Latest News Articles by Roland Arkell
Praise be to Codd: Bulb neck bottle sells in Warwick
06 March 2026It has been estimated there are between 500 and 1000 different types of marble-in-neck mineral water bottles based on the famous 1872 patent by Hiram Codd.
Jewellery: How 'transformable' combination designs can be broken down to suit any occasion
06 March 2026Inventive pieces that can be broken down into modular elements – transformable jewels – began with the French parure in the court of Louis XIV.
Sublime Swiss design in the form of a music box
06 March 2026A recent sale at Halls (24% buyer’s premium) in Shrewsbury included an exceptional Swiss music box: a Sublime Harmony orchestral music box by George Baker & Co, Geneva.
Holbeinesque jewellery: Inspired by the Northern Renaissance
06 March 2026Holbeinesque is the term used to describe Victorian jewellery inspired by the Northern Renaissance and the jewels shown in the paintings and sketches of Hans Holbein.
Stanley Webb Davies furniture taken to new price territory in North Yorkshire
04 March 2026A chestnut bedroom suite by renowned Lake District furniture maker Stanley Webb Davies has sold for a total hammer price of £26,100 at Tennants in Leyburn.
Dealer Paul Fitzsimmons' 'Life in Oak' told through 700 lots at Woolley & Wallis
27 February 2026Woolley & Wallis is conducting a single-owner sale of early furniture and sculpture over two days on March 10-11. The auction, titled Paul Fitzsimmons – A Life in Oak, offers 708 lots from the proprietor of specialist oak dealership Marhamchurch Antiques that opened in Devon in 1991.
Letters at auction recall reign of tragic ‘Nine Day Queen’ Lady Jane Grey
27 February 2026An extremely rare survival from the nine-day reign of Lady Jane Grey, one of the more dramatic episodes in English history, came to market on February 25.
Painting showing archduke's gallery visit now attributed to Antwerp artist after research
27 February 2026After receiving a photograph of this 17th century Dutch genre painting, Lille auctioneer Hugues Watine contacted Old Master specialist Cabinet Turquin.
Date of first ceramics sale in Devizes is set
27 February 2026A new sale for the ceramics and glass department at Henry Aldridge & Son in Devizes is coming soon.
Dresser to impress: chairs take £56,000
20 February 2026This pair of Aesthetic Movement ebonised and gilt salon chairs designed by Christopher Dresser (1834-1904) sold for £56,000 at Gildings in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, on February 17.
Padamsee prime period work comes for sale
20 February 2026A newly discovered prime period work by Indian Modernist Akbar Padamsee (1928-2020) comes for sale at Roland Auctions in New York state on March 28.
Harry Davis designs for Royal Worcester bear up well at auctions
20 February 2026Of all the many subjects painted by Harry Davis (1885-1970) during his long and celebrated tenure at the Royal Worcester factory, among the rarest and most desirable are polar bears in an Arctic landscape.
Ceramic Highlander was made in the Lowlands
20 February 2026From the 1770s Portobello was one of the main centres of industrial ceramic production in Scotland.
Quality tea caddies and sugar box rise above a scrap value rating
20 February 2026So much silver has sold based solely on melt value of late. One wonders exactly how many decent antiques and collectables will have been lost once the bubble has deflated.
Gold medal winning performances in the regions
20 February 2026Spotlight on awards that brought rewards for vendors in three separate sales
‘Mum went out to buy a coat but got a Lambeth delft candlestick instead’
20 February 2026Dealer from a Cotswolds family business acquired English tin glazed earthenware as a personal interest