Auctions

A rare American coin from a schoolboy’s coin collection was knocked down at auction for £185,000 at Salisbury saleroom Woolley & Wallis this week.

The Association of Accredited Auctioneers (Triple-A), founded in 2012 by 19 UK auctioneers to attract Chinese buyers, are to hold an auction of Western fine art and antiques in China.

Nestled among a 173-lot ‘time capsule’ collection from a Staffordshire estate offered at Hanson’s on January 12, the Old Master picture shown here proved to be the star performer of the sale by some considerable margin.

After a tough economic year, several French auction firms have now released their sales figures for 2012.

This 19th century ceramic plaque painted with two duellists in sepia forms part of the collection of the late Bernard Popland, a former championship fencer.

Consigned to Special Auction Services on the back of the £76,000 Märklin ‘first series’ tinplate toy HMS Terrible they sold from the Ron McCrindell collection in April 2012, this Märklin tinplate battleship Sachsen will be offered in Greenham, near Newbury, on January 31.

Created by the 20th century Finnish architect and designer Alvar Aalto, this Paimio seat, with a model no. of 41, is to be included in Sworders’ Decorative Art Sale on January 29 in Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex.

These figures representing The Beatles were manufactured by Subbuteo, the name made famous by the series of table-top games mainly concerning football but also other types of sport.

The names Cartier and Paul Hubner of Augsburg guaranteed the quality of a lapel watch and parcel gilt cup, but their values were enhanced by the names of early 20th century celebrities when they were offered at a recent sale held by Sworders at Stansted Mountfitchet.

The fact that businessman Ken Manley chose to name his Scottish Grand National winning racehorse Moorcroft Boy provides a clue as to his favourite potter.

When in 1903 the Marconi Wireless Company began a public demonstration of its systems, an unwelcome message began to appear via the Morse printer: “There was a young man from Italy, who diddled the public so prettily…”

Getting the New Year off to a good start at Addisons of Barnard Castle, County Durham, a 20th century blue and white porcelain table screen by the renowned Chinese ceramic artist Wang Bu (1898-1968) improved upon an estimate of just £130-150 to sell for £34,300.

An early photographic album which has sold for a record-breaking £290,000 came into the hands of its first owner 140 years ago as a prize – for winning a pigeon-shooting competition.

Six pencil studies for The Days of Creation by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (1833-98) carry an estimate of £150,000-250,000 at Bonhams’ 19th century art sale in New Bond Street on January 23.

Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood’s three-day fine art sale on January 29-31 in Exeter includes several photographs possibly taken by the founder of the Photographic Society, Roger Fenton (1819-69).

The first sale of the year for Woolley & Wallis’ jewellery department takes place on January 24 in Salisbury.

This Shirvan Marasali prayer rug is part of a private collection of Caucasian rugs consigned to Mallams’ sale in Oxford on January 23.

A rare Holtzapffel & Company rose engine lathe turned a few heads at Skinner’s recent Science, Technology and Clocks sale to take $190,000 (£124,185) as the top lot of the day.

Auction Team Breker in Cologne have sold a technical rarity of the highest order – one of the six known working models of the first computer ever made by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs, the founders of Apple.

Executed c.1929, this abstract composition by Mainie Jellett (1897-1944) drew significant interest when it appeared at de Veres’ sale in Dublin on November 27.