Decorative Art

The Art & Design post 1880 sale at Duke’s in Dorchester on April 25 included 44 lots of William De Morgan tiles consigned by descendants of Arthur James Balfour (1848-1930), Earl of Balfour and prime minister from 1902-05. He is understood to have bought them directly from De Morgan in Fulham.

A round-up of art and antiques news from the previous seven days, including a blue plaque adorning the Shelton home of ceramicist Clarice Cliff.

An auction of traditional European decorative arts at Sotheby’s New York (20/10% buyer’s premium) on April 16 included this New Zealand Arts & Crafts presentation casket.

Russian porcelain is still in demand, especially those early Soviet-era pieces from the years following the Revolution.

The March 14 sale at Willow Auction House (25% buyer’s premium) in Lincoln Park, New Jersey, included a New York private collection of leaded and stained-glass panels.

Turtle soup, which first became a delicacy on European tables with the emergence of the West Indies trade in the 18th century, was hugely popular among the elite of American society at the turn of the 20th century.

Richard Burtonshaw launched his sold-out Premier Glass Fairs event last year at the Ruskin Glass Centre in Stourbridge and now he’s back in the Midlands on Sunday, May 12.

Abell’s (25% buyer’s premium) sale in Los Angeles on April 17 included a spectacular Art Nouveau vase from the workshop of French ceramicist Clement Massier.

A Copeland vase produced to mark 100 years of American Independence was among the highlights of the second tranche of the Flower collection of majolica.

European dealers and collectors competed for pieces of 18th century Transylvanian silver which were on sale at the 300th auction of Dr Fischer (30% buyer’s premium) in Heilbronn, Germany.

A substantial piece of Edwardian silver which has served both as a wine cistern and a racing trophy was the most expensive piece of silver in Tennants’ (24/20% buyer’s premium) dedicated auction of jewellery, watches and silver.

A table bell was among the more sought-after lots in a dedicated 200-plus lot silver sale held by Roseberys (26/25/20% buyer’s premium) on March 20.

These two pieces share a common Aesthetic-movement style and a link to the influential and avant-garde designer Christopher Dresser

A highlight of Anderson & Garland’s (25% buyer’s premium) recent silver sale was a particularly early and rare North Country seal top spoon.

It was a piece of modern design that led Kinghams’ (25/18/15% buyer’s premium) latest dedicated sale of silver and objects of vertu.

We first met Rod over 40 years ago when we both dabbled in the flea markets of the North West. Rod was forming his business from tiny seeds and we were trying to make a little profit to feed our habit (collecting pots!).

This early 20th century 10in (25cm) long sporran impressed in Edinburgh at Franklin Browns (18% buyer’s premium).