastern Europe and Mexico transformed the Great Plains from barren prairies into fertile fields of American bounty. During the 1920s and 1930s the gasoline-powered tractor came into general use. In 1940, the average American farmer supplied food to some 10 people. During the 1950s America experienced an agricultural revolution with the number of tractors on farms exceeding the number of horses and mules. In 1850, some 90 labor hours were required to produce 100 bushels of corn. A century later, only 15 hours were required for the same result. By 1960, one farmer was supplying food to over 25 people. By 1970, this figure had tripled as a result of using better fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and strains of crops. Today, agriculture in the United States continues to be the msot efficient and productive in the world. Image Size: 16.75 x 14.75 in. Overall Size: 20.25 x 18.25 in. Unframed. (B07137)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Leaving Toys"
          Feb. 21, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa Leaving Toys"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Winter Mischief" Signed and dated lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally used on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 20c Santa Claus stamp issued October 30, 1984. Santa Claus -- dressed from head to toe in his familiar garments of red and white -- has become a cherished symbol of Christmas the world over. But, Santa as he is known and loved today is quite different from the somber Santa Claus children knew in the early nineteenth century. Known then as St. Nicholas, he was a stern patriarch dressed in bishop's robes. It was writers and artists who helped Santa make the transformation into the jovial, robust character that is recognized today. And, perhaps the greatest contributions of all came from a certain serious classical scholar -- Clement C. Moore -- and a political cartoonist, Thomas Nast. Moore contributed his part to the transformation through the poem he wrote for his children entitled "A Visit from St. Nicholas." However, the poem is better known by its first line "Twas the night before Christmas." In his work Moore presented a Santa that was a jolly, sky-riding character that won popularity across America. In 1862, Thomas Nast gave Santa his fur-trimmed outfit and put all the finishing touches on the merry character Americans today know as St. Nick. Image Size: 14.5 x 11.75 in. Overall Size: 20 x 15 in. Unframed. (B08994)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Battles of Lexington/Concord
          Feb. 21, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Battles of Lexington/Concord

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Battles of Lexington and Concord" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Yorktown & Lexington/Concord stamp issues of October 16, 1981. During the night of April 18-19, 1775, Paul Revere rode through the countryside around Lexington and Concord, alerting the patriots to the advance of British troops searching for the colonists' military supplies. Once alerted, the Minutemen, under the command of Captain Parker, gathered on Lexington's village green. Around dawn on the morning of the 19th, an advance unit of Redcoats, commanded by Major Pitcairn, approached Lexington. The British commander ordered the Minutemen to disperse, and Parker, seeing that his force was outnumbered, ordered his men to comply. Then as the Minutemen turned to leave, a shot rang out. When the skirmish had ended, eight Americans lay dead on the green, and the British then marched on Concord. There they encountered a much larger band of gravely determined Minutemen guarding the Old North Bridge. With little provocation, an advancing British column opened fire. The devastating return fire felled several Redcoats and panicked the remainder. The retreating British were reassembled and soon began a hasty retreat toward their sanctuary in Boston, but their return march to Boston was greatly frustrated by the guerrilla tactics of militiamen who fired from houses and from behind the rocks and trees that lined the way. Image Size: 16.25 x 16.25 in. Overall Size: 20.25 x 20 in. Unframed. (B07284)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "British General Surrenders"
          Feb. 21, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "British General Surrenders"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "British General Surrenders At Saratoga" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting is the original painting which appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Yorktown & Lexington/Concord stamp issues of October 16, 1981. Confident he would prevail where his superiors could not, British General John Burgoyne convinced King George to invade the colonies from Canada along the natural route formed by Lake Champlain and the Hudson River. The three-pronged attack -- including an auxiliary force operating through the Mohawk Valley and other troops following the Hudson from New York City -- held Albany as its focal point. Following an easy victory in the retaking of Fort Ticonderoga, Burgoyne would find little more to cheer about. He had underestimated his enemy and overestimated Loyalist support. A foraging party was smartly whipped in the Battle of Bennington, the Redcoats in the Mohawk Valley were routed at Fort Stanwix, and the reinforcements from New York City failed to materialize. Then Burgoyne's campaign stalled completely when it encountered the superior and firmly entrenched army under General Horatio Gates. Two pitched battles ensued, with Burgoyne suffering terrible losses. After stalling for time in hope that reinforcements would save the day and his chance for glory, the "Gentleman" General finally agreed to surrender terms. News of the Surrender of Saratoga gave great heart to the American cause, bringing France into the war as an open ally -- an event crucial to ultimate victory. Image Size: 16.25 x 16 in. Overall Size: 20 x 20 in. Unframed. (B07279)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Fixing Wagon Wheel"
          Jan. 03, 2021

