Collectables

A round-up of art and antiques news from the previous seven days, including the book collection of the late Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts being offered at Christie's.

Shown here is a copy in Latin of the 'Quirtii Horatii Flacci' opera, 1823, presented by Charles Dickens to his Latin tutor Richard Shiers (mentioned in a book titled 'The Life of Charles Dickens', p45).

'Antipodum, nobis, incognita': how a great southern land is labelled (“the Antipodes unknown to us”) in one of the first mentions in print.

Our listing of UK and Irish auctions taking place on thesaleroom.com

The SS Normandie was both the apogee and the nadir of the Art Deco movement.

Businessman Nigel Ross runs a group of commercial property investment companies and divides his time between homes in England and Florida with business trips to New Zealand and elsewhere.

Album of watercolours by mysterious but talented Indian artist takes £90,000 at Scottish saleroom

The practice of presenting gold and enamel swords and freedom boxes, already popular in England in the 18th century, became more widespread during the Napoleonic Wars.

Art Deco had a profound influence on all categories – not just art, sculpture or luxury furnishings but also on the design of more utilitarian items.

This is one of the very first batch of standard barographs produced by Richard Frères of Paris.

Our listing of UK and Irish auctions taking place on thesaleroom.com

An amazing penknife proved a cut above in a sale from the David Hayden-Wright collection of antique knives offered at west London saleroom Olympia Auctions.

The Harrison semi-automatic pedestal knitting machine was designed c.1900 for producing rib socks.

The HMV 900 was one of first television receivers designed by the Marconi-EMI Television Company, the firm that also provided the technology for Britain’s first television service.

Tintin creator Hergé (1907-33) must have taken a shine to a Mr TL Ward, judging by a lot sold at an East Yorkshire auction.

Induction coils used to produce high-voltage pulses from a low-voltage direct current, are often called Ruhmkorff coils although studied by Michael Faraday in the 1830s

A telephone exchange removed from Buckingham Palace during refurbishment 25 years ago sold in west London for £3000.

Like many scientists and eminent thinkers of the time, Isaac Newton was also a devout Christian who thought deeply about religious matters, as a manuscript sold at auction in New York reveals.

A lucernal microscope is a rare survivor.