Lyon & Turnbull

Although often overshadowed by her famous father William, May Morris (1862-1938) was herself an important figure in the British Arts & Crafts movement.

Containing some 600 hand-coloured engraved plates, a set of Sowerby and De Carle’s 'The Mineral Conchology of Great Britain…' of 1812-29 was just another of the many attraction in a sale last month held by Lyon & Turnbull.

Shown below is a plate from A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most Notorious Pyrates… sold at Lyon & Turnbull (25% buyer’s premium) on February 19

Three modestly valued works selling at regional sales including a Trevor Grimshaw steam train.

This 14in (25cm) diameter bronze bell shown here bears the insignia of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (the Dutch East India Company or VOC), the date 1747 and the name Jaffanapatnam. It is suspended in a wrought iron frame and mounted to a large stone mill wheel.

'La Navigation du Roy d’Ecosse' by the French cartographer Nicolas de Nicolay (1517-83) is said to be the oldest accurate map of coastal Scotland.

The 19th century Dutch painter Jozef Israëls (1824-1911), a leading member of the Hague School group of landscape painters, was best known for his realistic and sympathetic portrayals of the Dutch peasantry and fisherfolk.

Three modestly valued works selling at regional sales including a Marjorie Bruford Cornish village scene.

The arts of the Ottoman court are performing strongly in the marketplace. The unexpected highlight of Lyon & Turnbull’s Five Centuries auction in Edinburgh on February 5 was an Ottoman saddle.

Private domestic demand rather than trade drives bidding at Scottish and Irish art auctions.

An international buyer paid £34,000 for a 15th century Netherlandish School oil on panel of the Virgin and St Elizabeth which was last on the market in 1955.

A central Edinburgh location, men wearing tartan trousers and kilts and a bagpiper greeting guests: three ingredients suggesting that Lyon & Turnbull has hosted the most Scottish of parties to celebrate 20 years since its renaissance as an auction house.

An early watercolour by Isabel Codrington (1874-1943) depicts the Norse legend of the goddess Iduna and King Thiassi, who disguised himself as an eagle to kidnap her.

It’s been a challenging couple of decades for classic English furniture but early winter has witnessed a few stars across the provinces, be it classic English or more exotic overseas material, to offer some gleams of encouragement.