News

Quotes this week include reflections on an important guitar now going under the hammer and a rare, 500-year-old box.

The granddaughter of silver dealer George Paterson is to launch an antique fair in Tunbridge Wells in April to raise money for the hospice where her grandfather spent his last weeks.

Pub names can provide a snapshot of British history. Many years ago now, while subsisting on cheese on toast at a university hall of residence in south London, I was fascinated by the name of a nearby boozer called the George Canning.

ATG’s selection of hammer highlights over the past week include a pencil collection, a rare candlestick and an Arts and Crafts brooch.

Contraptions from the past can be fascinating, whether designed to save time or entertain.

An unusual painting of a fishing boat by Egon Schiele (1890-1918) will be auctioned at Sotheby’s in London next month.

Collecting often leads to a certain obsession, as many enthusiasts with attics filled to burst or garages stuffed with boxes will admit. Take the example of a group now forming 700 lots to be dispersed at an Irish sale.