Features


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Trenchers celebrating a 17th century marriage bid to $16,000

25 February 2019

This set of English painted sycamore trenchers were a wedding gift to Roger Simpson and his bride Mary in 1625 from their cousin. Each plate has an inscription that includes either the bride’s or groom’s name alongside verses about love, sex and marriage.

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William III miniature coffee pot sells at Vogel sale for $4800

25 February 2019

The Vogels bought 17th and early 18th century silver from How of Edinburgh, SJ Phillips in London and Shrubsole in New York.

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Market undulations for English delft and Staffordshire highlighted at Pelham Olive auction

25 February 2019

Pictured here are three pieces from the Pelham Olive collection sold by Bonhams on January 31. Two are early English delft and are prize examples because they are inscribed and dated. The third is an example of Staffordshire slipware.

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At face value: coins and medals sales recover after 2017 dip

18 February 2019

It is a quarter of a century since ATG’s first overview of London’s numismatic auction market. Here we review the heads and the tails of 2018.

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Hammer highlights: 11 coins and medals that struck gold in 2018

18 February 2019

ATG’s selection of 11 coins and medals lots that were among the highlights sold at UK auctions in 2018.

Lalique

Lalique love affair: Large glass collection first took off with a sparrow paperweight

11 February 2019

Group amassed over 20 years now going under the hammer at Bonhams is attracting worldwide interest from would-be bidders.

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Alfred Jewel discovered again

11 February 2019

Among the more eagerly contested entries to the Woolley & Wallis (25% buyer’s premium) sale on January 24 was a late 19th century replica of the Alfred Jewel: the great example of Anglo-Saxon goldsmithing found in Somerset in 1693 and today one of the most popular exhibits at the Ashmolean Museum.

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10 jewellery highlights at auction for winter 2019

11 February 2019

A selection of 10 stand-out jewellery lots offered at auction in February-April 2019.

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Rare timepieces from wartime in Penzance and West Sussex

11 February 2019

A rare Longines centre seconds military wristwatch – a type developed in 1944 for the rigours of airborne work by the Research & Development team of the War Department – sold for a multi-estimate £11,200 at Barbara Kirk (15% buyer’s premium) in Penzance on November 27 last year.

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Memento ring of the last Jacobite to be executed for treason sells in Chichester

11 February 2019

A local family that could trace a clear line back to the 1750 was the consignor of this gold, white enamel and citrine mourning ring to Henry Adams in Chichester.

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The ‘new’ market appeal of the tiara

11 February 2019

Deemed a little ostentatious in some circles, tiaras have enjoyed a surge in popularity in recent years, particularly in Russia and the Baltic states where jeans and a diamond fascinator are de rigueur at informal high-society events.

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The rivière’s endless flow at auction

11 February 2019

The rivière – one of the most popular and enduring styles of necklace to come out of the Georgian period – features an endless line of matched or subtly graduated gems set within inconspicuous collets.

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The many ‘fearless’ faces of Edith Weber: highlights from the jewellery sale at Skinner in Boston

11 February 2019

The opening 96 lots of the sale at Skinner (23% buyer’s premium) in Boston on December 4 were from the stock of the former New York dealership Edith Weber Antique Jewelry.

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Bonhams director of jewellery predicts continued growth in emerald prices

11 February 2019

Jean Ghika, global director of jewellery at Bonhams, closed out 2018 on a positive note.

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Burmese sapphire brooch brings its rich seam to Cumbria

11 February 2019

Sapphires have been mined in Burma (now Myanmar) for over a millennium, the stones admired for their colour saturation and dark hues.

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Remarkable pieces of Australian gold rush era jewellery appear at UK sales

11 February 2019

Gold rush era jewellery from Down Under is a rare visitor to UK salerooms but, remarkably, several pieces have appeared for sale in recent months.

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Masterworks by titans of French Art Deco jewellery design bring demand at Christie’s in Paris

11 February 2019

Pictured here are two exceptional pieces of Art Deco jewellery sold by Christie’s Paris (25% buyer’s premium) for multi-estimate sums on December 4.

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From Roman to retro: 12 jewellery highlights from Grays Antiques Market

11 February 2019

Although the centre never closed during the Crossrail project, as that work winds down Grays Antiques Market now has a fresh chance to showcase the many exceptional dealers based in the Edwardian building on Davies Street in London. As one might expect near Bond Street, period jewellery, from Roman rings to 1970s retro, is the main stock in trade.

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Iron lady’s press coverage: a collecting journey from Borneo to Japan

04 February 2019

In the latest of our occasional series of collector interviews, we talk to Penny Savill who collects irons, buttonhooks and jigsaw puzzles. She recently co-ordinated Pressing Matters, a display of irons presented by members of the British Iron Collectors group at the Art & Antiques for Everyone Fair at the NEC in November.

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Arms and armour: Prized pistols tempt collectors at auction

28 January 2019

Pistols remain one of the most popular of all categories among gun collectors and the winter sales in London proved a bumper season for handguns, from the earliest wheel-locks of the late 16th century to the semi-automatics which ushered in the modern age at the end of the 19th century.

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