Auctioneers

Strand Collectibles Group, the parent company for stamp specialist Stanley Gibbons and coin specialist Baldwin’s, has announced a new structure.

The 1970 World Cup was the breakthrough year for Panini.

A copy of a lost painting that has been described as one of the most haunting and poignant depictions of Irish involvement in the First World War attracted a flurry of bids at Clevedon Salerooms (22% buyer’s premium) in Bristol.

The growth in the market for vintage football tops connected to popular players continues apace

Some of the artist’s most modern and dramatic works were derived from his social concerns

Figural novelty silver-mounted glass claret jugs are a favourite collectable and some of the most popular examples are fashioned as animals.

Limoges is regarded as one of the most important centres in the world for fine enamelware.

Trapani in western Sicily has for centuries been renowned as a centre for objects mounted with carved coral, a tradition that derives from the nearby coral reefs and reached its height in the 17th and 18th centuries.

First printing of a guide first written in the 11th century achieves second-highest auction price

A large collection of corkscrews and all things vernacular were major features of the two-day sale held by Wilkinson’s (20% buyer’s premium) in Doncaster.

It was in the hope of saving on the huge sums spent procuring works of art from abroad that Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Louis XIV’s minister of finance, began inviting craftsmen to work at the Gobelins royal manufactory on the outskirts of Paris.

In one of the last auctions to take place at Drouot in 2023, a newly discovered portrait by Jean-Honoré Fragonard was pursued to €2.5m (£2.17m) at Boisgirard-Antonini (30% buyer’s premium).

Very much the highest price in a recent sale held by Beaussant Lefèvre (28% buyer’s premium) at Drouot was the €95,000 (£82,610) paid for a rare Gallé glass vase.

The helmets and uniforms depicted in this oil study are clues to its strong performance at Cirencester saleroom Moore Allen & Innocent (21% buyer’s premium) on December 6.

On January 30, as part of Old Masters Week, Sotheby’s New York conducts a sale titled The Pleasure of Objects: The Ian & Carolina Irving Collection.

The magic of the cup helped to sell a sizeable scene showing a Corinthians v Manchester City game offered as part of an extensive selection of works on a football theme which featured at Bonhams (28% buyer’s premium).