Oceania

Richard Madley, a former director of Dreweatts, has been appointed UK agent for Sydney firm Shapiro Auctioneers, to source objects with an Australian background or provenance to be sold Down Under.

Two businessmen from Auckland have rescued New Zealand auction house Webb’s from administration after the collapse of parent company Mossgreen.

Clients of the collapsed Australian auction house Mossgreen are preparing to challenge the fees being demanded by firm’s administrators to collect their own goods.

The Australian professional auctioneering body has called for all auctioneers to introduce client accounts – known as trust accounts in Australia – to avoid a repeat of the grim situation at failed firm Mossgreen.

Paul Sumner’s hopes of a restructure of Australian saleroom Mossgreen melted away last week after his proposed investment plan failed and the administrator began winding down the business.

Around 400 people and businesses are owed money by Australian auction house and gallery firm Mossgreen after it went into administration in December.

As auction houses expand their specialist sales programmes, separate departments can also develop if the volume of business is worth it. Not many have a dedicated single-owner department, however.

Eureka Stockade has been dubbed as the only ‘battle’ to have taken place in Australia but was in reality little more than a skirmish in global terms. However, the 1854 uprising that cost nearly 30 lives is now recognised as a seminal political event in colonial history and one that marked the birth of democracy in Australia.

A set of four Victorian kangaroos salts made by silversmiths Hunt & Roskell sold for Aus$70,000 (£42,000) as part of the Fairfax collection at Leonard Joel in Sydney on August 31-September 2.

It may be pretty quiet on the auction front in Europe but Down Under the saleroom and fairs scene is in full swing.