Europe

When he was 24, Carl Blechen abandoned his intended profession as a banker and devoted himself to painting.

Old Master and Daumier artwork, bronze figure and Italian porcelain all on offer over three days

Star of the show at Auktionhaus Heilbronn’s (21.7% buyer’s premium) latest sale of tinplate toys was a rare three-carriage Märklin train from the Rheinuferbahn, the line from Cologne and Bonn along the banks of the Rhine.

In the early years of the 20th century toy trains made in Germany were also aimed at the British domestic market, eagerly sold by retailers such as Gamages.

Among the attractions at Nagel’s auction of Asian art on December 9 in Stuttgart is a blue and white imperial vase from the Kangxi period (1662-1722).

Les Enluminures has sold a thousand-year-old Giant Bible of St Maximin to the National Library of Luxembourg for €4.5m (£3.735m)

The second instalment of Meissen porcelain from the collection of German businessman Hadrian Maria Oskar Merkle (1942-2018) was sold at a recent sale at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr of Paris.

A rare enamel advertising sign in almost perfect condition was the biggest eye-catcher at the recent dedicated sale held by specialist Pari (20% buyer’s premium) in the Bavarian city of Aschaffenburg.

An early pocket watch by Abraham Louis Breguet with the low serial number 104 was one of the highlights of a recent watch sale at Cortrie (21% buyer’s premium) in Hamburg.

The latest edition of FAB Paris (Fine Arts La Biennale) takes place in the French capital from November 22-27.

Like his younger brother Lorenzo, Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (1727-1804) learnt his art in the studio of his father Giovanni Battista Tiepolo.

For those looking for a city break that brings culture, history and a chance to browse a carefully curated and wide range of art and antiques, it might be an idea to hop over to the Netherlands while 'PAN Amsterdam' is taking place.

For many decades, from the middle of the 16th century, the south German city of Augsburg was, alongside Nuremberg, the leading clockmaking centre in Germany.

From the 14th century onwards, locksmith guilds were well established in major cities throughout Europe.

Mid-17th century piece of furniture bought in a Berlin saleroom in 1928 sells again in the German capital

Depictions of birdcages on Delft tile-pictures or plaques are not exactly common, but they are not nearly as rare as actual ceramic cages from the Dutch manufacture.

Around 1621, the Flemish painter Frans Francken II created a type of Who’s Who of mythological couples, when he painted his 20in x 2ft 1in (50 x 64cm) 'Triumph of Love' on a copper panel.

In the 18th century, it was common practice for English watchmakers to spend several years in Paris where they were able to learn from the greatest craftsmen of the day, before returning home.