Latest News Articles by Roland Arkell
Oceanic objects surface in trio of British salerooms
31 August 2020Pictured below are three lots of Oceanic art that proved to be in much demand during UK sales held in August.
Plaque pun pulls the udder one
31 August 2020This 12in (39cm) Portobello pottery plaque piece, c.1820, is a rare piece but one known in a number of different colour variations.
Classy canes draw interest in regional sales
31 August 2020This sailor’s walking cane below displays many elements of the scrimshander’s art: a whalebone shaft carved with spiral fluting, collars inlaid with shell from the hawksbill turtle and a handle carved as a dove from the tooth of a sperm whale.
Norwich lion spoon takes pride of place at Salisbury auction
31 August 2020Once the second city in the kingdom, Norwich had its own silver assay office during three periods between 1565 and 1702.
Liverpool auction looks to Asia
31 August 2020This 7in (18cm) Satsuma 'koro' is modelled in the form of a 'yoroi bitsu' (Samurai armour storage box) with the 'kabuto' (traditional Japanese helmet) forming the lid.
Minton majolica bear drums up interest at Farnham sale
31 August 2020This Minton majolica figure of a 12in (30cm) dancing bear playing a drum kit carries a patent lozenge for May 1876.
17th century cabinet blending East and West style attracts interest in Henley auction
31 August 2020This 17th century teak, ebony and ivory standing cabinet or contador is a type associated with the Indo-Portuguese settlement in Goa.
Chinese export cabinets at Bellmans come market-fresh from family
31 August 2020A pair of Chinese export black lacquer chinoiserie decorated cabinets on stands came for sale at Bellmans (22% buyer’s premium) in Wisborough Green, West Sussex on August 11 with a blue-chip provenance.
Carved ‘Black Forest’ hound stars in our pick of five auction highlights sold this week
28 August 2020ATG’s weekly selection of items that caught bidders’ eyes includes a carved hound stick stand that sold for more than four-times estimate in Hampshire.
£17,000 Martinware tortoise emerges from hibernation
24 August 2020This Martin Brothers stoneware model of a tortoise with a mirthful face was a very welcome discovery for auctioneer Rupert Toovey on a post-lockdown valuation in the Surrey Hills.
Antiques dealer's French imperial naval eagle soars at auction
24 August 2020According to his family, this French imperial naval eagle was purchased by the dealer Jack Webb (1923-2019) from a ‘totter’ in the early 1970s over the counter at his shop in Camden Passage.
Dealer’s kitchen antiques collection finds new home
24 August 2020A vast collection of Victorian kitchen antiques formed by a dealer from Kent has found a new home in North Yorkshire.
Statues surface from sunken garden site after decades in the undergrowth
24 August 2020An extraordinary cache of garden statuary, unseen for decades, comes for sale at Summers Place Auctions next month.
Pick of the week: Disc-end spoon discovery scoops £21,000
24 August 2020While most early Scottish spoon types follow closely known and comparable patterns from England or mainland Europe, the ‘disc-end’ is an exception. Made for perhaps a century from c.1580, it is a form seemingly unique to Scotland.
A military watch collection, a Bernard Leach jar and a Shakespeare halfpenny are among the five lots to watch at auction this week
24 August 2020With estimates from £100-35,000 here are five previews of upcoming items this week.
The Mouseman in his prime
24 August 2020Classic Robert Thompson products from family collections underline current keen demand.
Batavian box gives buyer something to chew on
24 August 2020The centuries-old Indonesian habit of chewing betel nut, the fruit of the reach palm, was quickly adopted by settlers from the Dutch East India Company who appreciated both its psychoactive properties and its importance as a local social ritual.
Bayonet axed for being costly is now highly valauble
24 August 2020The so-called Elcho bayonet was designed for the Martini-Henry rifle in 1870 by Lord Elcho, the 10th Earl of Wemyss & March.
Carving much mightier than a mouse
24 August 2020The Robert Thompson firm produced shire horses, such as this example offered by Lawrences (25% buyer’s premium) of Crewkerne on July 23, from the 1960s-90s.