Latest News Articles by Roland Arkell
Napoleon hailed as Caesar in sculpture form earns his laurels at £23,000
23 January 2026This marble sculpture of Napoleon as Caesar is based on a model created by the French neoclassicist Antoine-Denis Chaudet for the Sèvres porcelain manufactory in 1810.
Georgian candle wall lights survive to go electric on sale day
23 January 2026The highlight of the latest Country House sale held by Duggleby Stephenson (25% buyer’s premium) of York was the part contents of the Kirkham Hall estate in North Yorkshire.
New York auction extravaganza includes ingots dubbed Australia’s first gold ‘coinage’
16 January 2026Some of the rarest coins in world numismatics were sold at auction in New York last week. Auction sessions spanning seven consecutive days (January 12-18) were held as part of the annual New York International Numismatic Convention, the US’s largest and most prestigious numismatic event known as NYINC.
More kitchenalia on offer across the board in Canterbury
16 January 2026More pieces from Britain’s biggest collection of breadboards were sold by Canterbury Auction Galleries (25% buyer’s premium) at the end of last year.
Early model by clockmaker Vulliamy flies over estimate in Hampshire
16 January 2026Cases boasting bronze lions decoration proved popular and were produced for two decades
Don’t hurry, urged Archibald Knox with his clocks
16 January 2026This diminutive and rare clock from the Liberty & Co Cymric range is The Sigurd (model No 579), a typical Archibald Knox creation named after the dragon-slaying hero of Norse mythology.
North-east focus as banknote sales return
16 January 2026Stanley Gibbons Baldwin’s is holding a British & World Banknotes sale on January 29, its first for several years.
Silver to savour: two examples of Caribbean creativity emerge in a rather colder climate
16 January 2026Although 17th and 18th century Jamaican silver is some of the rarest colonial plate, two small waiters sold at auctions in the north of England in as many months.
Glory days of a Gold Rush town reflected in a scarce photograph
16 January 2026This ambrotype of a California Gold Rush town sold for £1500, six times the top estimate, as part of the Winter Fine Sale at Hartleys (20% buyer’s premium) in Ilkley on November 26.
Carrick gunner and Thornycroft archer sculptures targeted in west London
16 January 2026A highlight of the sale of European Works of Art, Objects & Silver at Olympia Auctions (25% buyer’s premium) in west London was The Gunner by Scottish monumental sculptor Alexander Carrick (1882-1966).
Set of 12 Chinese export pictures portrays a production line of porcelain
09 January 2026A set of 12 Chinese export pictures depicting the manufacture and distribution of porcelain was among the highlights of a recent sale held by Nadeau’s in Windsor, Connecticut.
Bought for buttons, now worth £48,000
09 January 2026Bought for just £40 last year, two rare bronze buttons designed by Alberto Giacometti for Elsa Schiaparelli hammered for £48,000 at the latest Modern Decorative Art & Design sale at Bonhams Knightsbridge.
Penguin egg picked up by Ponting
09 January 2026An Adelie penguin egg collected by Herbert Ponting (1871-1935) on the ill-fated Terra Nova expedition came for sale in Nantwich on January 8.
Bridesmaid’s York Rose brooch rated all white by buyer
09 January 2026One of the eight York Rose brooches given by Prince Albert to the bridesmaids who attended his marriage to Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon in 1923 sold for £15,000.
'Exceptional' vases boast a Brighton Pavilion link bonus
09 January 2026This imposing pair of 3ft 8in (1.09m) high hexagonal form vases combine both early 19th century Chinese and later 19th century French craftsmanship.
Early Christmas cards deliver festive cheer for a surprised vendor
09 January 2026Prompted by the uniform penny post and the new printing process of chromolithography, the Victorian era was the heyday of the Christmas card.
Sale brimming full of character thanks to Doulton designs
09 January 2026Doulton figures and jugs depicting the famous and not-so-familiar include sought-after rarities
Kashmiri shawl was given by Victoria as a present
09 January 2026As ruler of an empire on which the sun never set, Queen Victoria adopted the Indian practice of giving Kashmiri shawls as gifts to visiting dignitaries and coming-of-age and wedding presents to her friends at court.
