Germany

According to Munich saleroom Ketterer, the 3ft 4in (1.02m) square painting N. O. 9th . Ward, which is part of the sale on December 9, is the first work by the American artist Stanley Whitney (b.1946) ever to be offered at a German auction.

Among the eye-catchers at Wendl in Rudolstadt from October 27-29 is an example of the world’s first functioning lighter.

On the first day of an auction held by Schloss Ahlden (26% buyer’s premium), a German collector with a passion for history saw off numerous dealers and collectors from home and abroad who had also trained their sights on a set of four silver candlesticks from the early 19th century.

From the late Middle Ages onwards, an unusual form of glass bottle appeared in many parts of continental Europe.

A very rare form of German 17th century silver is on offer at Van Ham’s auction on November 16 in Cologne.

There was obviously much more to a pair of 14 and 15in (35 and 37cm) terracotta figures offered at auction than the starting price of €240 suggested.

The auctioneers at Hargesheimer (28% buyer’s premium) in Dusseldorf were not expecting the broad international interest eventually generated by an 18in (45cm) high Chinese porcelain vase.

Five years after he acceded to the throne in 1873, King Albert of Saxony decided to renovate the 17th century hunting castle at Wermsdorf.

Since its inception, the focus of the 'Highlights' fair on Modern and Contemporary art has increased and in recent years photography dealers have also been given more space.

Away from London, some exceptional coin sales coming up in Europe include a number of outstanding British issues.

'Hortus sanitatis' (Gart der Gesundheit, Augsburg 1485), considered among the most important early works of natural history and one of the first scientific incunabula in a vernacular language, is on offer at Munich saleroom Ketterer Kunst on November 28.

Stephen Ongpin Fine Art is staging a pop-up exhibition from September 13-October 7 of drawings by Adolph Menzel in Hamburg after an earlier staging was cut short by Covid restrictions.

Almost two thousand years ago, a wealthy Roman woman would have kept her jewellery or trinkets in a cylindrical box, a so-called Pyxis. They were originally plain vessels, often made of pottery.

After the difficult years of the pandemic, the organisers of the Bamberger Antiquitätenwochen are hoping that this year’s event will mark a return to some form of normality.

Ketterer’s (25/20% buyer’s premium) recent evening sale in Munich got off to a perfect start.

A big surprise was in store for the owner of a Chinese lacquer plate consigned to Hermann Historica (25% buyer’s premium) in Grasbrunn, just outside Munich.

A string of high prices way over estimates emerged at a recent Asian art sale held by Nagel (24.5% buyer’s premium) in Stuttgart.

A US collector went way over the odds to secure a 15th century southern Indian bronze that took top honours at the Asian art sale at Lempertz (26% buyer’s premium) in Cologne.

The world record for a car sold at auction was broken last month when a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé was hammered down for €135m (£112m) on May 5.

By 1920, as a new era of aero-engined racing cars threatened to break the 100mph barrier, the emerging sport of motor racing required better and more precise time-keeping.