Sofa

Hindman’s (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) furniture and decorative arts sale in Chicago on October 18 was headlined by furnishings from the estate of Michael L Wilkie, a prominent Chicago businessman.

While traditional antique furniture prices are still relatively cheap, contemporary and mid-20th century material continues to be an expanding market.

Pairs of Regency sofas brought some very comfortable sums at two Scottish auction houses as the autumn season began last week.

According to family history, an Art Deco four-piece suite offered by Mander (20% buyer’s premium) in Sudbury on July 9 has an ocean-going history.

The furniture and works of art sale at Crewkerne auction house Lawrences (25% buyer’ premium) on January 21 included a set of George II walnut seating furniture with an excellent provenance.

It was in the wake of the Great Fire of London in 1666 that the first societies were created to protect against the losses caused by fire.

The second day of Bellmans’ (22% buyer’s premium) sale on August 3-5 included a Chinese hardwood table that catapulted way above its £1000-1500 estimate.

A tobacco pipe which opened the series and an opium one which ended it – interspersed by a cigar stub – met keen demand at Bellmans (22% buyer’s premium).

In a sale that yielded quality and surprises in most sections, the major talking points at Stride & Son (18% buyer’s premium) were provided by two pieces of furniture. Emerging from the same house and given here-to-sell estimates, both achieved five-figure results.

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

Featuring in the same two-day auction as a £7000 cache of Beatrix Potter ephemera found in a Cumbrian Victorian villa which had made national headlines, this less-heralded sofa impressed at 1818 Auctioneers (17.5% buyer’s premium).

Two pieces of seating furniture which no early 20th century wealthy middle-class home would have lacked went comfortably over estimates at sales from Hampshire to Yorkshire in May.

Bonhams will conduct the first of a new format flagship sale next month.