In a sale that saw any number of dramatic results, the most expensive piece proved to be this very early, c.1753, blue and white Worcester baluster mug (both sides illustrated), 43/4in (12cm) high, painted with a hitherto unrecorded form of oriental inspired decoration. It was bought for £29,000 (plus 15 per cent premium) by Steppes Hill Farm Antiques on behalf of an English client, against telephone underbidding.
Bernard Watney's celebrated collection
UK: SEPTEMBER 22 was a big day for English porcelain, it saw the first part of Bernard Watney’s celebrated collection of early English porcelain go under the hammer at Phillips. A packed saleroom filled to capacity with collectors and dealers contested the 447 lots to over £665,000, way past the pre-sale predictions.
