Robert Wogden was one of the leading manufacturersin this field and this pair was finely crafted with octagonal damascene barrels and walnut handles.
Although they were not in their original box, the pistols were in reasonable condition and came fresh to the market, consigned from a deceased estate.
They made £3200 from a private buyer while a pair of Westley Richards pocket pistols from the same estate and entered with their original box took £1800 from the trade.
Other highlights included a pair of 19th century Staffordshire leopards, 73/4in (20cm), and a large lettuce
-leaf-eating 19th century Staffordshire rabbit, 93/4in (25cm), from the same private source. Both are fairly unusual and very desirable forms. The leopard group sold to the trade at £5400 while the rabbit, despite extensive damage, sold to a dealer at £1800.
The biggest money was reserved for a diamond solitaire ring that fetched £7200. The sale totalled in the region of £140,000.
Anthemion Auctions, Cardiff, July 16. Buyer’s premium: 15 per cent
Staffordshire leopards are spotted as rarities
DUELLING pistols often attract considerable interest and one of the top lots in this 1162-lot Welsh sale at Anthemion on 16 July was a pair of pistols by Wogden & Barton, 1795-1803.