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Fixing Wagon Wheel"

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Boy and Father Fixing Wagon Wheel" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media Painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the block of four U.S. 15c Toleware stamps issued April 19, 1979. Few Americans are aware that the famed Conestoga Wagon, the great Prairie Schooner that opened up the American West, is an invention of the Pennsylvania Dutch. In fact, to this day, Pennsylvania Dutch craftsmen build Conestoga Wagons to the very same specifications as when their great-grandparents outfitted them for the long journey west. The first Conestoga Wagons were used to haul freight. The larger versions were pulled by a team of six horses and could carry up to six tons of produce to market and six tons of supplies back to the farm. These wagons had no provision for passengers, and the driver would either walk alongside or ride upon the left wheel horse. A walking driver would sometimes pick tobacco from the side of the road, roll it into a crude cigar, and throw it into the wagon to cure. The resulting cigar was called a "stogie." The design of the Pennsylvania Dutch Conestoga Wagon was carefully thought out. The curved bottom prevented heavy loads from shifting, and the curved fabric top protected the cargo from wind, rain, sun, and dust. The design was so successful, in fact, that until trains were available for long distance shipping, this graceful and carefully crafted conveyance was a common sight on the roadways of America. In the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, farmers still use it to haul produce to market. No longer the Prairie Schooner of the American West, the Conestoga Wagon lives on, fulfilling its original purpose, in the hands of its builders, the Pennsylvania Dutch. Image Size: 19.75 x 19.25 in. Overall Size: 26.5 x 24 in. Unframed. (B05867)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Bringing the Christmas Tree
          Nov. 15, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Bringing the Christmas Tree

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Bringing the Christmas Tree Home" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Masonite. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. Among all the traditions of Christmastime, the custom of decorating the home for the holidays is both world-wide and age-old. For generations, families have cherished the tradition of journeying into the snowy woods to select the finest evergreen for a Christmas tree. Once home, the fragrant tree is laden with colorful ornaments, shiny tinsel and twinkling lights. The exact origins of the Christmas tree are not known; however, popular legend suggests that Martin Luther cut the first Christmas tree in Germany. He is said to have decorated it with sparkling candles to imitate "the starry skies of Bethlehem that Holy Night" and placed a nativity scene under its branches. Since that time, people the world over have decorated Christmas trees in celebration of the holiday. Another popular Christmas decoration is the beautiful poinsettia flower. Representing the flaming Star of Bethlehem through its red bracts, this flower of Mexico was introduced to America in 1829 by Joel Poinsett -- for whom the flower is named. Like the Christmas tree, the colorful poinsettia has a charming Christmas tale. According to legend, a poor Mexican boy, with nothing to offer Christ at church, fell to his knees and prayed to God for a gift to give. As he rose, a lovely "flower of the Holy Night" with brilliant red petals grew miraculously at his feet. Today, the poinsettia is the traditional flower of the Christmas Season. Image Size: 12.5 x 17.25 in. Overall Size: 18 x 24 in. Unframed. (B10655)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Building a Snowman"
          Nov. 15, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Building a Snowman"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Building a Snowman" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 29c Snowman ATM stamp issued October 28, 1993. "On the front lawn rises that art form surely older than the Parthenon -- the snow man, complete with pipe and lumps of coal for eyes." The words of author Donald Culross Peattie vividly bring to mind an image familiar even to those who have never faced the challenge of creating such a wonderful character. Those fortunate enough to have experienced the thrill of building a snowman will recall the fun of rolling that first small ball of glistening crystals into a boulder much too big to handle. When that base was completed, construction moved along rather quickly, for the next two sections decreased in size. Once the body was complete, the young artist was then left with the task of bringing his creation to life! With a few well-placed pieces of coal, a bright orange carrot and an old top hat, the snowman took on a character of its own. And what a sense of achievement to see how all this hard labor had turned into such a fine lawn ornament! Sadly, this feeling of accomplishment -- and the snowman itself -- was often short-lived. For when the temperatures rose and the sunlight shone down upon it, the fragile snowman would quickly dissolve into a lonely, damp pile of coal, hat and carrot. Yet all was not lost. For the tale of Frosty the Snowman promises, he'll be back again some day. Image Size: 16.5 x 14 in. Overall Size: 20 x 18 in. Unframed. (B07757)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Trimming the Tree
          Nov. 15, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Trimming the Tree

