UK

Members of the British Antique Dealers’ Association (BADA) have called for an extraordinary general meeting as some dealers reacted with anger and confusion at news that the association’s flagship London fair had been sold.

Estimated at £400-600, a Chinese porcelain vase was bid to £1.3m at an auction in Hampshire last week.

This Italian marble bust of an emperor, catalogued as 17th century after the antique, provided a moment of saleroom drama at Sworders’ Fine Interiors auction in Stansted on September 10.

George du Maurier (1834-96) joined the staff at Punch magazine in 1865, drawing two ink cartoons a week until his eyesight deteriorated in 1891. His most common targets were the affected manners of Victorian society and Britain’s growing middle class in particular.

A gold, jade and rock crystal model of a sedan chair by Fabergé was hammered down at £380,000 last week – a new house record for a Gloucestershire auctioneer.

English furniture dealership Apter Fredericks has closed the doors of its Fulham Road gallery after 73 years and will now focus its efforts online and at fairs.

A set of 12 silver plates by Gilbert Marks, offered by The Peartree Collection, were among the stand-out sales from the opening hours of the LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair.

‘The fair needs to develop. It was time to bring in a broader range of expertise and knowledge’ says BADA chief Marco Forgione

Entered by a vendor who hated them, a pair of 6in (15.5cm) long 19th century nutcrackers reflected in their way two different aspects of auctioneering today: how smaller country firms see their future and what will happen to antique ivory items when most of the trade in them is banned.

A busier than usual summer for the local housing market appeared to boost both vendor consignments and bidding at Market Harborough auctioneers Gildings (18% buyer’s premium).

The second published work of the ‘flower book lady’ has no other auction appearance

Will Fisher runs Jamb on London’s Pimlico Road where he deals in antique and reproduction fireplaces and lighting.

Marking 20 years in business, Clark Art is holding a show featuring works by some of the key artists it has championed across two decades.