Collectables

The organisers of the Bamberger Kunst-und Antiquitätenwochen (art and antiques weeks), which run until August 22, thought long and hard about whether to hold this year’s event in light of the pandemic.

Letters written by Nelson to his wife make obvious his esteem for Captain Sir William Hoste KCB (1780-1828)

Medals awarded to a recipient who served in three very collectable units sold for £14,000 at British Bespoke Auctions (22/15/12.5% buyer’s premium).

On a single day in 1919 the Imperial German Navy achieved the impressive feat of sinking 52 vessels. Unfortunately, they were its own ships.

This first-hand document recording one of the most significant naval events of the Second World War was offered at Catherine Southon (20% buyer’s premium) in Surrey this summer.

A small fragment of a significant airship comes up for auction at Spicers in Old Goole, East Yorkshire, to mark a tragic centenary.

One of the prisoners to survive the horrors of the Changi camp in the Second World War was an art school dropout who later became a renowned illustrator.

The near ubiquitous ‘Dead Man’s Penny’ of the First World War becomes a rarity should the recipient be female.

This 15th century copy of the Life of St Radegund is an illuminated biography of the canonised sixth-century Frankish queen Radegund.

The Galloways were a distinguished Victorian military family, as a number of items sold at Bishop & Miller (22% buyer’s premium) revealed.

This impressive Baroque chess set by the Danzig amber artist Michel Redlin has returned to the city of Gdansk in Poland where it was made over 300 years ago.

One of only two known copies of the first edition of the rules of football printed by the world’s first football club came to auction at Sotheby’s on July 21.

Set of tools was designed specifically to take apart rather than create fine textiles

Swann’s sale of vintage posters in New York on August 5 will include this poster from 1919 designed by Charles Loupot to advertise Mekka cigarettes.

Thousands of items are available to buy from dealers online. Here we pick out one that caught our eye this week.

After a succession of virtual fairs, the Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association (PBFA) has announced the return of its first live event in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, on July 30-21.

Set of urban views takes £220,000 in a sale where ornithological works also impressed

Toucans were the avian best-sellers in a recent sale held by Freeman’s (26/20/12% buyer’s premium) of Philadelphia.

A group of bird books were a feature of a sale held by Thomson Roddick (18% buyer’s premium) in Carlisle.