Latest News Articles by Laura Chesters
Rare Rolex takes £140,000 at auction
02 November 2016A Rolex watch that was bought in 1966 for £69.10 has sold at auction for £140,000. The rare Rolex Oyster Perpetual Submariner stainless steel model is highly desired by collectors due to its 3-6-9 Explorer dial.
BBC show calls for total UK ban on ivory trade - drawing instant response from trade
01 November 2016A BBC documentary investigating the illegal ivory trade, hosted by celebrity chef and campaigner Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, has called for a complete ban on the buying and selling of ivory regardless of age.
Kindertransport hero Sir Nicholas Winton’s estate goes to auction
01 November 2016A 105th birthday message from the Queen to Kindertransport hero Sir Nicholas Winton is among the latter’s possessions that will be auctioned this week.
Victoria Borwick defends antiques trade on ivory
31 October 2016Kensington MP and BADA president Victoria Borwick has responded to demands for a total ban on the ivory trade. She has called on the UK government to ensure antique ivory is exempt from any crackdown.
Fashion star Tommy Hilfiger to sell Basquiat, Hirst and Warhol at auction
31 October 2016US fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger has picked Phillips’ 20th Century & Contemporary Art auction in New York to sell five paintings from his personal collection.
Bronze deity doorstopper becomes a showstopper after making £85,000 at auction
31 October 2016A bronze figure of the fierce four-armed deity Mahakala that was being used as a doorstop in a Gloucestershire cottage sold for £85,000 at Mallams’ Chinese art sale in Cheltenham.
Stamford antiques dealer handed five-year prison sentence
28 October 2016Stamford dealer Stuart Porter has been sentenced to five years and four months behind bars after pleading guilty to fraud charges.
Cake and antiques: Great British Bake Off winner cooks up idea for new shop
28 October 2016Candice Brown, the winner of this year’s Great British Bake Off, has revealed her love of antiques and hopes to open a vintage shop.
Canterbury Auction Galleries’ Anthony Pratt is ‘knighted’
28 October 2016Anthony Pratt, managing director of The Canterbury Auction Galleries, has been portrayed as The Knight from the Canterbury Tales in a mural unveiled earlier this month in the Kent city’s high street.
Tribute sale for Stroud Auction Rooms’ Richard Cole
26 October 2016The collection of the late Asian art valuer Richard Cole will be sold at auction next month.
Titanic key and postcards among highlights of Henry Aldridge auction
26 October 2016A key which opened a life-jacket locker on the Titanic was one of the highlights of Henry Aldridge & Son’s auction last week.
Life sentence for Wind in the Willows book dealer murderer
25 October 2016Michael Danaher, 50, who tortured and murdered Oxford book dealer Adrian Greenwood during a robbery targeting a £50,000 first edition of ‘The Wind In The Willows’, was yesterday given a life sentence, with a minimum term of 34 years.
BBC investigates the ivory trade in Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall documentary
24 October 2016A BBC One documentary by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall called 'Saving Africa’s Elephants: Hugh and the Ivory War' will be aired tonight at 9pm.
Export block for 300-year-old London tapestry
24 October 2016The government is hoping to find a UK-based buyer to pay £67,500 for a 300-year-old tapestry to prevent it from leaving the country.
They said what?! The week (17-23 Oct) in quotes from the art and antiques world
23 October 2016In our weekend series, Antiques Trade Gazette brings you a selection of quotes from dealers, auctioneers, collectors and others – from Far East fakes to rabbi paintings and what dealer Gordon Watson said after selling his collection.
Fuller calls for trade to lobby on ivory in advance of consultation
21 October 2016Natural history expert Errol Fuller has called for the antiques trade to lobby quickly over any rule changes to the UK trade in ivory.
New and old fivers attract bidders at Spink
20 October 2016The excitement around the new polymer fivers, which were launched by the Bank of England last month, helped boost interest in new and old £5 notes for philatelic and numismatic specialists Spink.
Dealer Michael Cohen sells ‘Holy Grail’ Qianlong tureen to US collector
20 October 2016London dealer and BADA chairman Michael Cohen has found and sold his personal “Holy Grail”, in the shape of a Qianlong tureen, cover and stand.
Rabbi portraits up for sale in Barnes
19 October 2016More than 50 portraits of rabbis will be put on display and offered for sale in south west London.
A £10 car boot sale Chinese vase find gets a £30,000 estimate for auction
18 October 2016A rare Chinese Imperial Beijing enamel vase bought for £10 at a car boot sale is to go to auction in Salisbury next month carrying a £20,000-30,000 estimate.