Auctioneers

The auction process is a key part of the secondary art and antiques market.

Firms of auctioneers usually specialise in a number of fields such as jewellery, ceramics, paintings, Asian art or coins but many also hold general sales where the goods available are not defined by a particular genre and are usually lower in value.

Auctioneers often provide other services such as probate and insurance valuations.

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Dip into the Grand Tour with a sarcophagus inkstand

21 August 2023

This 19th century carved Siena marble inkstand is fashioned in the form of an ancient Roman sarcophagus.

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Ditko’s personal Spidey spins a premium

21 August 2023

The name Steve Ditko (1927-2018) scarcely needs an introduction to comic collectors.

Armchairs and sofa

Guinness family collection to be auctioned in rare on-the-premises sale at Elveden Hall

15 August 2023

A single owner collection from Lord Iveagh will be offered by Sworders at the Guinness family’s stately home Elveden Hall in Suffolk.

Naked Union soldier photo

Bare essential of early photography field

14 August 2023

Scenes of nudity in American Civil War photography are typically accidental or produced in field hospitals for medical study.

Bears Grease Manufacturer pot lid

Pick of the week: Bear essential of the pot lid field

14 August 2023

A single-lot auction conducted by the sealed bids process has set a record for a transfer printed pot lid.

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Plaquette pays tribute to – or mocks – speaker Lenthall

14 August 2023

William Lenthall (1591-1662) was chosen as Speaker of the Houses of Commons at the beginning of the Long Parliament in 1640.

Figure of Mercury

Summer scorchers: Trio of big prices blows away August cobwebs

14 August 2023

A usually quiet August was dramatically awakened by a series of sleepers that emerged at three UK regional auction houses.

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Georgian tea silver warms up the bidding

14 August 2023

While a few examples survive from the 17th and the very early 18th century, teacups and saucers are a rare form in Georgian silver.

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Oscar Wilde letter ponders inverted commas

14 August 2023

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

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Playing card games with a new Surrealist face

14 August 2023

From late 1940 to early 1941 André Breton and a group of other Surrealists including Wifredo Lam, Max Ernst, Oscar Dominguez, Victor Brauner, André Masson and Frédéric Delanglade re-located to Marseille where they anxiously awaited visas to escape occupied France.

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Cypriot ‘plank’ figure sets a mystery

14 August 2023

Most terracotta plank figures from Bronze Age Cyprus have been found in Lapithos, a once important coastal centre on the north of the island.

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Nidhogg nestles in Yggdrasil: a Viking bronze die for armour

14 August 2023

A fine example of Viking metalworking was offered at Noonans (24% buyer’s premium) in Mayfair on July 18.

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Postcard flies into postal history with first airmail

14 August 2023

A postcard carried on the world’s first official airmail flight came up for auction in Staffordshire.

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Heal's garden seat was fashioned from Churchill’s yacht

14 August 2023

This Heal’s set of garden furniture added seasonal warmth to Great Western Auctions’ (24% buyer’s premium) Glasgow sale.

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Alain Delon: actor and art and antiques collector

14 August 2023

Famous Frenchman has amassed an impressive wide-ranging array of acquisitions over six decades

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Old Master sales in London bring good and bad news

14 August 2023

Strong results and supply boost the market but challenges remain with bidders highly selective

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Aristocratic consignments make a comeback in Old Master auctions

14 August 2023

Works coming fresh to the market from British aristocratic sources were once a staple of London Old Master sales.

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Cat conveys a sense of calm and domestic comfort

14 August 2023

The presence of a cat added commercial appeal to a 17th century portrait of a young girl offered at Bonhams’ latest Old Master sale in London.

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Milk jug made for William Beckford’s Fonthill Abbey comes to auction

14 August 2023

Ornate creation from Gothic fantasy comes for sale as part of the Bayreuth collection

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Liner launcher mallet exempted from ivory trade ban

14 August 2023

The ivory-made launching mallet and silver casket from the ill-fated RMS Empress of Ireland came for sale at McTear’s (24% buyer’s premium) in Glasgow.

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