Print Edition

Two 1859 firsts of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species…, neither in what could be called good condition, made very strong prices in recent weeks. This is a book nowadays so desirable that such shortcomings can be overlooked.

Important works of European sculpture were stars of the London auction season’s highpoint last week.

The July Old Master auctions in London were a mixed affair with the lack of blockbuster lots meaning the overall total was down on the levels of the last two years.

An archive relating to three Suffragette sisters has been bought at a Hansons auction by a well-known dealer in memorabilia.

This red coral necklace had formed part of The International Fisheries Exhibition staged at the Royal Horticultural Society grounds in South Kensington in 1883.

A selection of wristwatch previews.

New auction records were achieved for two of the four Scottish Colourists in the space of a week.

The north-south divide has thrown up some interesting trends that intrigue Arthur Swallow Fairs director Richard Burgoin.

Antiques street markets and fairs are a boon to local businesses, a popular and lively addition to any small well-visited town, particularly in the summer when these are buzzing with tourists.

ATG’s selection of auction lots bought by internet bidders on thesaleroom.com from the period June 28-July 4. This includes both the highest prices over estimate and the top prices paid online.

As the market develops, some of the ‘secondary’ niche Swiss brands have entered the mainstream collecting arena. The Bonhams (25% buyer’s premium) Fine Watches and Wristwatches sale on June 20 offered a range of 46 Heuers from a single-owner private collection.

This Egyptian revival gold, enamel and gem-set collar necklace below established a new record for the jewellery of Marie Zimmermann (1879-1972) at Rago in Lambertville, New Jersey (25% buyer’s premium) on June 10.

Air-conditioned Masterpiece London concluded its ninth edition last week after running from June 28-July 4.

An inscription reading “For Mrs Oliver, from Beatrix Potter – with kind regards & best wishes for Christmas 1901” was a welcome bonus on a copy of the first, privately printed edition of The Tale of Peter Rabbit.

A selection of wristwatch previews.

Art dealer James Freeman specialises in contemporary classicism, focusing on artists who rework art-historical sources to reflect current perspectives. His gallery is in Camden Passage, Islington.

Australia gains three new auction houses as specialists go it alone in Melbourne

The government’s imminent ivory law change has forced an international collectors’ conference to pull out of London and move overseas.

Unmistakably the work of the Viennese avant-garde, this gem-set silver plated table clock sold for €205,000 (£186,000) at a recent sale held by the Rotterdam auctioneer Vendu Notarishuis.

The antiquarian book trade is lobbying for changes to the proposed EU law designed to crack down on imports of cultural goods ‘more than 250 years old’.