Auctioneers

A rare photograph from the funeral of Victorian explorer Dr David Livingstone (1813-73) comes to auction in Essex this summer.

The lost art of murrine - the creation of complex patterns by fusing together slices of coloured glass cane - was rediscovered by glass blowers in the Venetian lagoon in the late 19th century.

The sell-off of works once owned by failed art gallery Trinity House Paintings has begun with Sir John Lavery’s portrait of Mrs Geoffrey Birkbeck being sold at a Dreweatts auction.

It’s not often that a group of medals offered at auction includes two that were in fact officially revoked. However, a lot that appeared at an East Yorkshire auction house on June 27 reflected a notorious tale of colonial corruption.

A robe worn by magician and comedian Tommy Cooper (1921-84) during the performance in which he which he suffered a heart attack and collapsed on stage has been sold at a North Yorkshire auction.

This unusually large giltwood figure of Guanyin, the Chinese goddess of compassion and mercy, attracted numerous bidders to Nagel’s (24.5% buyer’s premium) sale of Asian art on June 6-7 in Stuttgart.

Railway locomotive nameplates can bring large sums in the saleroom, even when they are included in general rather than specialist auctions.

A fine Indian Kashmir shawl of intricate traditional design offered in Colchester included a sewn label 'Horatia E Erskine, June 26th 1861 (Indian) from H.M. Queen Victoria'.

A “very rare” First World War pair of medals and memorial plaque to a female casualty of the SS Lusitania came up for auction at Mayfair saleroom Noonans (24% buyer’s premium) on July 16.

A riverside view of Lindsey House in London’s Cheyne Walk drew decent interest at a recent Bonhams (28% buyer’s premium) sale but ended up selling for markedly less than its last auction appearance 10 years ago.

Etymologist buys a glossary which provides a rich seam when it comes to English language changes

Builder’s ship models are exactly the kind of old-school exhibits that museums are hiding away in dusty storage or selling off. Fortunately for auction houses, they are instead being welcomed into collections by eager buyers.

The A 1971 Austin J40 pedal car is a relatively common sight at auction and the best tend to make around the £3000-5000 mark. For an example to make more than that it would have to be something very special.

The only known portrait of the inventor Reverend Edward Barlow (1639-1719) was sold by Bath horology specialist Gardiner Houlgate (20% buyer’s premium) earlier this summer.

A signed postcard of Oscar Wilde from an image by Alfred Ellis of Baker Street impressed in a timed online sale at Cheffins (25% buyer’s premium).

During Edward Belcher’s fruitless two-year search for the lost Franklin expedition from 1852-54, many attempts were made to communicate with Inuit hunters in the hope they would have news of Franklin’s men.

Hard to believe perhaps in today’s glamorous world of the Champions League, but the great Ferenc Puskás (1927-2006) and Real Madrid once graced the turf of Scottish football club Kilmarnock.

Even though the Austro-Hungarian monarchy was abolished in 1918, there is still no shortage of nostalgic buyers for memorabilia and relics from the House of Habsburg.

Morphy Auctions will take over Old Toy Soldier Auctions (OTSA) following the death of founder Ray Haradin.

As with many popular film and TV brands such as James Bond and The Avengers, manufacturers were eager to cash in on Thunderbirds with an array of merchandise.