Auctions

News and previews of art and antiques sold at auctions throughout the UK and overseas, from multi-million-pound blockbusters to affordable collectables.


img_16-1.jpg

Cup of tea trumps champagne ahead of Chiswick at South Kensington

28 August 2017

With everything buzzing at Chiswick Auctions (22% buyer’s premium) ahead of the opening of the South Kensington showroom next week (see last week’s ATG No 2305), life at the west London rooms goes on providing a solid base for this ambitious expansion.

img_65-1.jpg

Wigan saleroom boss feels he is a lucky man

28 August 2017

Some auctioneers believe they are rock stars when they take to the rostrum. But the owner of a new auction business in the north-west has been closer to real-life rock stars than most gavel-masters.

img_17-6.jpg

Cricket cages catch the eye at Cambridge sale

28 August 2017

Catching the eye at the Oriental Sale at Cheffins (22.5% buyer’s premium) in Cambridge on August 10 were the two highly collectable 4¾in (12cm) tall gourd cricket cages shown here.

Eleanor Rigby

Calling all the lonely people: Eleanor Rigby lyrics, bible and grave deeds up for grabs at auction

26 August 2017

The original score for The Beatles' song Eleanor Rigby is being offered at an auction in Warrington with an estimate of £15,000-25,000. The document, handwritten in pencil, is signed by producer George Martin and Paul McCartney.

img_27-5.jpg

1813 and all tatt

26 August 2017

Tattooed from head to foot, this ‘Native of Nukahiva’ (in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia) features on one of the two frontispieces and a folding chart that form the illustrative content of the 1813, first English edition of Adam von Krusenstern’s 1803-06 Voyage round the World…

Blake front

Peter Blake’s study of National Gallery painting comes to auction in Ely

25 August 2017

A sketch study by Pop artist Peter Blake is to go under the hammer in Cambridgeshire auction house Rowley’s.

Club

Tribal clubs strike it hot at Elgin auction house

25 August 2017

There was some good old-fashioned auction drama at the Elgin Auction Centre in Morayshire on August 23 when two lots of loosely-catalogued tribal clubs sold to online bidders for a combined £46,500.

Dish

Rare Northern Song dynasty Ru Guanyao brush washer to star at Sotheby’s sale

24 August 2017

A Ru Guanyao brush washer is up at auction at Sotheby’s Hong Kong.

Cloth

Young Pretender’s disguise: Cloth fragment linked to Bonnie Prince Charlie exceeds expectations at Lyon & Turnbull

24 August 2017

“Rocked in the deep, Flora will keep watch by your weary head.”

Necklace

Grand Tour jewellery takes a trip to auction in Nantwich

23 August 2017

A fine example of Grand Tour jewellery comes up for sale at Peter Wilson of Nantwich on September 13.

Tough Call

Two records set for Norman Rockwell in recent Heritage Auctions sales

23 August 2017

An oil study once believed to be a cheap print set a record for the American artist Norman Rockwell last week.

Sotheby's New York

Sotheby’s scraps buyer’s premium fee for online-only auctions

22 August 2017

Auction house Sotheby’s is to scrap buyer’s premium – the fee paid to the firm by those who buy at auction – for its online-only sales.

Endeavour

Replica of explorer Captain Cook’s Endeavour sails into auction in Lincoln

22 August 2017

A full-size replica of explorer Captain Cook’s boat, known as the Bark Endeavour, is to be offered at auction next week.

WEB eagle hut 1 22-8-17.jpg

Trench art knife is reminder of First World War Eagle Hut haven away from home

22 August 2017

A simple inscription on an antique can lead to a fascinating trail of research revealing so much more than just the story of the item itself. Take a 10in (25.5cm) long knife coming up in the Chilcotts sale in Honiton on September 9, estimated at £80-120.

WEB rogers jones poster 2 18-8-17.jpg

Colourful 1940s film posters found used as carpet underlay come up at auction in Cardiff

21 August 2017

Inspector Hornleigh Goes To It, Day Time Wife, and perhaps even He Stayed for Breakfast may sound like certain late-night films common when Channel 5 first launched, but they are innocent titles from the 1940s cinema era.

Mark Law leaves Dreweatts

21 August 2017

Mark Law has left Dreweatts in Donnington Priory, with the future of the firm now unclear.

img_10-1.jpg

The button that bust the dam

21 August 2017

The button from the Lancaster bomber of 617 Squadron that released the ‘bouncing bomb’ which destroyed the Möhne Dam has sold after being offered at auction for the first time.

img_31-9.jpg

Previews: £30,000 plus

21 August 2017

ATG’s weekly selection of items on sale at auctions and dealerships.

img_38-1.jpg

Australian sales bring the roos of the world

21 August 2017

It may be pretty quiet on the auction front in Europe but Down Under the saleroom and fairs scene is in full swing.

img_26-1.jpg

How fragments sell for fortunes

21 August 2017

Over the years, any number of rare and very early manuscript fragments have been recovered from disintegrating old bindings in which they had been used as packing.

News

Categories