News

THE only problem with a number of highly-collectable Doulton pieces put into the January 30 sale at Dorking held by Crow’s Auction Gallery (10% buyer’s premium) was restoration, and estimates reflected this.

For The King’s Pleasure. The Furnishing and Decoration of George IV’s Apartments at Windsor Castle, by Hugh Roberts, published by The Royal Collection, distributed by Thames & Hudson. ISBN 1902163044 £75 hb

French billionaire quits battle over auction market: Backed by a dotcom businesswoman and an investment bank, two auctioneers last week bought the majority stake in Phillips de Pury Luxembourg from luxury goods group LVMH.

THE policy of these Cheshire auctioneers, Maxwells, to hold a decent sale in January rather than in the crowded period before Christmas generally pays off, and did so this year although, that said, the local associations of the top seller would probably have resulted in a good price at any period.

British Art Market Federation lobbying has persuaded the Department of Trade and Industry to provide grants for 13 LAPADA members to exhibit at a Chicago antiques fair.

CLARION Events, the organising arm of Olympia, have appointed Dan Gorton, 34, as fair director for the three annual Fine Art and Antiques Fairs.

The value of toy trains is rarely tied to world events, but this Märklin 00 gauge replica of a London Midland and Scottish railway locomotive was manufactured by the German toy firm for export to Britain in 1938.