Auctioneers

The auction process is a key part of the secondary art and antiques market.

Firms of auctioneers usually specialise in a number of fields such as jewellery, ceramics, paintings, Asian art or coins but many also hold general sales where the goods available are not defined by a particular genre and are usually lower in value.

Auctioneers often provide other services such as probate and insurance valuations.

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‘Dora's’ sampler brings demand in Bath auction

13 March 2026

The New Orphan Houses in the Ashley Down district in the north of Bristol were once the largest orphanages in the UK.

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The Midas silver touch from the great van Vianen

13 March 2026

London numismatic auction house Morton & Eden (23% buyer’s premium) sold a silver plaquette by the great Dutch silversmith Paulus van Vianen (1570-1613) for £130,000 at a recent sale.

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Not on the front line – but first rate gallantry medals are still highly collectable

13 March 2026

Latest result for a ‘not in the face of the enemy’ award underlines how such honours have become a popular collecting field

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‘Ammunition Smith’ Rorke’s Drift medals coming up for sale in London

13 March 2026

If you look closely at both Lady Butler and Alphonse de Neuville’s paintings of what is probably the most famous British colonial action of the 19th century – Rorke’s Drift – you can pick out a man with a long, thick red beard wearing a blue tunic.

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Under siege in the First Boer War and proud of an improvised flag

13 March 2026

Despite the brief cataloguing of lot 129 in the Ellis Willis & Beckett (21.5% buyer’s premium) sale, the £4200 hammer price on February 17 indicated that bidders had fought it out for something special.

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Saffron well done: ‘bachelor’s’ teapots made a rather diferrent brew

13 March 2026

Across the Georgian period a number of diminutive ‘bachelor’s’ teapots were produced that were probably intended for brewing saffron.

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Egypt brought to life in just two dimensions

13 March 2026

The artist Joseph Lindon Smith (1863-1950) is considered one of the most important figures in 20th century American Egyptology.

The Cornfield by John Constable

Texas museum’s Constable ‘copy’ now revealed as an autograph work ahead of auction

12 March 2026

A previously unknown study for The Cornfield by John Constable is being offered by Heritage Auctions in June.

Clare McAndrew

Global art market returns to growth but sales remain below 2022 peak

12 March 2026

The art market grew 4% in 2025 with an estimated $59.6bn of global sales. The rise follows two consecutive years of declining values.

Detmold illustrations for The Jungle Book

Rediscovered Jungle Book watercolours make £100,000 at Roseberys

11 March 2026

Two ‘lost’ illustrations from a celebrated edition of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book sold for a combined £100,000 at south London saleroom Roseberys on March 10.

Christie's CEO Bonnie Brennan

Chippendale out, Ive in – Christie’s unveils new rostrum design

10 March 2026

Christie’s has replaced its traditional Chippendale-style rostrums with a new version designed by Sir Jony Ive and made by furniture maker Benchmark.

Henry Moore’s King and Queen

Henry Moore’s King and Queen sculpture headlines Christie’s evening sale

06 March 2026

A large scale Henry Moore (1898-1986) sculpture drew intense bidding at Christie’s latest evening sale of 20th and 21st century art.

Marbles In Box

How Sir Barnes Wallis found his marbles and created the Bouncing Bomb for the Dambusters

06 March 2026

Set of marbles used in experiments by the renowned inventor ahead of Operation Chastise stars in a remarkable collection coming up for auction in West Sussex

Dreweatts

Dreweatts reveals record turnover for a UK provincial auction house

06 March 2026

Dreweatts has posted a 26% jump in annual turnover for 2025.

Goblet

Rare Dutch glass goblet sails in to take €50,000

06 March 2026

Rediscovered during a routine valuation, a wheel-engraved glass goblet by master engraver Jacob Sang (1720-86) has sold at auction in the Netherlands.

Flower by James Bateman

Forum Auctions to sell last stock from Dutch dealership

06 March 2026

With the recent retirement of Allard Schierenberg and Jeanne van Bruggen, the remaining stock of Dutch dealership Antiquariaat Junk will be sold at auction.

Print of Wiltshire thatcher Lot Long

Thatcher who became a Led Zeppelin album cover star

06 March 2026

Described as “a remarkable convergence of Victorian social history and 20th century musical heritage”, a gelatin silver print of the Wiltshire thatcher Lot Long sold for £16,000 (plus 20% buyer’s premium) at Denhams in Warnham, West Sussex on February 25.

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Modern British art: An art critic’s own taste tested

06 March 2026

Sale of more than 300 works amassed by former journalist for The Times attracts a wide range of interest

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Cornish studio pottery from renowned dealer brings demand at Lay's

06 March 2026

The latest sale of Cornish Art, Fine Art & Studio Pottery at Lay’s (21% buyer’s premium) in Penzance featured 85 lots from the personal art collection of Michael Hunt.

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Modern British artworks head from Preston to Dorset via a descendant

06 March 2026

A group of seven works that were once part of the collection of noted connoisseur and scholar Kerrison Preston (1884-1974) came to a recent auction held by Duke’s (25% buyer’s premium) in Dorset.

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