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Trimming the Tree" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 20c Seasons Greetings stamp issued October 28, 1982. Trimming a tree for Christmas is a wonderful tradition that comes from ancient Rome. But, the use of ornate Christmas tree decorations originated in sixteenth century Germany. There, trees were hung with gilded nuts, fresh apples, delicate sugar figures, and carefully made dolls and shepherds. It was Queen Victoria's German husband, Prince Albert, that first introduced this heartwarming custom to England, and in 1841, the royal family celebrated the holidays around a gigantic Christmas tree beautifully decorated with wax tapers and sweetmeats. It wasn't until 1860 that fragile glass trinkets began to replace the tasty edible ornaments. Again, it was the sentimental Germans that took the lead. Humble peasants in central Germany worked at the primitive industry in their own small cottages. The father carefully blew the intricate figures from molten glass, while the rest of the family took pleasure in colorfully painting them with fancy designs. Today's tree may be less mouthwatering than those once trimmed with sweets, but permanent ornaments do have one great advantage: around a familiar star or angel, a family can build up its own traditions year after year. As depicted in the painting in this artwork, the magical thrill of trimming the family Christmas tree with glittering decorations is a delightful task that children anxiously look forward to throughout the entire year. Image Size: 16.5 x 14 in. Overall Size: 24.5 x 22 in. Unframed. (B07724)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Winter Mischief"
          Nov. 15, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Winter Mischief"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Winter Mischief" Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Signed lower right. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Combination Cover for the U.S. Seasons Greetings block of four issued October 23, 1982. While enjoying a sleigh ride through deep, icy snow fields, who could help but think of the heartwarming words to one of the most famous Christmas song of all, Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh, O'er the fields we go, laughing all the way! Bells on Bob-tail ring, making spirits bright. What fun it is to ride and sing a sleighing song tonight! Jingle bells, jingle bells! Jingle all the way! Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh! Yes, a sleigh ride is a joyful and heartwarming experience. However, when a sleigh ride isn't available, it can be just as much fun, as depicted in this artwork, and wait for the passing sleigh of an unsuspecting neighbor ... and ambush it with big, slushy snowballs. Image Size: 16.5 x 14 in. Overall Size: 24.5 x 22 in. Unframed. (B07722)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa and Sleigh"
          Nov. 15, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Santa and Sleigh"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Santa and Sleigh over Rooftop" Signed and dated (1984) lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally used on the Fleetwood Combination First Day Cover for the U.S. Christmas 1984 stamps issued October 30, 1984. In the early 1800s, America's traditional Christmas time gift-giver was St. Nicholas, a tall, rather stern-looking figure clad in bishop's robes. Brought over to the New World by Dutch settlers, this seasonal character was called Sinterklaas and was aided in his work by a single reindeer. To America's English-speaking children, Sinterklaas became Santa Claus. And as his name changed, Santa's image changed as well. In his Knickerbocker's History of New York, published in 1809, author Washington Irving drew a decidedly different visual picture of Santa Claus. Gone was the stately, patrician look of the original St. Nicholas. In his stead, Irving portrayed a jolly fellow who closely resembled New York's Dutch settlers. Wearing baggy breeches and a broad-billed hat, this pipe-smoking character rode a wagon through the night sky and dropped presents down chimneys as he passed. Clement C. Moore penned his classic Christmas tale in 1822, and in his story Santa's appearance had altered considerably. Clad in a red suit bound with white fur, this chubby Santa slid down chimneys to deliver his toys and drove a sleigh pulled by eight reindeer whose names Moore also immortalized: "Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now, Prancer and Vixen! On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donner and Blitzen!" Image Size: 15.25 x 13.25 in. Overall Size: 20 x 15 in. Unframed. (B99043)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Probing Frontier of Space
          Oct. 04, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Probing Frontier of Space

