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The sale of furniture and decorative arts at Hindman in Chicago on February 11 includes these two late 19th century gadget canes, both mounted with the insignia of British army regiments.

One fascinating section of a recent Thomas Del Mar (25% buyer’s premium) sale featured Stone Age and Viking weapons and artefacts from a European private collection.

The English artist and poster designer Alfred Thomson (1894-1979) painted this eye-catching depiction of the famous penguin pool at London Zoo.

The fact that Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) regularly made use of a magnifying glass is noted by biographers and underlined by references found in his letters.

Items from the homes of MJ Long (1939-2018) and Colin ‘Sandy’ St John Wilson (1922-2007), the husband and wife team that designed the British Library, come for sale at Sworders in Stansted Mountfitchet later this month.

A round-up of art and antiques news from the previous seven days, including a copy of William Shakespeare’s 'Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies', often referred to as the ‘First Folio’, being offered at Christie’s New York.

A harbour view of Maryport in Cumbria by Victorian artist William Mitchell (1806-1900) topped the lots at local saleroom Mitchells (20% buyer’s premium).

Our regular listing of British and Irish book auctions.

The Old Master paintings section of the sale taking place at Doyle in New York on February 5 will include this large and imposing portrait of Pauline Bonaparte, the younger sister of Napoleon.

Two spectacular early-19th century British presentation sabres have turned up in the salerooms recently, one in London and the other in Munich.

The limited, but international, appeal of a remarkable collection of about 350 Victorian hand-painted glass eyes was clear at East Bristol Auctions (18% buyer’s premium).

Pocket guide to pleasure stimulates in Staffs and saucy memoir excites bidders in Yorks.

This watercolour drawing by Charles Addams was one of the more successful lots in a December 10 Illustration Art sale held by Swann Galleries (25/20/10% buyer’s premium) in New York.

The most interesting recent art world case to find its way to trial, with judgment given in December 2019, was Sotheby’s vs Mark Weiss Limited (‘MWL’) and Fairlight Art Ventures Limited (‘Fairlight’).

Among the very earliest printed works sold at auction at the end of last year was a beautifully illuminated Biblia Latina printed in August 1462, just seven years after the great Gutenberg Bible.

Thousands of items are available to buy from dealers online. Here we pick out one that caught our eye this week.

Among the more inspired catalogue cover illustrations featured in the end-of-year book auctions was one produced by Bonhams (27.5/25/20/13.9%) for a December 4 sale.

Sotheby’s holds the first of its New York series of Old Master paintings and drawings at the end of January with its Masters Week sales running from January 24-31.

MADAM – I am a regular user of various online sites that facilitate distant bidding. I have noticed a huge disparity between auction houses that recognise that the bigger the audience, the greater chance of higher prices for the lots on sale – and therefore the chance of increased buyer’s premium earnings – and those that seem to regard bidders using delivery services as a cash cow to be milked through ‘shipping costs’.

A collection of Irish glass built in the 1930s by artist Jean (Musgrave) Jameson was topped by a pair of c.1800 flat-cut urns and covers Adam’s (23% buyer’s premium) of Dublin.