Auctions

The latest sales of Impressionist & Modern art in London put in a mixed performance.

A clock made for King William and Queen Mary by Thomas Tompion (1639-1713) was hammered down for £1.6m atThe Clive Collection of Exceptional Clockssale on June 19 at Bonhams.

Sotheby’s is showing a growing commitment to the timed-online format.

The first American flag believed to have been planted on Omaha Beach in northern France on D-Day proved to be the top lot in Heritage’s (25% buyer’s premium) Arms & Armor, Civil War & Militaria Auction on June 9.

Asian auction series now take place around the world throughout the year in the major centres of the art market. Paris held its latest staging this month at the beginning of the French capital’s Temps Fort or high season.

Topping by some way an offering of 300 pieces of jewellery at Lyon & Turnbull’s (25% buyer’s premium) Edinburgh sale was a Persian gold and niello decorated Esther Scroll holder.

Uncut and partially unopened, a truly exceptional presentation copy of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species… sold for a record $400,000 (£316,353) in a recent US sale.

Locks of Beethoven’s hair are known to have been taken from the composer on his deathbed in 1827, but an earlier and substantial sample featured in a recent London sale. Sold for £28,000 at Sotheby’s (25/20/13.9% buyer’s premium) against an estimate of £12,000-15,000, it is certainly a well-documented souvenir.

With an infamous lack of a ‘signature’ look, Northern Irish painter Colin Middleton (1910-83) is something of an art historical chameleon.

A poet and dramatist, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, was once considered by many to be the true author of Shakespeare’s plays.

A sale with multinational appeal – and a baroque revival cabinet spared from Rentokil.

Italy – or more specifically Sicily – came up trumps for Stamford auction house Batemans (20% buyer’s premium) in the form of this 4½in (11cm) carved coral and copper-gilt urn and cover.

Other than davenports, few pieces of functional antique furniture fell farther down the price ladder during the slump than sofa tables but the examples here bucked the fashion at Moore Allen & Innocent (20% buyer’s premium) of Cirencester.

The fitted interior of this William & Mary casket, below, was later but its fine brass-bound marquetry exterior with hidden lock mechanism made it the most eye-catching lot at Mallams’ (22.5% buyer’s premium) auction in Cheltenham on June 6.

Pictured here is the front page of the scarce second issue of Dandy, published in January 1937, along with an even rarer example of the jumping frog toy that was given away with the comic as a promotion.

Irish art market makes a sedate journey back to strength as local buyers dominate.