Any antique associated with bears – whether black, brown or grizzly – commands an exceptional premium in the US at present, and it was the presence of at least three American dealers underbidding on the telephone which compelled an English collector to go to three times the estimate to take the hall seat at £5000.
Some consolation came for one of the Amercian dealers in the form of a matching occasional table from the same source which he took at £2900 – again three times the estimate.
Bullish US bear market
UK: CONSIGNED by a Stockport couple who had been keen skiers during the 1950s, this late 19th century Black Forest carved hall seat, left, proved the unexpected highlight of Bonham’s (15/10 per cent buyer’s premium) sale of general antiques in Manchester on March 24.
