South Tyneside

Antiques business takes root in a former chicken house/mushroom farm

Well placed in Tyne & Wear to receive a number of miners’ safety lamps from the old Durham and Northumberland coalfields, Boldon Auction Galleries (17.5% buyer’s premium) was presented with something of a mystery in the form of the lamp pictured here.

The stylish Art Deco pottery figures for which Ars Lenci became celebrated were first shown at the Turin international exhibition in 1928.

Ceramics commemorating the coronation of Edward VIII are less rare than often supposed, having been produced in abundance before the coronation was aborted. Most bring relatively small sums.