South-west England

This 21in (54cm) wide ‘Indo-Portuguese’ ivory inlaid hardwood fall front cabinet sold for an extraordinary £43,000 at Lawrences of Crewkerne.

Irishman Harry Clarke (1889-1931) made his reputation as a book illustrator whose work straddled the passing Art Nouveau and the coming Art Deco movements.

Many of the best decisions in life are taken over a glass or two of wine and so it was with Toby Lorford and Lesley Ferguson of Lorfords Antiques in Tetbury who have opened an antiques hub in a vast old RAF hangar nearby.

Distressing footage of a female staff member at a Devon antique shop being grabbed by a robber has been released in an attempt to track down the man

Salisbury Museum is hoping to host a remarkable hoard of Bronze Age jewellery in a new gallery set to open this summer.

This Worcester mug c.1754-55 proved the highlight of the Raymond Dennis collection of early English porcelain sold by Woolley & Wallis of Salisbury.

This ice pick belonged to the explorer James W. Dell who accompanied Scott on his first effort to reach the South Pole in 1901-04, serving as an able seaman aboard the ‘Discovery’.

Estimated at just £200-300, a set of four early 20th century Chinese famille rose porcelain plaques depicting the four seasons in mountainous settings were bought by a phone bidder from Shanghai for £420,000 at Charterhouse of Sherborne in Dorset.

It turns out that a pair of three-foot pricket candlesticks, an advertising sign and a heavy convex mirror are not the easiest things to transport with only two hands on the London Underground at rush hour. In fact, the kindness of strangers becomes crucial.

The first stand-alone tribal art sale held by Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury was topped at £44,000 by this 19th or early 20th century Yombe seated figure from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

ATG’s 10 Questions with Sarah Seccombe of Blighty Antiques and Interiors, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

More than 1000 lots are on offer at Chorley’s two-day sale on February 20-21 at Prinknash Abbey Park, Gloucestershire.

The prize consignment of paintings, sketches, ceramics and ephemera produced by key members of the Rhead family of potters, offered by Bearnes, Hampton & Littlewood in Exeter on January 22-23, comprised 117 lots in all.

It was the most important consignment of work by the Rhead family to come onto the market in years. But would the respect in which the remarkable dynasty of potters are held translate into remarkable prices?

The art market in the New Year traditionally gets off to a rather slow start with just a scattering of fairs, dealer shows and auctions taking place in the first half of January.

The second tranche of ceramics, paintings, sketches and ephemera produced by various members of the Rhead family of potters was sold at the latest fine art sale held by Bearnes, Hampton & Littlewood in Exeter.

Duke’s of Dorchester will offer this 9in (23cm) shell made by Lino Tagliapietra (b.1934), a master glass blower in Murano, at auction next month.

This novelty flask in the form of a shoe features in Barbara Kirk’s forthcoming Antiques & Collectors Items Auction in Penzance.

Optimism permeated the UK’s regional auction market across much of the last year.

Dorchester auctioneers Duke’s have unveiled plans for a new saleroom in the heart of the county town.