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A painting by the pioneering Indian abstract artist Vasudeo S Gaitonde (1924-2001) led Sotheby’s anniversary sale of Modern and Contemporary South Asian Art in New York when it sold for a hammer price of $1.5m (£1.25m) against a $1m-1.5m estimate.

The most popular stories on this website over the last week included news of major changes to the auctions and fairs calendar, as well the theft of three valuable Old Master paintings stolen in raid on an Oxford college.

ATG’s selection of hammer highlights this week includes an 18th century creamware mug that evokes the hysteria that greeted the Catholic Relief Act of 1778. It sold for over 12-times estimate.

Sunbury Antiques Fairs, organiser of Kempton and Sandown fairs, has postponed the next scheduled dates of both events due to coronavirus concerns.

A cache of pocket watches, unseen on the market for close to a century, sold for £145,000 in Surrey today.

Arts Council England has appointed the Institute of Art and Law to help form new guidance for institutions around the thorny issues of restitution and repatriation of cultural objects.

IACF, the UK’s largest fair organiser, has cancelled flagship events in April and May as “the health of our stallholders and loyal buyers is our absolute priority” during the coronavirus crisis.

The BBC’s Antiques Roadshow valuation days have been postponed in light of the UK’s government’s advice about the holding of public events.

The online auction house Paddle8 has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York.