West Midlands

Individually, watches which the War Office commissioned from 12 Swiss makers during the Second World War are not as highly rated as other military watches – but as a set they are a holy grail for British collectors.

IACF is to take over the running of the antiques and collectors’ fairs held in Bingley Hall at the Staffordshire County Showground.

Guided at £200-400, a pair of 17th century British school portraits (one pictured below) went on to fetch £1150 each at Halls (20% buyer’s premium) of Shrewsbury.

'Antiques for Everyone' held in Birmingham’s NEC is targeting new and returning exhibitors with a two-day weekend option.

Australian enthusiasts did much to buoy up the Royal Doulton market in its 1990s pomp. And one such fan certainly did his bit to bring some life to what can now be a weak market by consigning a choice collection of Lambeth, flambé, Burslem and prototype wares to Kingham & Orme (20% buyer’s premium).

Taken in June 1905 on the River Helmsdale in Sutherland, the very northern and wildest tip of Scotland, is this image, below, of two men fishing.

Huanghuali furniture in the form of a late Ming/ early Qing ping tou-an (recessed legs table) starred in the Oriental section of Brightwells’ (17.5% buyer’s premium) sale in Leominster.

LS Lowry’s industrial northern English city scenes, populated with his trademark ‘matchstick’ figures, have inspired many artists. Chief among them was Brian ‘Braaq’ Shields (1951-97), dubbed ‘Liverpool’s Lowry’.

A look at how specialist events at Knebworth and Solihull are now under the same banner.

Art Deco and Art Nouveau sculptures may be one of the categories most at risk under the impending ivory sales ban, but at the recent Antiques for Everyone Fair (April 5-8) a dealer in that field reported no change as a result.

On song at Stratford-upon-Avon, a late 19th century French automaton musical bird soared beyond the £1000-1500 estimate at Bigwood (19% buyer’s premium).

An estimate of £120-150 was never going to do for a lot in a Leominster sale of March 28 that was catalogued, in full, as “STEIN, Sir Aurel, Serindia, a Detailed Report of Explorations in Central Asia and Westernmost, four vols, and a box with maps (5)”.

Provenance played a key role in the performance of a small group of pictures formerly owned by one of Australia’s biggest artists, Sidney Nolan (1917-92).

An oil on copper painting depicting Saint Joseph by the Bolognese artist Gaetano Gandolfi (1734-1802) was the highlight of Brightwells’ spring fine art sale in Leominster on March 21-22.

Harking back to when the Netherlands was a powerful player in the tea trade, a rare, early 18th century silver caddy attracted international interest at Halls (20% buyer’s premium) of Shrewsbury.

The venerable Antiques for Everyone (AfE) fair is still open to change in its 33rd year. The next edition runs from April 5-8 at Birmingham’s NEC, hosting around 200 dealers who offer items to fit a variety of tastes, functions and wallets.

Bac To Basic Antiques brings a special display of First World War commemorative pottery to this edition of the Antiques for Everyone fair.