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IT’S not often that eight sheets of paper bring out eight telephone bidders, but that was the case at Mallams’ sale in Oxford on June 8. Yet these were no ordinary scraps. They were, in fact, important pieces of architectural history.

In the UK there is a tendency to think of institutions as the natural permanent home for the best cultural artefacts. But American museums’ policy of deaccessioning means there can be second chances to buy stellar objects.

JAMES Podger is to close his Great Grooms antiques centre at Dorking and concentrate all his efforts and resources on consolidating his Great Grooms centre at Hungerford, Berkshire.

THE market for early English portrait miniatures received a sizeable fillip in London last week. The auction record was broken twice within the space of 24 hours with the sale of two iconic images of major figures in British history and this was backed up by a crop of other strong prices for top flight examples from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Just a month after their most successful sale ever, thanks to the consignment of an archive of Francis Bacon’s work, Woking auctioneers Ewbank’s have won another Bacon collection.

But supplies for repairs could still prove a problem

ONLINE auction giant eBay is banning cross-border sales of ivory on all their websites. The company announced that from the end of this month sellers will only be allowed to list ivory items for sale in their own country.

NEW auctioneers Aqueduct Auctions are holding their first sale on Saturday, June 16 at the Methodist Chapel, Froncysyllte, near Llangollen.

FOR more than a decade, Dorset saleroom Cottees have held biannual sales dedicated to Poole pottery. The most latest event had the sad distinction of being the first since the closure of the Poole Pottery just before Christmas.

The highlight of the Oriental sale conducted by Salisbury auctioneers Woolley & Wallis on May 22 was this underglaze copper-red Qianlong (1736-1795) mark and period moonflask standing 11in (27cm) high.

But move will fail to curtail smuggling of pre-1911 objects via Hong Kong

Not one but two international auction houses conducted sales series in Hong Kong in May.

Despite riding the crest of a wave of popularity, Theodore Roosevelt declined to run again for the presidency in 1908. Instead he anointed William Howard Taft as his successor and famously embarked upon a year of big game hunting in Africa.

BLOOMSBURY Auctions are launching a new saleroom in New York.

Munich auctioneers Hermann Historica are known internationally as experts for arms and armour, medals and historical collectibles rather than tribal art, so they were on unfamiliar territory with lot 3324 in their latest blockbuster sale held from May 2 to 11.

Sotheby’s have opened an office in Moscow and appointed Mikhail Kamensky, a former director and presidential advisor to the Bank of Moscow, as managing director.

EBay’s global network is encouraging the illegal trade in elephant ivory says an investigative report from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW).

CHICAGO-based art event promoter Mark Lyman has been appointed vice president of International Fine Arts Expositions (IFAE) by owner dmg world media. IFAE’s American flagship event is The Palm Beach Fair and Palmbeach Contemporary Art Fair.

It was a more traditional 20th century picture that established a new house record for Chichester auctioneers Stride & Son on April 27.

More records fall in record NY art sales