          Est: $300 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Probing the Frontier of Space/Space" Signed and dated (1981) lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. Space Achievements 18c Probing the Frontier of Space stamp issued May 21, 1981. Pioneer 10 and 11 rendezvoused with the stars in 1973 and 1974. After a 620-million-mile flight, the Pioneers were within a celestial eyelash of Jupiter. Interest in the possibility of life on this planet has heightened due to space probes that were begun by the Pioneer spacecraft. Pioneer 10 could not see evidence of life from its closest distance of eighty-two thousand miles above the cloud tops, nor was it designed to detect life. Neither could Pioneer 11, though it passed within twenty-seven thousand miles. But as scientists analyze the data transmitted by these spacecraft about atmosphere, temperatures, gravity, radiation and magnetic fields, they are putting together new models of Jupiter that have implications about the possibilities of life. Pioneer 10 is now in headlong flight toward the red star Aldebaran, which it should reach in 1,700,000 years. In 1987 it will cross the orbit of Pluto. Years later it will flash by the last of the comets, becoming the first known man-made object to leave the solar system. Pioneer 11, meanwhile, has conducted the first spacecraft observations of Saturn. The Pioneers have only begun the exploration of Jupiter and the outer solar system. More sophisticated observations are being produced from the Mariner Jupiter-Saturn missions. No man knows what further searches will reveal. New light is yet to be shed on these mysteries of the universe. Image Size: 18.25 x 18.75 in. Overall Size: 22 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06949)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Wright Brothers"
          Oct. 04, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Wright Brothers"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Winter Mischief" Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. From the beginning of civilization, man has been fascinated by the dream of flying. By the mid-19th century, the Union Army had used balloons for reconnaissance of the Confederate forces, and by the end of that century inventors everywhere in the Old World and the New were trying to construct airplanes. Wilbur and Orville Wright, two children born of a Bishop of the Church of the United Brethren, were among these inventors. When scarcely grown out of kneepants, they built themselves bicycles and then balloons, and in the early 1890s they built a model biplane with a five-foot wingspread. A few years later, with their inventive minds dedicated now to the airplane, they moved to Kitty Hawk in North Carolina where they set up what amounted to an airplane laboratory. After hundreds of experiments with glider planes in a specially built wind-tunnel, they managed to build a plane powered by a motor which provided twelve horsepower, but had to be launched by a catapult. In 1903, Orville -- the elder and the leader of the two -- launched a gasoline-powered plane and sent an historic wire: "Success four flights Thursday morning against 21-mile wind. Average speed 31 miles. Longest 59 seconds." Though this first success attracted little attention at the time, the brothers were able to raise enough money to carry on their experiments. By 1905, one of their planes had stayed aloft for thirty-eight minutes and they took out a patent on their airplane -- soon to remake the world. Image Size: 16.5 x 21.25 in. Overall Size: 20 x 23.25 in. Unframed. (B05976)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Space Shuttle Landing
          Oct. 04, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Space Shuttle Landing

