Collectables

The term ‘collectables’ (or collectibles) encompasses a vast range of items in fields as diverse as arms, armour and militaria, bank notes, cameras, coins, entertainment and sporting memorabilia, stamps, taxidermy, wines and writing equipment.

Some collectables are antiques, others are classed as retro, vintage or curios but all are of value to the collector. In any of these fields, buyers seek out rarities and items with specific associations.

Libertas Americana silver medal

Rare Libertas Americana silver medal sells at Newcastle auction

24 July 2025

A fine example of the Libertas Americana silver medal sold for £63,000 at Anderson & Garland’s Fine Silver and Objects of Vertu auction in Newcastle this week.

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‘What am I bid for… my own lots?’ Toys sale includes Bunny Campione's bunnies

21 July 2025

Renowned consignor and Antiques Roadshow specialist invited up to the rostrum in Newbury

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Quaker connections outlined in a fascinating collection sold at auction

21 July 2025

Manuscripts underline the overlapping lives of families in northern England and their extensive travels

Books and works on paper auction calendar, July 23 to August 19, 2025

21 July 2025

Our regular listing of UK and Irish books and works on paper sales

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Pre-20th century dolls delight today’s collectors

21 July 2025

Described as “rare and exquisite” when it came up for auction at C&T (22% buyer’s premium), an early painted carved wooden doll lived up to her billing.

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The Left Bank with dust jacket is just right for buyer

21 July 2025

A first edition copy of 'The Left Bank and Other Stories' by the Dominican author Jean Rhys (1890-1979) and 'Portrait of New York' by Cecil Beaton (1904-80) were offered together at Ewbank’s (25% buyer’s premium).

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CS Lewis sleeper reveals Malvern and Moore link

21 July 2025

A group lot of works by or pertaining to CS Lewis performed rather better than its modest guide at Scottish firm Taylors Auction Rooms (26% buyer’s premium).

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The Waste Land – as typeset by Woolf

21 July 2025

While TS Eliot’s poem 'The Waste Land' had appeared in book form in the US in 1922 – and in two magazines the same year – the edition published by Leonard and Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press in Richmond, Surrey in 1923 was the first in the UK.

Rosebud sledge

Citizen Kane Rosebud sledge makes record sum at auction

18 July 2025

The sledge becomes the second most-valuable piece of movie memorabilia ever sold

The New Galloping Horse Carriage

Huge collection of antique prams comes to auction in Wiltshire

15 July 2025

The antiques and vintage sale at Gardiner Houlgate in Corsham on July 31 includes the Swift collection of antique prams.

Silver inkwell

Pick of the week: Renowned collector Dailey adds ear of a war horse to his purchases

14 July 2025

The latest Homes & Interiors sale at Sworders included an extraordinary and highly personal relic from the Waterloo battlefield: a silver-mounted inkwell made from the ear of a war horse.

Leica 0-series

News in brief including a rare Leica prototype camera selling at auction

14 July 2025

A round-up of art and antiques news from the previous seven days, including a Leica camera taking a six-figure sum in Austria

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‘Critter’ bookends and Doulton mask make for lively sale

14 July 2025

Back in July 2019, Lawrences in Crewkerne set a new high for a Mouseman carving when a pair of elephant bookends by master carver Stan Dodds (1928-2012) sold at £10,000.

Umayyad gold dinars

Set of gold dinars coming to auction reveal that 77 is the magic number

14 July 2025

On July 23 London-based specialist coin and medal auction house Morton & Eden is offering a complete set of 56 Umayyad gold dinars dating from years 77 to 132 in the Hijra calendar (696-750AD).

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Herbert and Huxley classics in original jackets taken to record results at Heritage Auctions

14 July 2025

A recent rare books sale at Heritage Auctions (25% buyer’s premium) in the US delivered strong performances for a handful of coveted 20th century firsts in dust jackets.

Books and works on paper auction calendar, July 16-August 5, 2025

14 July 2025

Our regular listing of UK and Irish books and works on paper sales

Enamel advertising sign for Union Castle

Sign of the times: Union Castle enamel advert sails to UK’s second highest price

11 July 2025

A large maritime-themed advertising sign featuring the passenger liner Capetown Castle sold for £22,000 at bottles and advertising specialists BBR Auctions on July 6.

Life and Landscape on the Norfolk Broads

Rare copy of Victorian photograph book makes £40,000 at Roseberys

11 July 2025

Discovered buried in the back of a closet in the US, a rare surviving copy of Peter Henry Emerson’s 1886 work ‘Life and Landscape on the Norfolk Broads’ sold for £40,000 at Roseberys today.

Leica 0-series model, number 112

Leica prototype takes seven-figure sum

10 July 2025

A Leica prototype camera took a hammer price of €6m (€7.2m including premium) against an estimate of €1.5m-2m at an auction in Austria.

Neil Lanham

New book goes behind the scenes in the auction world over the past 70 years

09 July 2025

Auctioneer Neil Lanham publishes a “chronicle of country life, auctioneering and world record prices spanning more than 70 years”

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