Auctioneers

Some time in the early 1930s, the burghers of Norwich City Council appear to have been sufficiently cutting-edge as to purchase furniture by the designer destined to become one of the major names of 20th century design, Alvar Aalto (1898-1976).

Two first-edition versions of George Orwell’s 'The Road to Wigan Pier', the first part of which is an investigation into the working-class living conditions in Lancashire, Yorkshire and the industrial north, were published in 1937.

A label to this 21 x 16½in (53 x 42cm) print reads 'Photograph of the Moon, taken by Prof Henry Draper, MD, with a silvered glass Telescope, Fifteen and a Half Inches Aperture, Hastings NY September 3rd 1863'.

Our weekly selection from salerooms and dealerships.

When it comes to 20th century furniture female designers are a rarity. Some folk still think ‘Ray’ Eames – real name Bernice – was a man.

A private single-owner collection of around 180 lots from one vintage photographer was the subject of a recent sale held by Chiswick Auctions (25% buyer’s premium) in London.

A personal tribute to Michael Bing by Simon Berti, formerly of Auction Technology Group.

Heuer watches, steeped in racing history, are among the ‘secondary’ or ‘niche’ Swiss brands that have entered the mainstream collecting arena in the past decade.

The recent Modern Living sale at Tennants (20% buyer’s premium) was dominated by ‘Mouseman’ furniture, something of a speciality at the Leyburn rooms.

The financial highlight at Lyon & Turnbull’s (25% buyer’s premium) inaugural Modern Made auction at the Mall Galleries in London was provided by an auction record for Malaysian Modernist painter and poet Abdul Latiff Mohidin (b.1938).

Previously unpublished sketches and letters by the American artist and traveller George Catlin (1796-1872) attracted multiple bidders at Forum Auctions in London.