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Space Shuttle Landing" Signed and dated (1981) lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. $3.20 Space Shuttle Landing Self-Adhesive Priority Mail Series stamp issued November 9, 1998. NASA's Space Transportation System consists of a reusable delta-winged shuttle, known as the orbiter, two reusable solid-propellant booster rockets and an expendable tank containing liquid propellant. This large external tank carries more than 500,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, which are mixed together and burned in the orbiter's three main engines. Combined with the rocket boosters, the engines produce about 7.3 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. Approximately two minutes after launching, the two solid rocket boosters consume all their fuel and are jettisoned from the external tank. The boosters slowly descend via parachute and splashdown in the ocean where they are recovered. Some eight minutes after launch, the external tank detaches from the orbiter and disintegrates in the Earth's atmosphere. The orbiter continues to soar upward until it reaches space, where it may exceed speeds of Mach 25! After all shuttle missions have been successfully completed, the orbiter begins its return to Earth. At about 10,000 feet altitude, it begins a very steep descent -- over 7 times that of a commercial airliner's approach and at speeds some 20 times higher -- to the landing strip. Unlike conventional aircraft, the orbiter lacks propulsion during landing and must glide to a complete rest. At 1,700 feet the orbiter's nose pulls up. At 90 feet the landing gear is deployed and 15 seconds later the orbiter touches down at speeds of 213 to 226 mph, with a colorful parachute billowing behind. Image Size: 18.5 x 18.25 in. Overall Size: 22 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06951)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Declaration of Independence
          Oct. 04, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Declaration of Independence

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Signing of the Declaration of Independence" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting originally appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Yorktown & Lexington/Concord stamp issues of October 16, 1981. The Second Continental Congress, preparing for that historic day when independence would be voted, appointed a committee to draft the Declaration of Independence. The noble task fell on Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. Because the resolution for independence had been introduced in the name of Virginia, it was only proper that a Virginian should author the Declaration, and the committee thus chose Jefferson to be its creator. Jefferson retired to his rented flat at the corner of Seventh and Market Streets where he spent the next two weeks producing his "expression of the American mind." The finished document was presented to the Congress on June 28, 1776. On July 2, the Congress edited, revised, and thus reduced the 1800-word draft of the Declaration of Independence by one-fourth. Finally, on July 4, 1776, Congress unanimously adopted the improved version of the Declaration. Contrary to popular belief, the document that conceived a new nation was not actually signed until August 2 after it was engrossed on parchment. Image Size: 16 x 16 in. Overall Size: 20 x 19.75 in. Unframed. (B07283)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Probes of the Sun"
          Aug. 23, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Probes of the Sun"

          Est: $300 - $600

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Probes of the Sun/Space Achievement" Signed and dated (1981) lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. Space Achievements 18c Probes of the Sun stamp issued May 21, 1981. Two hundred and seventy miles above the earth provided an excellent vantage point for Skylab's solar instruments in 1973. Here the sun's ultraviolet and X-ray emissions are not absorbed by the earth's atmosphere but can be recorded directly, exposing a wealth of information unavailable to astronomers on the surface. Also, the extremely faint outer atmosphere of the sun, the corona, can be seen in detail from earth only during rare total solar eclipses, a few minutes at a time. Above the atmosphere, Skylab could observe the corona nearly continuously. These advantages governed the selection of Skylab's data-gathering telescopes: two X-ray instruments, one from American Science and Engineering, the other from Marshall Space Flight Center; two ultraviolet instruments from the Naval Research Lab and a third from Harvard College Observatory; and a coronagraph from the High Altitude Observatory in Colorado. The astronauts operating these instruments had great "scientific leverage." Watching televised displays in Skylab, they made decisions on when, where and how to use each instrument. The flight crews were only the visible part of an enormous behind-the-scenes effort. More than two hundred scientists and engineers monitored and helped plan daily operations of the instruments. Image Size: 18.25 x 18.25 in. Overall Size: 22 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06947)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Cape Cod Windmill"
          Aug. 23, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Cape Cod Windmill"

