North America

Reports of the vast sums of money lost by some Russian oligarchs in the recent financial crisis did not appear to hamper enthusiasm for a collection of Russian cloisonné sold at Freeman’s in Philadelphia on October 8.

BOOKS being used in their physical form alone to disguise an entirely different function are nothing new – money boxes are a perennial favourite – but the book as Thunderbox?

Two major antiques fairs in Texas were cancelled as a result of Hurricane Ike.

Phillips de Pury’s Hip Hop Crown Jewels auction scheduled for October 1 in New York has been postponed until March 5, 2009.

Neal Auction Company of New Orleans have now returned to the city after ten days away under mandatory hurricane evacuation orders and the loss of electrical services.

A retired Massachusetts lawyer has been found guilty of involvement in a major art theft that extends back three decades.

Atlanta-based WorthPoint, an online database and social network for antiques and collectibles, have announced its intent to acquire GoAntiques, the online buying and selling network.

A DIARY kept by a sailor in Nelson’s navy was offered for sale in a US auction earlier this month. Given that diaries kept by ordinary sailors are exceptionally rare, there was huge interest in this visually striking document from both sides of the Atlantic with institutions, the trade and private collectors vying for the journal.

Phillips de Pury are holding the first ever auction of hip hop jewellery on October 1 in New York. The sale, titled Hip Hop's Crown Jewels will offer some serious bling worn by some of the music movement's biggest stars.

East Coast auctioneer Skinner are to move their suburban headquarters from Bolton to Marlborough, Massachusetts.

Tiffany & Co have appealed over the ruling that eBay do not have to police their auction site for fakes before they are sold to unwitting buyers.

The FBI are attempting to track down the rightful owners of 137 works of art, discovered in a New York apartment, which are thought to have been stolen in the 1960s and 70s.

Ebay have won a landmark judgment in the US federal courts, which effectively protects their position as an independent trading platform.

A DEAL is being finalised which means Palm Beach | America's International Fine Art & Antique Fair, is owned once again by Florida-based entrepreneur David Lester, who founded the event.

The only known copy of the world’s first telephone directory sold for $140,000 (£71,430) at Christie’s New York on June 17 as part of an $11m (£5.9m) sale of the Richard Green scientific library.

Sotheby’s New York and Christie's King Street both withdrew furniture lots provenanced to dealers John and Carlton Hobbs from sale last week – casualties of the unfolding "fake" furniture scandal first exposed by The Sunday Times.

This remarkable late 19th century English longcase clock offered for sale in Pennsylvania last month showed late Victorian design at its most confident.

A RADICAL shake-up in the overall organisation, marketing and direction of Palm Beach | America's International Fine Art & Antiques Fair is underway. It will guarantee the future security of the event as a premier American fixture for the next five years and bring in a number of top dealers as part of the organisation.

As of June 1, Sotheby’s auctions in New York and London will be subject to new buyer’s premium thresholds that will hit further buyers of ‘middle range’ art and antiques.

THE gargantuan sums of money being spent at the top end of the contemporary art market continued unabated as the latest sales series in New York saw a staggering overall premium-inclusive total of $990m.