International (print edition)

Falling-ball or falling-globe clocks are great horological rarities; only about 30 examples are thought to have survived since their construction in the second half of the 17th century.

In the extensive sale of October 22-25, Wendl in Rudolstadt will be selling the second tranche of the porcelain collection amassed by Kurt Adelsberger.

A late 19th century marble figure of David with the Head of Goliath at his feet was one of the stars at Neumeister (30% buyer’s premium) in Munich this autumn.

Example made in Gujarat or Goa goes to a Portuguese buyer

Among the countless designs that Josef Hoffmann, the Viennese architect and multi-talented driving force behind the Wiener Werkstätte, executed during his long career was a bowl with two scroll handles, sometimes described as a centrepiece.

On January 1, 1901, the German inventor Eduard Thürey applied for a patent for his typewriter design, the layout of which was completely different to all previous forms of writing machines.

In the 1950s-60s, the Yamazaki Gangu company, which traded under the internationally more recognisable name IY Metal Toys, was one of the leading Japanese producers of tinplate toys.

Although the tradition of wood-carving existed in the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge) in eastern Germany since the 1100s, it was not until the 19th century that the production of intricately crafted wooden folk-art became a fully fledged house industry.

Influenced by the English drape suits favoured by the Duke of Windsor, the zoot suit was all the rage among disfavoured youths in Second World War-era USA.

A remarkable silver oyster tureen with cover and stand hammered for $26,000 (£19,150) at Leland Little (20% buyer’s premium) in Hillsborough, North Carolina.

The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab is perhaps the most notorious of all mid-century toys.

US bidders show great appetite for early 20th century display slabs hailing from the UK

This English mahogany hall bench dating from the first quarter of the 19th century sailed well above estimate at a sale in New Milford, Connecticut.

Long before it became the signature for the 1955-62 television show Alfred Hitchcock Presents, the director had perfected his self-portrait: an economic sketch of his profile rendered in just a couple of lines. Hitchcock would regularly draw and sign them for fans.

American actor, singer, dancer, director, and photographer Joel Grey (b.1932) is perhaps best known for his portrayal of the master of ceremonies in both the Broadway and film versions of the musical Cabaret.

A hand-coloured engraving of an Anglo- American naval battle in 1779 hammered for $5200 against a $1000-1500 guide at Swann Auction Galleries (25% buyer’s premium) in New York City.

Bidder was determined to secure items from their old house

Jean-Étienne Liotard (1702-89) made his name creating rococo pastel portraits of the European elite. However, in his formative years as a painter he had harboured loftier artistic ambitions as a history painter.

Sigismund III Vasa (1566-1632) was a man of many parts. His father was King John III of Sweden; his mother Catherine was the daughter of King Sigismund I of Poland.

Vase and clock produced around the same time nevertheless display significant design variation