Record sales at June Fine Art auction
RICHARD Winterton Auctioneers are delighted to report a record sale at The Lichfield Auction Centre, writes Sarah Leedham.
With 496 lots on offer, the majority of which had been consigned from several local vendors, it attracted buyers from all over the world, bidding strongly both in the room, over the phone and via the internet.
Jewellery was the first section to be offered under the hammer with diamonds dominating the top selling lots. The star lot being an impressive early 20th Century bar brooch (pictured above, top) with an estimated total diamond weight of 5.00ct, despite strong interest from a phone bidder it was eventually sold in the room at £4900. A beautiful early 20th Century double row graduated diamond bracelet (pictured above) which was much admired during the viewing made £2100.
The front cover of the sale catalogue featured an early high-quality fountain pen (pictured above) with Japanese lacquered decoration, known as a pre-Dunhill Namiki lake and hillside takamaki-e, it featured scenes of landscapes and sailing vessels and with an 18ct nib, a real rarity, two phone bidders took it to a final selling price of £7000.
Wrist watches and pocket watches were one of the most keenly contested sections of the auction and provided the second highest price of the sale with a Gent’s Omega Speedmaster professional wrist watch (pictured above) taking £9000, an 18ct gold English open face pocket watch dated London 1899 took £3700, an 18th Century silver verge fusee pocket watch with silvered dial in poor condition raced past its estimate to achieve £2800. Many other pocket and wrist watches sold for figures from £400 to £2500. Although collecting antiques is often regarded as a hobby for an older generation it was noticeable that the watches and pocket watches were appreciated by many different generations.
Almost 100 lots of silver went under the hammer next with 97% of the lots sold. Top price was for a mid-19th Century Chinese silver snuff box of rectangular form by Khecheong of Canton (pictured above), finely decorated with figures on horseback, figures in a garden and fishing scenes, flying past the estimate of £200-300 before selling at £1150.
Another item of note was a silver and enamel compact in the form of an acorn (pictured above) which sold at £680.
Ceramics and glass were much in demand, particularly Oriental pieces but the highest selling lot in this section at £900 was a small Royal Worcester plaque (pictured above) dating to 1922, hand painted by H. Ayrton with a copy of Fragonard’s The Fair-Haired Child, with a diameter of 10cm it proved small is beautiful. Also, worthy of mention was a Chinese celadon and white enamelled dish taking £680 and a Chinese Famille Verte fish bowl making £620.
Investing in high quality wine, whisky and spirits is a continuing trend and two lots showed that this buoyant market continues with 92% of lots sold. The top price paid was £420 for a bottle of Martell Corden Bleu cognac in a Baccarat crystal decanter and presentation case (pictured above) and £300 for a bottle of 1939 White Horse Cellar Whisky.
Two stand-out lots from the works of art section of the sale were a 19th Century copy of a 17th Century gilt metal square table clock (pictured above) with a striking and repeating mechanism, even copies are rare to come to the market and this example made £3600.
From the same vendor came a 20th Century German silver gilt singing bird automaton music box (pictured above), with a hammer price of £2100.
The stand out lot amongst the furniture and pictures was a seven-piece Anglo-Chinese rosewood suite of chairs and settee (pictured above), with five telephone bids booked and interest in the room and on the internet, it was no surprise when it took top hammer price of the sale at £10,000. The intricate detail of the carving was exquisite and featured dragons, foliage and animals. Another example that quality will always sell well.
The next Fine Art sale is to be held at The Lichfield Auction Centre on 19th September commencing at 10.00am, it will include sections of items relating to country pursuits and modern design, entries close on 10th August. For further details call the office on 01543 251081.
You can watch some video highlights from the sale on our Facebook page.