Germany

Bid to €60,000 (£53,100) in a March 16 sale held by Venator & Hanstein (23% buyer’s premium) was a group of letters sent by Charles Darwin in the 1860s and ‘70s to a German botanist, Friedrich Hildebrand.

Old Masters and post-Impressionist paintings, vintage luggage and the almost inevitable Asian artefacts all appeared among the best-sellers in the recent round of auctions held across Germany and Switzerland.

Numerous works of art in the spring sales at Van Ham in Cologne come from the extensive legacy of Friedrich Wilhelm Waffenschmidt (1925-2017), founder of one of Europe’s leading electronics retailers.

A late 19th century Art Nouveau centrepiece is one of the highlights at Quittenbaum’s Munich sale on May 15.

Pride comes before a fall and in the case of Napoleon, Smolensk came before Moscow. On May 18 Ketterer Kunst is selling a 2ft x 2ft 7in (60 x 79cm) scene of Napoleon observing the burning city of Smolensk.

A private museum in south-west Germany has bought a portrait by Swiss artist Jean- Etienne Liotard (1702-89) from London Old Master dealer Derek Johns.

Pictured and discussed here is a selection of interesting and unusual lots from sales in February and early March, ranging from a Russian enamel jug in Saarbruecken and an aristocratic de Lászlo portrait in Heidelberg to an early Grand Tour souvenir in cork in Cologne.

The essential guide to the German auction world - 10 things to know

Three German auction houses tell how they aim to strike the right balance between bricks and mortar sales and enhancing the online experience. Paul Wheatley reports...

An investigation in Germany into an Israeli art dealer, charged with being the ringleader of an international fraud ring, has concluded after the two central allegations against him were dropped.

An auction house in a small Bavarian town sold a Dutch Golden Age painting for more than 50 times its estimate back in November 2017 – setting a record for an artwork auctioned online in Germany.

Auction Technology Group's chief sets out how online consolidation, such as the company's purchase in March of e-commerce portal lot-tissimo, will bring benefits to both buyers and auctioneers...

Auction Technology Group (ATG) – owner of Antiques Trade Gazette and thesaleroom. com – has merged with German art and antiques portal Lot-tissimo.com.

An 800-year-old hurdy-gurdy, thought to be the oldest in Europe, features in a collection of 450 musical instruments from a German private museum coming up at auction.

Hermann Historica (23% buyer’s premium) of Munich mounted its customary assault on the arms and armour market with no fewer than seven catalogues covering more than 6000 objects, ranging from ancient Greek helmets to military and other vehicles.

I was enjoying the annual SLAD Christmas drinks in December, when a dealer started to recount an extraordinary experience he had with a German auction house.

Asian art sales are always unpredictable, more often than not in a positive sense.

The chap in the voluminous breeches shown below is far removed from today’s riflemen as far as combat uniform is concerned.

The market for works by Ernst Wilhelm Nay (1902-68) was pushed into a new dimension at recent German auctions.