Print Edition

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.

Shirley Mueller is a US neuroscientist, author and Asian art collector focused on Chinese export porcelain. Her book 'Inside the Head of a Collector: Neuropsychological Forces at Play' has recently been published.

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.

Linda and Stephen Marsh, trading as Marsh Vintage Salvage, are among the dealers at Fairfield House Antiques Centre in Cockermouth in the Lake District.

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’).

MADAM – Re: Old Bank Antiques’ appeal for information about its ‘Swiss Scene’ (Letters, ATG No 2425).

‘Long and intensive build-up’ on Facebook brings in younger buyers to one-day event, writes Jeremy Carson.

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.

Our weekly selection from salerooms.

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.

It’s a hectic time for Bournemouth-based fair organisers Chris Brown and Geoff Fagan of Grandma’s Attic Fairs as they reorganise their fairs portfolio following their acquisition of the family-run Emmott Promotions.

On Friday, January 17, Michael Bloomstein of Brighton was paying the following for bulk scrap against a gold fix of: $1556.06 / €1339.52 / £1193.21

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’.