          Est: $250 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Winter Mischief" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 15c Cape Cod Windmill stamp issued February 7, 1980. Whirling wildly or stopping completely when not driven by the declining breeze, windmills always obey the wind. About 644 A.D. Persian millwrights discovered the power generated by attaching sails to center posts that were twirled around by the wind. Modern windmills, intricately designed and usually made of newer materials, are still based on these original principles of harnessing wind power. As successors of the ancient Persian windmills, America's mills were first built in the colonies by the Puritans. Perhaps the oldest mill on Cape Cod, the Eastham Mill, best represents these original Puritan structures. Built sometime before 1793, its style, traditionally found in the Netherlands, was once common among the mills that dotted the Atlantic coast during this country's early history. Hundreds of these mills once pumped ocean water into storage vats to extract the salt. But, once salt deposits were found inland, the process was abandoned as primitive, and the mills were allowed to decay. The years of work and wear soon took their toll on the neglected mills and, of those that actually pumped water to extract salt, not one is left standing. The Cape Cod Windmill depicted on this artwork represents those working mills. Its sails seem to recall the days when wind awakened them and rumbled their revolving wheels. And, although it has not operated for many years, it is a testimony to its miller's careful management, a respected trade that was often passed down for several generations. Image Size: 22.5 x 17.5 in. Overall Size: 28.5 x 23.5 in. Unframed. (B05999)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Farm at Night"
          Aug. 23, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Farm at Night"

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Farm at Night" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally used on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 22c Rural Electrication Adminstration stamp issued May 11, 1985. One of the most far-reaching events to take place in the history of farming in the United States occurred when electricity was made available to rural areas. On May 11, 1935, President Roosevelt created the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) by Executive Order. The Act authorized the REA to serve as a lending agency and to develop a program for rural electrification. The rural electricity movement became viable when farmers formed seven cooperatives which were granted loans to extend electricity to their areas. Two of these original cooperatives are still functioning -- the Volunteer Electric Cooperative of Decatur, Tennessee, and the Boone County Rural Electric Membership of Lebanon, Indiana. Since its creation, the REA has approved almost sixty billion dollars in loans to assist nearly twelve million electricity consumers and over five million telephone subscribers. The Association represents more than one thousand rural electric systems, which own and maintain nearly half of the nation's poles and powerlines. In 1935, only ten percent of American farms had electricity. Today, ninety-nine percent of all rural residents enjoy the comfort and convenience it affords. Not only has the lifestyle of rural Americans improved dramatically as a result of the REA, but electric power has contributed greatly to the U.S. agriculture industry's becoming the most productive in the world. Image Size: 18.5 x 16 in. Overall Size: 25.5 x 22 in. Unframed. (B09593)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) American Victory At Yorktown
          Aug. 23, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) American Victory At Yorktown

          Est: $250 - $500

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "American Victory At Yorktown" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting originally appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Yorktown & Lexington/Concord stamp issues of October 16, 1981. Early in 1781 prospects of an American triumph in the Revolution could scarcely have been more bleak. Then, certain defeat slowly turned to victory as General Washington and Brigadier General Comte de Rochambeau marched south from New York to meet their foe, Cornwallis. Battered by his Southern losses and depleted in force, Cornwallis gradually moved north to Petersburg, Virginia. There, the mighty Lafayette forces attacked with fury, pushing Cornwallis back to Yorktown. As Cornwallis fortified this city for battle, he kept constant watch up the Chesapeake Bay for British rescue. However, instead of the British, it was the French who forged up the bay. As the French under Admiral de Grasse stood watch over these waters, Washington and Rochambeau readied for conflict. Finally, on October 9, Washington sounded the battlecry. Some 4,000 shells pelted the hapless British daily. Meanwhile, the British in New York created a rescue fleet two-thirds the size of the French forces. On October 17, this mighty army set sail for Virginia, but its efforts came too late. French bombardment and the allied land effort of 16,000 troops forced the British to their knees on October 18, 1781. Image Size: 16 x 16.5 in. Overall Size: 20 x 20 in. Unframed. (B07281)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Flag over Supreme Court
          Aug. 23, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Flag over Supreme Court

