Latest News Articles by Mark Bridge
Eager for Hever armour as suit from famous collection reappears
12 August 2019In May 1983 the eyes of arms and armour bidders were fixed firmly on the £6m sale of the Hever Castle collection at Sotheby’s in London.
Pick of the pistol hammer highs
12 August 2019Fine sets of pistols, preferably nicely cased, have long been the mainstay of London arms and armour sales. This season’s crop were not as plentiful nor so eagerly contested as we sometimes see, but there were some gems on offer and a selection of them are illustrated here.
German game guns boast royal pedigree
12 August 2019Fine German sidelock ejectors do not feature often in the London salerooms but Gavin Gardiner’s 25% buyer’s premium) May 1 sale of sporting guns at Sotheby’s in London produced a pair that not only scored on quality but had a history to back it up.
Sikh tulwar in Italian saleroom
12 August 2019Edged weapons from the East were also an important part of the sale held by Czerny (20% buyer’s premium) in Sarzano, Italy, on June 16.
Munich auction house makes move
12 August 2019After more than 20 years in the heart of Munich arms and armour specialist auction house Hermann Historica has moved to bigger premises in the suburbs.
Tanto tantalises bidders at Special Auction Services
12 August 2019Special Auction Services’ (17.5% buyer’s premium) sale in Newbury on July 9 included a wide selection of edged weapons which was topped by a mid-19th century Japanese short sword or tanto estimated at £200-300.
Siamese sword has eastern edge
12 August 2019The huge variety of exotic arms brought back to Europe from the East during colonial days is becoming an increasingly lucrative area of business for auction houses.
Household Cavalry blades in demand
12 August 2019The collecting of English military swords is a science in itself.
Stopping power to halt an angry tiger
12 August 2019In the days of the British Raj there was no shortage of would-be shikaris hoping to bag a tiger in India. At the same time plenty of London gunsmiths were ready to supply them with all the fire-power they could persuade them to buy.
Arms fair now in 52nd year
12 August 2019The 102nd staging of the London Antique Arms Fair is on Saturday, August 24.
Arms and armour: Prized pistols tempt collectors at auction
28 January 2019Pistols remain one of the most popular of all categories among gun collectors and the winter sales in London proved a bumper season for handguns, from the earliest wheel-locks of the late 16th century to the semi-automatics which ushered in the modern age at the end of the 19th century.
War shield stars in large Zulu selection
28 January 2019This rare 1870s Zulu shield or Isihlangu below sold for £1650 at the C&T (20% buyer’s premium) auction of the Mick Woodfield collection of Zulu and other tribal weapons in Tunbridge Wells on January 9.
‘Battle-scarred’ gun owned by Tipu Sultan fires up Oxfordshire sale
28 January 2019Following the fall of Seringapatam in India on May 4, 1799, portions of the spoils were variously allocated to senior officers of the British force.
Helmet tomb decoration gains new lease of life in sale
28 January 2019It was not a vintage season for armour in the salerooms, but in Thomas Del Mar’s (24% buyer’s premium) auction on December 5 this very original English or Flemish close helmet of c.1560 reached £11,000.
Siamese sword in Japanese style points to £42,000 price
28 January 2019Exotic blades from all parts of the world are making headlines in the salerooms. Recent auctions have produced some interesting results from unlooked-for places, but none was less expected than the £42,000 paid for a 19th century Siamese niello and silver-gilt mounted sword in the Japanese taste at Thomas Del Mar (24% buyer’s premium) in London on December 5.
Ammo ad sign under hammer
28 January 2019Once breech-loading guns became the norm, the gun itself was only one part of the equation. Ammunition was the great variable, as demonstrated by the advertising display boards produced in large numbers for the gun shops and ironmongers of the United Kingdom.
Excellent English examples of pistols trigger bidding
28 January 2019The Thomas Del Mar (24% buyer’s premium) sale in London on December 5 included several excellent pairs of English pistols.
Continental call to arms
28 January 2019Two suits of armour that emerged in recent auctions at Continental salerooms.
Famous battles boost auction fortunes
28 January 2019Many weapons have to remain silent witnesses to the conflicts in which they took part, so there is always extra interest in arms which can be linked directly to a particular soldier or battle.
Auction previews from la rentree - the return to work in Paris
27 August 2018Dealer events have traditionally dominated the early September calendar in Paris but auction houses are catching up.