International

Small bust in bronze and wax model were produced by the goldsmith to the emperor

Heritage has promoted Aviva Lehmann to senior vice president in New York.

Seventy years ago in 1952 Swann Galleries in New York held the first auction dedicated to photographs in the US.

The earliest work in Modernity’s exhibition on Paavo Tynell (1890-1973) is a 1930s ceiling lamp (model 1926).

The January series of Old Master auctions at Sotheby’s New York was led by a Sandro Botticelli (c.1445-1510) painting for the second year running.

Prices for more traditional toys such as dolls and teddy bears may not be at the heights of years gone by, but demand remains strong for the best items and rarities.

ARP (Art Research Paris), a new auction house opening in the French capital on the Faubourg Saint Honoré, is holding an inaugural sale of over 200 lots of jewellery on February 10.

Artcurial will offer a painting by the French artist Jean Siméon Chardin (1699-1779), 'Le panier de fraises des bois' (The Basket of Wild Strawberries), at its auction of Old Master and 19th century paintings in Paris on March 23.

An English all-wooden doll originally presented by Queen Charlotte to her goddaughter sold for $200,000 (£148,000) at a US auction.

A rare, early 20th century Fischer tin clown tricycle wind-up toy sold for a premium-inclusive $2300 (£1725) despite not being in working condition.

Not just Harry Potter but also Tolkien and CS Lewis works generate serious demand in US

Couple of friends amassed extensive collections that led to a book and a major exhibition

A new American firm, LCG (Legacy Collectibles Group) Auctions, sold what it described as “the highest graded Cobra Commander GI Joe action figure in existence” in a timed sale last year.

Certain areas became hubs for the manufacture of toys, such as Nuremberg and Erzgebirge in Germany.

This gouache by Fernand Léger (1881-1955), Les Loisirs, will be one of the highlights of the next sale at Clarke Auction Gallery in Larchmont, New York, on February 6.

Found covered in grime in a Portuguese auction house, a three quarter-length portrait of a dark-haired lady by Dutch artist Willem Wissing (1655-1709) has been restored to its former glory by a Belgian dealership and the identity of its sitter revealed as a British aristocrat.