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "American Flag over Supreme Court" Signed and dated (1981) lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 20c Flag Over Supreme Court stamp issued December 17, 1981. The Supreme Court of the United States is a landmark well known to the American people. The highest tribunals of most other nations were created to settle disputes and points of law -- but this one, as it has evolved, can rule on the law itself, striking down Presidential directives and acts of Congress, upholding rights guaranteed by law, even interpreting the constitution. The Supreme Court has known many homes -- second-floor rooms over an open-air marketplace in New York, Independence Hall in Philadelphia, even private homes in Washington while the Capitol's old north wing took shape. The Court even shared the Capitol with the Senate and House from 1801 to 1935. Today, behind its magnificent pillared portico, the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices meet to uphold the motto blazoned on its pediment: "Equal Justice Under Law." Visitors may tour the building, admire a pair of magnificent five-story elliptical spiral staircases, and view the historic cornerstone laid by Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes in 1932. "The Republic endures," he said, "and this is the symbol of its faith." The Supreme Court has been called the nation's conscience and the National Archives its memory. In a muraled rotunda visitors may peer at hallowed charters of freedom: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, seated in helium under special glass and filters. And at closing time -- and if danger looms -- the documents are lowered, cases and all, into a vault twenty feet below. Image Size: 16 x 14 in. Overall Size: 20.5 x 16.75 in. Unframed. (B06229)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) The Battle of Bunker Hill
          Jul. 05, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) The Battle of Bunker Hill

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "The Battle of Bunker Hill" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting originally appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Yorktown & Lexington/Concord stamp issues of October 16, 1981. On June 17, 1775, British regulars defeated a hastily assembled group of American colonists at the Battle of Bunker Hill on the outskirts of Boston, Massachusetts. The British paid dearly for their victory, for about half the troops used in the attack were killed or wounded. When the smoke had cleared, Bunker Hill ran red with the coats of 1,054 dead and wounded British soldiers. The Americans, poorly trained and ill-equipped, although suffering over 400 casualties, proved they could stand and fight effectively in the face of a vastly superior force. The stage for the battle was set when the Americans fortified a hill overlooking Boston, with the idea of establishing an artillery outpost. Since this threatened the British troops quartered in the city, General William Howe attacked the American position with waves of Redcoats, 300 men abreast, marching up the hill to the precise cadence of military drums. Twice the British were beaten back with heavy casualties in the face of the Americans' deadly musketry. Nearly out of ammunition, the defenders were unable to resist the third and final British assault. Image Size: 16 x 15.75 in. Overall Size: 20 x 20 in. Unframed. (B07282)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Statue of Liberty"
          Jul. 05, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Statue of Liberty"

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Freedom of Conscience/Statue of Liberty" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 34c Statue of Liberty stamp issued January 7, 2001. "She was beautiful with the sunshine so bright. Beautiful colors, greenish-like water -- and so big, and everybody was crying." An immigrant speaks of the rapture he felt upon arriving in America and seeing the magnificent Statue of Liberty. Another said, "We just gazed on it. We couldn't really grasp the meaning of it, but it was a very penetrating feeling to see that symbol of freedom." A gift from France to the United States, the Statue of Liberty was designed by French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. The artist incorporated several symbolic elements into the statue's design -- a broken chain at her feet represents freedom from tyranny, tablets held in her left arm are inscribed with the date of America's independence, the points on her crown represent the seven seas and the seven continents and, in her right hand, a torch is held high as a beacon of freedom. Attracting more than one million visitors a year, the Statue of Liberty is 151 feet tall. An elevator runs to the top of the pedestal, and steps within the statue lead to the crown with a 25-window observation platform. President Grover Cleveland dedicated the monument on October 28, 1886. Emma Lazarus's sublime poem, The New Colossus, was inscribed on a bronze plaque inside the statue, poignantly proclaiming America as a haven of refuge for all people seeking liberty and freedom. "Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand a mighty woman with a torch, whose flame is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles..." Image Size: 17.5 x 14.5 in. Overall Size: 22 x 19.75 in. Unframed. (B07139)

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        • Jim Butcher (B 1944) American Flag over Washington
          Jul. 05, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B 1944) American Flag over Washington

