Collectors came panning for gold at Morphys Old West and Native American Art Auction held Jan. 23 in Las Vegas, Nev., as three of the four top-selling lots were solid gold items that brought a combined $204,180. The auction was held at the Westgate Casino and Resort, alongside the Las Vegas Old West and Native American Art Show and the Las Vegas Antique Arms Show. Gold certainly glittered, but the 569-lot auction was also filled with art, antiques, jewelry, home dcor, cowboy paraphernalia, and important and historical Western and Native American art and antiques; apparel, saddles, spurs, bridles, and other equine tack; Wild West Show items; and other early memorabilia. The emphasis was on quality and authenticity. By the time the final gavel fell, the sale had tallied over $1.5 million. All prices quoted include the buyers premium. The top-selling gold item, and the overall top lot of the auction, was a heavy gold chain made from solid gold nuggets. All of the gold tested for at least 20-karat, with most of it testing just under 24-karat. Measuring 30 inches in length, the hefty chain weighed 474 grams and displayed solid workmanship. It carried a pre-sale estimate of $50,000 to $80,000 and sold for $92,250. Runner-up honors went to a 2-inch-by-1-inch gold bar from the Felix Grundy Hoard, referring to an assayer from Fiddletown in Amador County, Calif., in the heart of the gold fields just outside Sacramento. The bar displayed Hoards stamp in a large circle followed by No. 2206 / 7.75 OZS. / 999 THOUS / FINE. A small group of these gold ingots was discovered in the late 1960s. In all, only a couple dozen specimens are known today. This one fetched $67,650. A gold bar from the Star Mining Company which operated in Rose Creek, Calif., from 1870 to 1895, serial number 521, graded 995 fine and weighing 5.43 ounces, featured bright yellow-gold surfaces and excellent luster. The name of the mining company was signified by a five-point star above the letters MINING CO. These bars are extremely rare, and this example changed hands for $44,280. The only non-gold item to crack the top four lots was a ca. 1902 framed poster for Buffalo Bills Wild West and Congress and Rough Riders of the World, featuring a mounted warrior with rifle and vignettes of a buffalo, tipi, snowshoes, and tomahawk. The poster was cut to resemble a Native American tanned hide and is one of the only examples extant. It blew past the $6,000 to $8,000 estimate to realize a final price of $49,200. Buffalo Bill actually made several appearances in the sale. A large-format announcement poster for Buffalo Bill and his Rough Riders in Belgium, featuring a dynamic bucking bronco and cowboy in woolly chaps, rang up $20,910. The framed, French-made poster, 44 by 68.25 inches, was produced by Wieners lithography, London and Paris. It came with an original postcard from the event in good condition. A U.S. Cavalry model Colt Single Action Army revolver with officers field desk ensemble, serial #4812 and Ainsworth-inspected, of the type issued to Custers 7th Cavalry prior to the 1876 Battle of Little Bighorn, hit the mark for $39,360. The firearm was part of a militaria grouping housed in an attractive replica quarter-sawn oak campaign desk with the inside of the lid mounted with a heart-shape mirror. Inside were period accessories like those Custers officers might have used, including period clothing, a Bowie knife, and ammunition. A ca. 1880s.45 cartridge belt made by John Patton of Tombstone, Arizona Territory, a seldom-seen maker in the antique gun leather collecting world, got strapped to a new waist for $16,800. Patton was a saddler located across the street from the OK Corral at the time of the famous fight in 1881. Any of Pattons marked cowboy leather pieces are quite rare and desirable in any condition, let alone an example surviving this nice. The Las Vegas Antique Arms Show brought together hundreds of leading exhibitors from across the country, while the Las Vegas Old West and Native American Art Show offered the finest authentic Western art, artifacts and collectibles for public sale. The mix of vintage and contemporary Western and Native American material was beautifully displayed across hundreds of exhibit tables, with items that included pottery, baskets, bits, textiles, spurs, jewelry, Western and Native American art, kachinas, saddles, antique firearms, rare artifacts, and more. For more information, emailinfo@morphyauctions.com or visit www.morphyauctions.com. All images courtesy of Morphy Auctions.