Latest News Articles by Alex Capon
Why reclining Morris armchair proved a £7600 Victorian seat of power
17 August 2018A Morris & Co adjustable armchair brought strong competition at a recent auction in Cumbria. In largely original condition despite some obvious signs of wear and tear, it was taken to 10 times its estimate at PFK Auctioneers before it was knocked down at £7600.
Rossetti the salesman – unrecorded letters from Pre-Raphaelite patron’s collection discovered in house clearance
17 August 2018A large cache of letters from Victorian artists including founder member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882) have been consigned to Shropshire auctioneers Trevanion & Dean.
Charles Rennie Mackintosh cabinet made for Glasgow tea room entrepreneur makes £11,000
16 August 2018A cabinet made by Scottish designer and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868-1928) for a Victorian tea room businesswoman has sold for £11,000 at Willingham Auctions in Cambridge.
Full steam ahead: 5 pieces of railwayana available at auction this week
15 August 2018Railway-related items remain one of the staples of the collectables market, with rarity and links to locomotive history among the key factors determining demand. Here ATG selects a small group of items from the healthy supply of lots on offer at two auctions taking place this week.
Salvator Mundi: Christie’s refutes Oxford academic’s opinion challenging attribution to Leonardo
09 August 2018Auctioneers Christie’s have refuted the view expressed by Oxford academic Dr Matthew Landrus that Salvator Mundi should be attributed to one of Leonardo’s assistants rather than the master himself.
Egypt recovers Islamic manuscript spotted in Bonhams auction
09 August 2018A rare Islamic manuscript consigned to a Bonhams auction in London has been returned to Egypt in the latest example of Egyptian authorities succeeding in retrieving artefacts from abroad.
Corbet oil head and shoulders above the rest
06 August 2018A small but enigmatic study attributed to Victorian artist Matthew Ridley Corbet (1850-1902) drew dramatic competition at John Nicholson’s in Fernhurst, Surrey.
’Giotto’ export an issue for Italy says High Court
06 August 2018The owner of a rediscovered painting attributed to Giotto has lost a High Court battle over its export from the EU.
5 key details about this rare Scottish silver ‘argyll’
02 August 2018A rare George III argyll (or gravy warmer) will be offered at Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh this month. Despite the associations with the Dukes of Argyll, only two Scottish silver vessels are recorded.
Titanic rescue medal makes £45,000 at Bourne End auction – VIDEO
01 August 2018A prolonged bidding battle emerged today in Buckinghamshire as the gold medal awarded to the bursar on board the RMS Carpathia, the ship that famously rescued survivors from the Titanic in 1912, sold at £45,000.
Saleroom selection: 5 lots that caught bidders’ eyes this month including a Fabergé picture frame
31 July 2018Among the lots at auctions around the UK that brought keen bidding in July were a Fabergé picture frame, a Scottish banknote, a Modern British bronze sculpture and a Maltese lacquered wall clock. Further afield, a Korean censer drew attention in the Netherlands.
Owner of rediscovered Giotto valued at £10m loses High Court battle over export
27 July 2018The owner of a rediscovered early Renaissance painting has been blocked from taking the work to Switzerland after a High Court judge rejected her claim over the granting of an export licence.
Lord Byron memorial ring fetches £9200 at Yorkshire auction
25 July 2018A gold and enamel ring made in memory of Lord Byron after his death in 1824 drew solid bidding at Tennants’ latest fine art sale in Leyburn, North Yorkshire.
William Morris’ pen and paint brush sell for £2200 at Dorset auction
23 July 2018A quill and paint brush belonging to William Morris drew significant interest at Duke’s latest Art and Design sale in Dorchester.
Ada Lovelace computing book taken to £95,000 at Cirencester auction
20 July 2018A book by the 19th century computer pioneer Ada Lovelace (1815-1852) – known as ‘the Countess of Computing’ – has sold for £95,000 at Moore Allen & Innocent in Cirencester.
American art dealer Eugene Thaw’s collection heads to Christie’s
19 July 2018“Great art collecting need not be based on a great fortune. Education, experience and eye are more important.” So said the late American art dealer and collector Eugene V Thaw who died aged 90 earlier this year.
Liverpool hero’s gold medal from Titanic rescue offered at Buckinghamshire auction
18 July 2018A gold medal awarded to the bursar on board the RMS Carpathia, the ship that famously rescued survivors from the Titanic in 1912, will be offered at Bourne End Auction Rooms this summer.
Mixed auction results as £4.6m Rubens tops Old Masters series
09 July 2018The July Old Master auctions in London were a mixed affair with the lack of blockbuster lots meaning the overall total was down on the levels of the last two years.
Record for a Rembrandt print at Christie’s Old Master sale
06 July 2018Christie’s latest evening sale of Old Masters in London generated a premium inclusive total of £31.2m with records posted for painting by Gerard David (c.1460-1523) and a print by Rembrandt (1606-69).
Dutch Old Master looted at Arnhem sells for £1.6m at Sotheby’s auction
05 July 2018A Dutch Old Master painting looted by the Nazis after the Battle of Arnhem but now returned to its rightful owners after 73 years has sold at Sotheby’s for £1.6m.