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "American Flag over Washington Monument" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 18c Washington Monument stamp issued November 6, 1985. Towering high above Washington D.C. is one of the nation's most beloved national landmarks . . . the Washington Monument. This giant obelisk, built in honor of America's first President, stands near the Potomac River, about halfway between the nation's Capitol and the famed Lincoln Memorial. Construction of this gigantic monument was originally planned while George Washington was still alive. However, he humbly objected to it because of the cost. Nonetheless, in 1833, fund-raising committees began to collect donations for the monument. Nearly fifteen years later, a design was submitted and the cornerstone of the landmark was laid. However, the building of the monument proved to be much more costly than was originally supposed. Year after year, the project was hampered by expensive setbacks. Finally, in 1876 Congress voted to finish the National Monument at government expense. Thus, on December 6, 1884 ... some thirty-six years after construction started ... the Washington Monument was completed. Today, this beloved American monument is visited by well over one million people each year. Indeed, this towering landmark is one of the best known monuments in all the world. Image Size: 17 x 14 in. Overall Size: 25 x 22 in. Unframed. (B08749)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Flag over Supreme Court
          Jul. 05, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) Flag over Supreme Court

          Est: $200 - $400

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Flag over Supreme Court" Signed lower right. Original Mixed Media painting on Illustration Board. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 20c Flag Over Supreme Court Booklet stamp issued November 17, 1983. The Supreme Court of the United States is a landmark well known to the American people. However, it has known many homes, including second-floor rooms over an open-air marketplace in New York, Independence Hall in Philadelphia , and even private residences in Washington, while the Capitol's old north wing took shape. The Court even shared the Capitol with the Senate and House from 1801 to 1935. Today, behind its magnificent pillared portico, the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices meet to uphold the motto blazoned on its pediment: "Equal Justice Under Law." At any season, visitors may tour the building, admire a pair of magnificent five-story elliptical spiral staircases, and view the historic cornerstone laid by Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes in 1932. "The Republic endures," he said, "and this is the symbol of its faith." The Supreme Court has been appropriately called the nation's conscience. In a muraled rotunda, visitors may peer at hallowed charters of freedom: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, each sealed in helium to protect it, under special glass and filters. At the first sign of danger, the documents are lowered, cases and all, into a vault twenty feet below. Image Size: 18.5 x 15.75 in. Overall Size: 24.75 x 22 in. Unframed. (B08444)

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        • Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Probes of the Planets"
          Jul. 05, 2020

          Jim Butcher (B. 1944) "Probes of the Planets"

          Est: $350 - $700

          Jim Butcher (American, B. 1944) "Probes of the Planets/Space Achievements" Signed lower right. Original Oil painting on Canvas. Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation. This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. Space Achievements 18c Probes of the Planets stamp issued May 21, 1981. Pioneer 10 and 11 rendezvoused with the stars in 1973 and 1974. After a 620-million-mile flight, the Pioneers were within a celestial eyelash of Jupiter. Interest in the possibility of life on this planet has heightened due to space probes that were begun by the Pioneer spacecraft. Pioneer 10 could not see evidence of life from its closest distance of eighty-two thousand miles above the cloud tops, nor was it designed to detect life. Neither could Pioneer 11, though it passed within twenty-seven thousand miles. But as scientists analyze the data transmitted by these spacecraft about atmosphere, temperatures, gravity, radiation and magnetic fields, they are putting together new models of Jupiter that have implications about the possibilities of life. Pioneer 10 is now in headlong flight toward the red star Aldebaran, which it should reach in 1,700,000 years. In 1987 it will cross the orbit of Pluto. Years later it will flash by the last of the comets, becoming the first known man-made object to leave the solar system. Pioneer 11, meanwhile, has conducted the first spacecraft observations of Saturn. The Pioneers have only begun the exploration of Jupiter and the outer solar system. More sophisticated observations are being produced from the Mariner Jupiter-Saturn missions. No man knows what further searches will reveal. New light is yet to be shed on these mysteries of the universe. Image Size: 18 x 18 in. Overall Size: 22 x 22 in. Unframed. (B06942)

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