UK

The United Kingdom accounts for more than one fifth of the global art market sales and is the second biggest art market after the US.

Through auctioneers, dealers, fairs and markets - and a burgeoning online sector - buyers, collectors and sellers of art and antiques can easily access a vibrant network of intermediaries and events around the country. The UK's museums also house a wealth of impressive collections

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‘The dust and mud of humanity’

26 May 2020

In 2017, this lost portrait miniature of a young Dickens emerged at an auction in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa where it sold together with some household goods for the equivalent of £27.

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Dickensiana: 13 lots relating to Charles Dickens sold at auction in recent times

26 May 2020

A selection of prices for a wide range of Dickensiana sold at auction in the last three years.

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Men of letters: Dickens and Burns light up works on paper parade

25 May 2020

Two outstanding works on paper – a letter by Robert Burns and a page from the manuscript for Charles Dickens’ 'Pickwick Papers' – headline the June offerings across the field of books, maps and prints.

Supreme Court the final option in Ivory Act case

25 May 2020

Dealers and collectors of antique ivory will seek to take their case to the Supreme Court after the Court of Appeal rejected their latest challenge to the Ivory Act 2018.

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Pick of the week: Shedding golden light on an Iron Age ruler

25 May 2020

The original names of the gold coins used by the indigenous tribes of Celtic Britain are unknown but collectors have dubbed them staters after the Greek coins that inspired them.

PBFA online fair to go monthly

25 May 2020

The Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association (PBFA) is planning an unlimited succession of virtual fairs starting on the 29th of each month as it adapts to a world without traditional fairs.

Paul Nash drawing

Paul Nash drawing and a model train among four lots to watch at auction this week

25 May 2020

With estimates from £3000-60,000 here are four previews of upcoming items this week.

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Antiquities get ahead of the rest

25 May 2020

Among the top-estimated lots at the Lyon & Turnbull (25% buyer’s premium) sale of African & Oceanic Art, Antiquities and Natural History in Edinburgh on May 5 was a hammered bronze Apulo-Corinthian helmet from southern Italy, c.350-500BC.

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Alastair Gibson offers antique fans in timed online sale

25 May 2020

Gibson Antiques, owned by director of FACT Alastair Gibson, is selling a collection of antique fans at auction.

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Scandinavian silver showcase in Sussex

25 May 2020

Svend Hammershøi (1873-1948), younger brother of painter Vilhelm, is best known as a ceramicist but he was also a silversmith.

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One giant leap for auctioneers

25 May 2020

Covid-19 crisis has launched the art and antiques world into technological exploration

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Lockdown period leads to increased number of first-time bidders

25 May 2020

The migration to online sales that has occurred during the lockdown has brought about some noticeable changes to the art market. These include, not least, the profile of buyers at auctions.

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Big tick for scroll container

25 May 2020

This 3ft (91cm) high hard-sided 'tik', or Torah scroll container is representative of the type used in the Sephardic tradition.

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Affordable art: Three works sold for under £1400 including a Pierre de Clausades landscape

25 May 2020

Three modestly valued works selling at regional sales including a landscape by French artist Pierre de Clausades that sold over estimate.

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Buyer tracks down a Lely lookalike

25 May 2020

This portrait that emerged at the March 18 auction at Halls (20% buyer’s premium) of Shrewsbury appears to be closely based on Sir Peter Lely’s (1618-80) portrait of Mary II as a young girl that now resides in the Royal Collection.

German imperial presentation box from Wilhelm II

German imperial snuff box and Banksy screenprint are among five auction highlights that caught bidders’ eyes

22 May 2020

ATG’s selection of hammer highlights this week includes a German rococo revival snuff box which was a gift from Kaiser Wilhelm II to a loyal courtier that made five-times estimate.

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National Gallery acquires trio of 18th century pictures from late art patron via tax scheme

22 May 2020

The National Gallery has taken ownership of three pictures by 18th century greats Jean-Etienne Liotard, Thomas Gainsborough and Sir Thomas Lawrence.

Gold price hits record high in the UK

21 May 2020

An all-time high for gold was recorded in the UK this week as investors looked to the traditional safe haven of the yellow metal at a time of grave economic uncertainty.

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Portobello Road to become traffic-free to enable social distancing for shoppers

20 May 2020

Portobello Road will close to traffic during weekday trading hours to allow more room for shoppers and visitors.

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Export-blocked 18th century harpsichord bought by Gainsborough’s House museum

20 May 2020

A harpsichord that was sold at The Canterbury Auction Galleries in 2018 to a US buyer and later barred from export by the government has been saved for the nation by Gainsborough’s House museum.

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