News topics

Surrey auction firm Fryer & Brown Auctioneers is set to be struck off the UK company register after it ceased trading in January.

A Petworth dealer has been the victim of a £2200 ‘card not present’ debit card fraud.

A famous military name always in demand at auction is Richthofen. However, the two lots sold at Dickins Auctioneers (19.5% buyer’s premium plus VAT) on March 31 related not to the Red Baron of Great War fame, but to his cousin, Generalfeldmarschall Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen (1895-1945).

Hans Christian Andersen did not confine himself to the fairy tales that are his principal and lasting legacy.

A rare version of one of the most popular of Beswick farm figures, a shire horse in a piebald gloss finish, pulled its weight at The Auction Centre (16% buyer’s premium) in Runcorn on March 18.

In the debate about transparency of auctioneer fees, sparked by the Advertising Standards Authority December 2016 ruling that buyer's premium needs clearer promotion, the point of view of vendors needs to be heard too, three letter writers argue.

A large, late work by JMW Turner appears at Sotheby’s on July 5 with an estimate of £15-25m.

A judge has ruled against a London gallery over the seizure by UK Border Force of a Chinese silver tea set containing a tiny quantity of elephant ivory.

Special forces memorabilia making special prices is not a top-secret scenario in the militaria world. The appetite is always high for the exploits of small elite units where bravery and hair-raising tales are the norm.

A classic Second World War British Commando 2nd pattern Fairbairn Sykes fighting knife sold with scabbard for £550 at Hansons (17.5% buyer’s premium) on March 21 against an estimate of £100-120.

Tangible mementos of the dark years of 1940-45 were offered at a St Peter Port sale held by Martel Maides (17.5% buyer’s premium) on March 15-16.

With the major names of the pioneers beyond the purses of most admirers of Cotswolds School furniture, works by Sir Gordon Russell are steady sellers and 16 pieces offered at Mallams (20% buyer’s premium) all found buyers on March 16.

A 50 ducat medal commemorating the end of the Russo-Persian war was worth far more than its weight in gold at Künker (23% buyer’s premium) in Osnabruck in the March 13-17 sale.

Daniel Quare (1648-1724) is primarily known as a clock and watchmaker. He was, however, also an accomplished maker of portable barometers, one of which came up for sale at Dorotheum (25/22/15% buyer’s premium) in Vienna on March 29.

Three articles recently published in ATG focused on the sale of a painting and in each case the key issue was authenticity. Here, lawyer Milton Silverman provides advice, including legal precedent, on how auctioneers can avoid disputes relating to authenticity as a result of misattribution.

This is an edited version of an open letter by Anthony Coleridge, chairman of Christie’s South Kensington (CSK) 1987-2001, to Christie’s owner François Pinault (see also news, ATG No 2287, for Christie’s response).