Essex

Sworders offers late 19th and 20th century styles reflecting the period zeitgeist.

The names of two 17th century makers took these two lantern clocks way above estimates at Sworders’ (23% buyer’s premium) sale at Stansted Mountitchet. Both were from the Barbara Holliday collection that majored on Modern British art (see Art Market, ATG No 2377).

Modern British pictures by female artists made a major contribution to the bottom line at Sworders’ (23% buyer’s premium) dispersal of the Barbara Holliday Collection.

A single-owner collection, including significant works from the Modern British canon, sold for £541,200 at Sworders in Stansted Mountfitchet last week.

Four works sold in Essex auction could be part of Marks’ Eaton Hall commission.

A single-owner private collection, including significant works by artists from the Modern British canon, will be sold at Sworders in Stansted Mountfitchet on January 15.

One half of an extensive single-owner collection of novelty Victorian and Edwardian silver and glass animal objects went under the hammer at Reeman Dansie’s two-day sale in Colchester last week.

This classical Guild of Handicrafts bowl, below, underlined the popularity of Arts & Crafts silver when offered by Essex auction house Stacey’s (20% buyer’s premium).

Following the wake of the influential 1862 International Exhibition in London (when Japanese art first reached a wide British audience), this tea service below would have been the height of fashion when it was made by Richard Martin and Ebenezer Hall in 1879.

Strong bidding for the best Republic period porcelain has become a familiar sight at Asian art sales. Less often observed is the newer enthusiasm for artist-decorated wares from the early years of the People’s Republic.

The Fine Jewellery and Watches auction at Sworders of Stansted Mountfitchet on November 20 will include this Cartier Art Deco rose-cut diamond, black and white enamel and seed pearl-set pendant watch, c.1915.

A handful of copies of Robert Morden’s 'Geography Rectified, or a Description of the World' have made a little more at auction than a 1680 copy offered in a Stacey’s (24% buyer’s premium) sale of September 10 – but all bar one of them were second or third editions of 1688 and 1693.

The appearance of the 19th century Meissen figure based on Kaendler’s original Count Bruhl’s Tailor begins to bring to mind Monty Python’s Green Knight as he rides undaunted into UK auctions despite his increasingly battered state.

The Horlicks collection of Robert ‘Mouseman’ Thompson furniture was sold at Sworders’ auction for £236,000.

Before finally achieving success in 1945 with The Pursuit of Love and then with Love in a Cold Climate, Nancy Mitford had published three novels. Two of these made record sums in a recent Stansted sale.

A standout portrait entry to Essex saleroom Sworders (23% buyer’s premium) was a 4ft 2in x 3ft 4in (1.26 x 1.01m) oil on canvas portrait attributed to Francis Cotes (1726-70).