Dawsons

Dawsons Auctioneers has appointed Jonathan Pratt as managing director.

If you wanted to sum up the current state of the watercolours and works on paper sector in a single sentence, you might say something like ‘flatter than ever for general works but exceptional lots routinely generating strong interest’.

Beneath the simple ‘1950s dress watch’ styling, the Jaeger LeCoultre Geophysic hides a lot of post-war tech.

The wristwatch, which began to replace the pocket watch in the First World War, really came into its own with the production of bespoke ‘tool’ watches for submariners and airmen later in the century

Dawsons’ (25% buyer’s premium) Fine Jewellery, Watches & Silver sale included this Art Nouveau gem-set foliage panel ring by Henri Dubret (1872-1947).

How much would you spend on an antique or vintage chess set? Here are three examples from different periods that sold across a wide range of prices.

Kashmir sapphires have acquired a near-legendary status, due to their lustrous cornflower colour, soft velvety texture and extreme rarity.

The September 21 sale at Dawsons in Maidenhead includes this Cartier natural sapphire and diamond brooch designed as a single bloom of cherry blossom.

A fine Oscar Wilde letter sold for £16,000 at Dawsons (25% buyer’s premium) in Maidenhead on June 29.

This ‘ferris wheel’ timepiece, thermometer and barometer compendium is a novel type that was first made in France in the last quarter of the 19th century.

Shown here is a copy in Latin of the 'Quirtii Horatii Flacci' opera, 1823, presented by Charles Dickens to his Latin tutor Richard Shiers (mentioned in a book titled 'The Life of Charles Dickens', p45).

It is 20 years ago that the auction record for Clarice Cliff was sent tumbling when an 18in (46cm) May Avenue charger sold for £34,000 at Christie’s South Kensington on May 14, 2003. Those were heady days indeed.

Family group at auction offered works by several generations including the renowned John Sell Cotman

As timing goes, the sale date for an album of handwritten letters, photographs and ephemera related to Sophia Duleep Singh (1876-1948) could not have been much better.

Featuring in the June 22 Jewellery, Watches Silver auction at Dawsons in Maidenhead is this late Victorian diamond garland necklace.