Latest News Articles by Roland Arkell
Photos cover imperial visits in the days of the Raj
16 October 2023The opening two lots of Gorringe’s (25% buyer’s premium) Fine Art & Antiques sale on October 3 were leather-bound albums of photographs from British India.
Intimate photographs of the young Edward VIII star in our pick of five auction highlights
13 October 2023ATG’s weekly selection of items that caught bidders’ eyes includes a pair of portrait photographs linked to a mistress of Edward VIII.
Pick of the week: Cabinets hint at Grendey grandeur
09 October 2023A spectacular pair of English giltwood and lacquer cabinets emerged for sale in Germany.
Ann Forbes portraits show natural talent of an artist excluded from formal training
09 October 2023While the Dundee-born painter Catherine Read (1723-78) is considered the first Scottish women to work as a professional artist, a close second was Ann Forbes (1745-1834).
An Art Nouveau design by a woman silversmith is among five lots to watch
09 October 2023With estimates from £600, here are five previews of items coming up at auction this week.
EH Shepard’s ‘silly old bear’ Winnie-the-Pooh still delivers the big prices
09 October 2023When Ernest Shepard was first recommended to AA Milne in 1923, the author had originally deemed him unsuitable.
Carry ‘the brains of a genius’
09 October 2023The British scientific author David Salomons (1851-1925) – one-time owner of the world’s largest private collection of Breguet watches and clocks – said “to carry a fine Breguet watch is to feel that you have the brains of a genius in your pocket”.
Clocks: Time for a folk tale
09 October 2023Nineteenth century English clock adorned with Dick Whittington designs leads a look at horological hammer highlights and previews
Samuel Johnson letter located and bought by UK institution at auction
09 October 2023While its existence was known, the whereabouts was a mystery until a routine house valuation
Charlie Watts books sale: it’s all over now
02 October 2023Christie’s sale Charlie Watts: Gentleman, Collector, Rolling Stone combined stardust with an extraordinary library of modern first editions.
Elizabethan goblet good to go after further examination
02 October 2023Following examination by a committee of experts and testing at Goldsmiths Hall, an Elizabethan silver and porcelain goblet comes to auction.
Ivory seal deemed to be of ‘outstanding’ value comes to Cirencester auction
02 October 2023The sale at Moore Allen & Innocent on October 11-12 includes a series of personal items relating to William Duke of Clarence, later William IV (1765-1837).
An English School portrait at the Robert Kime sale is among four lots to watch
02 October 2023With estimates from £4000, here are four previews of items coming up at auction this week.
Whitefriars Drunken Bricklayer – a classic on paper
02 October 2023Recent sales at Fieldings (26% buyer’s premium inc VAT) in Stourbridge have included elements of a cache of working drawings from the Whitefriars factory.
Baxter’s tangerine dream became reality in Whitefriars form
02 October 2023Geoffrey Baxter’s Banjo vase, part of the Whitefriars’ Textured range, was released in a range of three colours in 1967.
Monart Scottish and Spanish combo rivalled French art glass
02 October 2023Spanish and Caledonian talents combined to create the highly colourful Monart range
A cameo appearance for Art Nouveau
02 October 2023A selection of French Art Nouveau glass coming up for sale at sales in the UK and Germany. Bidding is available via thesaleroom.com.
Paolo Venini and Fulvio Bianconi: two titans of Italian post-war glass
02 October 2023Inspired by Carlo Scarpa’s use of murrine glass in the 1930s and 1940s, Paolo Venini (1895-1959) designed a number of vessels in the 1950s that have become classics of post-war Italian design.