Auctions

The Bodleian Library in Oxford has bought the historic customer ledgers of venerable Oxford shoemaker Ducker & Son.

A cold-painted bronze of amateur golfing champion John Laidlay is among the pieces appearing at Bonhams' upcoming auction in Los Angeles next week.

Privately printed and distributed in Exeter in 1787, probably in quite small numbers, a copy of John Grave Simcoe’s ‘Journal of the Operations of the Queen’s Rangers, from the End of the Year 1777, to the Conclusion of the Late American War’ drew strong interest at a Bonhams New York sale earlier this month.

A 1965 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud III DHC ‘Chinese Eye’ with a musical pedigree comes under the hammer at H&H Classics next week.

A major price in the English regions came earlier today for a Victorian picture as Bournemouth saleroom House & Son took a £240,000 bid for an Edmund Blair Leighton (1853-1922) painting.

A 50p charity shop find has been identified a Harold C. Harvey (1874-1941) portrait and given a £8000 high estimate at Christie’s South Kensington sale tomorrow.

Ex-Sotheby’s worldwide head of Contemporary art Cheyenne Westphal is starting her new role at Phillips this week.

Numerous 18th and 19th century watchmakers in Geneva and London made their living by manufacturing watches for the Chinese market, many destined for the Chinese Emperor and members of his court. One of the pioneers in this field was William Ilbery who was active in London from about 1780 until his death in 1839.

An auction house which sold a 1937 handwritten letter by Beatrix Potter is offering another fascinating collection related to the children’s author just over two months later.