Auctions

News and previews of art and antiques sold at auctions throughout the UK and overseas, from multi-million-pound blockbusters to affordable collectables.


The Happy Family

‘Mysterious’ collection of 18th-century French paintings comes to auction

08 January 2026

A group of 30 Old Masters, including pictures by Fragonard and Watteau, held in a private collection for decades and rarely seen in public will be offered at Christie’s Paris this spring.

Wilde (1)

Extensive Oscar Wilde collection to go under the hammer

07 January 2026

A huge single-owner collection of Oscar Wilde letters, books and portraits is going under the hammer at Bonhams next month.

head study of a bearded man

Bidders overlook condition issues as drawing flies to 50 times estimate in Gloucestershire

06 January 2026

Despite suffering from water damage, wear and loss to the sheet as well as chips and cracks to the later 1950s-style frame, a head study of a bearded man brought intense competition at a recent sale at Wotton Auction Rooms.

Microscope

Dutch buyer secures another British microscope for his museum of science

05 January 2026

A rare Georgian brass microscope by Edinburgh maker John Clark will join an important Dutch collection after its sale in the Cotswolds.

Ronald Searle illustration

Do book collecting terms fox you? Pick up a Searle at auction

05 January 2026

An original illustration for one of the most entertaining works on rare book collecting hammered for £15,000 to lead Mallams’ latest Modern Art & Design auction.

Mamluk manuscript

Pick of the week: Mamluk manuscript gallops to £150,000

05 January 2026

An ‘exceptional and newly discovered’ Mamluk manuscript copy of an Arabic text on hippiatry (equine medicine) was the highlight of Lyon & Turnbull’s latest Islamic and Indian art sale in London.

Venison dish

More than 1000 lots from Cumbrian castle offered at Tennants

05 January 2026

An extensive collection of art, antiques and silver from Corby Castle, one of Cumbria’s most historically important mansion houses, will go under the hammer in a three-day sale at Tennants from January 22-24.

Gabriel Loppé mont blanc

Gabriel Loppé alpine scene is among five lots to watch

05 January 2026

With estimates from £200, here are five previews of items coming up at auction this week

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Andy Pandy and friends fascinate older fans

05 January 2026

An original Andy Pandy string puppet from the BBC children’s TV show of the same name first aired in 1950 caught the attention at a Kent auction 75 years later.

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Punk band Discharge were championed by Peel

05 January 2026

John Lennon, Yoko Ono and U2 were among the big names making big prices at the John Peel Collection Part One auction held by Omega (25% buyer's premium) back in September (see ATG No 2708).

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Bust follows style of sculptor and ‘nose breaker’ Torrigiano

05 January 2026

When a 16th century white marble bust of an elderly man with a furrowed brow and resolute gaze came up for sale at Nagel (29.5% buyer’s premium) in Stuttgart, it was clear that more than one bidder was confident of knowing either the identity of the artist or that of the subject.

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Adelsberger part 2 all sold as German collector's porcelain impresses once again

05 January 2026

Every one of the 300 vases and figures from German collection gets away on the day

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Not a ticket to ride for Paul McCartney but a licence to drive yourself

05 January 2026

Paul McCartney famously sang ‘Baby, You Can Drive My Car’ with the Beatles but he could clearly drive himself.

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Good heavens, what a useful case to own

05 January 2026

An astronomical compendium sold at Rehm (22% buyer’s premium) in Augsburg contained everything that a 16th or 17th scholar of the heavens needed for observations.

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Handwritten lyrics lead to reflections on Hendrix

05 January 2026

These two pages of working lyrics for the Jimi Hendrix song Room Full of Mirrors (which later appeared on his 1971 album Rainbow Bridge) are handwritten on Londonderry Hotel, Park Lane, stationery.

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Style contrasts of Wiener Wërkstatte

05 January 2026

It was little surprise that Kinsky (25% buyer’s premium) in Vienna was given the legacy of Michael Kovacek, a specialist dealer in Art Nouveau and Art Deco, to sell.

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Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham dressed to impress

05 January 2026

When a pinstripe suit came up for auction at West Midlands firm Fieldings (26% buyer’s premium inc VAT) it had an interesting consequence.

Books and works on paper auction calendar, January 7-25, 2026

05 January 2026

Our regular listing of books and works on paper sales

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Bounty hunter Boba Fett tracked his prey with a First World War flare gun

05 January 2026

Boba Fett – one of the most feared bounty hunters in the known galaxy – was one of six hired by Darth Vader to capture the crew of the Millennium Falcon, and eventually caught up with them in Cloud City (ATG is not sure a spoiler alert is needed for early Star Wars films...).

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Perfect for serving a bottle of lovely jubbly bubbly perhaps

05 January 2026

Described by Fieldings (26% buyer’s premium inc VAT) of Stourbridge as “by repute used on the set of Only Fools and Horses”, this Mid-century cocktail bar came for sale guided at £500-600.

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