Print Edition

When the vendor consigned a 3ft 2in (97cm) tall carved figure of Nelson into the Rayleigh rooms of Stacey’s (20% buyer’s premium), he believed it to be a ship’s figurehead.

Dealers head for London looking for some pre-Christmas cheer.

“Winter Olympia falls at a time of year when it isn’t competing with 1001 other fairs and provides a good opportunity for pre-Christmas shopping,” says James Manning of Manning Fine Art.

Utterly English and with features including ‘seven golden rules for selling a country house’, Country Life has been described as ‘read by people who live the real country house style’.

A round-up of art and antiques news from the previous seven days.

Paris saleroom Artcurial will offer a group of 20 works from the family of Camille Claudel (1864-1943) for sale on November 27.

Mallams will sell a significant Dutch collection of Japanese swords and armour as part of this week’s auction of Chinese, Japanese, Indian and Islamic Art in Cheltenham on October 25-26.

We present the candidates for the 2017 AAL Awards, co-sponsored by ATG. Two honours are given for outstanding works of art: to a dealer and an auction house. Also, awards judge Anne Crane of ATG gives a personal insight.

There are 10 auction house participants in AAL this year, the number swollen by an increased international presence. ATG provides a selection of auction preview highlights.

A gift from the founder of the Tata global business empire to the architect who designed his Bombay headquarters, this late 19th century Patek Philippe gold hunter pocket watch was an eyecatcher at Andrew Smith (19% buyer’s premium) at Itchen Stoke on September 12.

A collection of 28 German tinplate clockwork toys all found buyers, generally above estimate, at Bourne End Auctions (15% buyer’s premium) on October 4.

The earliest firebacks date from the 15th century, the early days of iron casting. These were placed against the back wall of a fireplace, an important feature when that wall was made of wattle and daub or soft stone.

Obituary by Spencer Swaffer of Spencer Swaffer Antiques, Arundel, West Sussex

ATG’s selection of auction lots bought by internet bidders on thesaleroom.com from the period October 12-18, 2017. This includes both the highest prices over estimate and the top prices paid online.

Our weekly selection from salerooms and dealerships.

Since the Celtic Tiger’s demise a decade ago and the tailspin that ensued, the Irish art market has evolved into a more cautious and less speculative beast. The latest round of sales held towards the end of September and into October showed steady (if not spectacular) demand, especially for the big, bankable names.

Adam’s mammoth annual Country House Collections auction is designed to cater to those with spacious, preferably period, abodes.

Our weekly selection from salerooms and dealerships.

Last month, Britain’s oldest postcard publisher, J Salmon, announced it was closing after almost 140 years of business. Blamed for its demise was the rise of selfies and social media.

Fresh views are being sought over the legal definition of ‘antique’ as police voice gun crime fears.