Australia

Newly formed Australian firm Abacus Auctions holds its second sale on July 22, devoted to coins and banknotes plus a selection of collectables and sporting memorabilia.

Having successfully dispersed the collection of Lalique glass formed by Hans and Gertrud Mueller in March this year, Sotheby’s Australia is now selling the couple’s collection of other European Art Glass.

Ken Hose, who has published three books on Australian clockmakers, has been fascinated by clocks and their mechanics since he was a teenager.

The Auctioneers and Valuers Association (AVAA), a trade body representing Australian auction houses, has called for client accounts to become a compulsory legal requirement in the country.

The administrator BDO’s report into the collapse of Mossgreen has recommended that the Australian auction house’s former management be investigated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) over possible criminal activities.

When John Schaeffer visited the pre-Raphaelite exhibition at the Tate Gallery in 1984 it changed the course of his art enthusiasm.

Consignors to collapsed Australian auction house Mossgreen will not have to pay fees to have items returned, a Sydney court has ruled.

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.