West Midlands

The Antiques for Everyone fair is dubbed by the organiser as “a barometer for what’s in vogue with collectors, interior decorators and furnishers”. So what are dealers to do when pressure for their offerings slackens?

From the moustache spoon and the nose-shaping device to the washing machine, the period following The Great Exhibition of 1851 was a time of prolific invention in the UK.

Held in Staffordshire this Saturday (July 15) is the annual Old Hall Collectors’ Club Fair.

Dendritic agate – a pale chalcedony with treelike inclusions caused by traces of iron or manganese – is a relatively lowly stone but was a favourite of Russian jewellers in particular. Carl Fabergé used it in many pieces in a country where it is considered a stone of longevity, good health and prosperity.

A Sèvres teapot from the Louis-Philippe era sold for an unexpected £13,000 (plus 20% buyer’s premium) at Kingham & Orme in Broadway, Worcestershire, on June 17.

A group of five 8in (20cm) William de Morgan (1839-1917) tiles drew lively competitive bids at Cuttlestones in Wolverhampton on June 8.

Fully booked with 90 standholders at the luxury Chateau Impney Hotel at Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire is Two C’s Antiques Fairs’ summer fair on Saturday and Sunday, June 17-18.

In 1953 Pan Am Airlines approached Rolex with a request for a watch that could show the time simultaneously in two different time zones.

A view of Ludlow Castle is one of the works included in Miles Wynn Cato’s ongoing exhibition.

Shropshire auction of wares from short-lived ‘niche’ factory proves to be a good market test...