Hansons

Strong provenance helps seated guardian figure estimated at £100-150 to stand out at Derbyshire auction

Mountainous scenes by Edward Theodore Compton (1849-1921) make regular appearances at auctions in Germany and Austria, where he tended to paint and retains a strong collecting base, as well as in the UK.

UK auctioneer hails successful sale offering attractive investments to buyers worldwide

A police ledger sold more than triple its top estimate featured original mug shots and criminal records relating to 500 people including a woman accused of plotting to kill Prime Minister David Lloyd George in 1917.

The Minton ‘fungi and foxes’ tureen is among the rarest of all majolica game pie dishes.

A cheaper storage solution than secondhand furniture at the time, this steamer trunk, shown right, from a Twickenham bric-a-brac shop was the economic option for a father buying a practical gift for his daughter’s first flat.

Items collected and meticulously recorded from the 1970s onwards by a trade couple had the attractions of ‘dealer’s choice’ provenances when offered at Hanson Holloway’s Ross (25% buyer’s premium).

It was during the Song dynasty that tea parties became the vogue and tea houses flourished.

Power of the Force line was launched as the original Star Wars began to lose its shine but rarest figures still bring demand

The top-selling lots at Hansons’ April 1 Fine Art Sale were two pieces of Chinese blue and white porcelain.

As famous last words go, those of Major General John Sedgwick in the American Civil War take some beating.

Harry Potter just keeps on doing well at auction, and Hansons (25% buyer’s premium), which has enjoyed a particularly close and profitable relationship with JK Rowling’s creation over the years, had more to offer in a March 9 sale.

Marriage or betrothal rings of the Byzantine period depict the bride and groom with Christ who performs the marriage rite.

Pedal cars are regular visitors to salerooms but rarer powered versions were also produced for children to use, partly for road safety training

Marked for Savage & Lyman, Montreal, c.1855-60, this silver tankard was awarded to British bare-knuckle boxer Tom Sayers.

Still a figure of glamour 450 years after her execution, Mary Queen of Scots was reputed to have embroidered the c.16th century fragment of bed curtain sold at Hansons (25% buyer’s premium) at Etwall on December 7.