Auctioneers

Three bidders – one French, one Japanese and one Swedish – did battle for half an hour in the chase to acquire the skeleton of a new species of carnivorous dinosaur at a Paris auction this month.

Despite having lost a hand and suffering minor wear and chips to her chin, not to mention being just 5.5in (14cm) high, a doll caused a considerable stir at auction with six phone lines and internet bidders all desperate to succeed.

A painting from the early years of Vincent van Gogh’s (1853-1890) career as an artist has sold at an auction in Paris for a hammer price of €6m (£5.26m).

The strong round of Chinese and Asian art sales last month continued in London with sales reaching a premium-inclusive £1m at Chiswick Auctions.

From TEFAF Maastricht and a new CEO at a US auction house to a Mod Brit specialist and a porter who used to take tea with John Major - another ATG round-up of the latest appointments.

A small bronze figure of a horse from ancient Greece is at the centre of a New York court case after Greece’s ministry of culture demanded its return and stopped its sale at auction.

It may amaze our many younger readers to learn that England once had a team capable of winning the World Cup. And did so.

Dealership Stanley Gibbons Group has hired Graham Elliott Shircore to push ahead with its strategy of focusing on its core business of stamps and coins and reducing its debts.

The arrival of Meghan Markle into the royal family has highlighted the pressure on the monarchy to meet modern expectations, but it is not a new phenomenon. A medal group coming up at a London auction house Morton & Eden (M&E) on June 28 underlines the role of a man who once reportedly told the queen that: “Your job is to spread a carpet of happiness.”

An original map of the Winnie the Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood is coming up for sale at Sotheby’s.