Auction Reports

Punching well above its weight, a 9ct gold Lonsdale Championship boxing trophy presented to legendary Glaswegian champion Benny Lynch was the top draw at Fellows’ (23% buyer’s premium) sale in Birmingham.

Underlining the market move from antique furniture to 20th century craftsman design, a 1982-83 chest of drawers set a record for a work by Alan Peters at the Modern British Living sale at Mallams (22.5% buyer’s premium) in Cheltenham.

The catalogue description correctly read ‘Art Nouveau silver powder bowl by Gilbert Marks, hallmark London 1900, weight approx 8.79oz, 273.4gms, decorated with stylised thistles repousse’.

Turbulent as politics are today, they have yet to reach the rumbustious heights of a notorious 1826 by-election in Northumberland, memories of which were revisited at Newcastle auction house Anderson & Garland (20% buyer’s premium).

Pair of candlesticks light up auction with surprise result.

A rare contrast to the Jacobite glass which has served Edinburgh auction house Lyon & Turnbull (25% buyer’s premium) so well was a large mid-18th century goblet with a wheel engraved portrait of the victor of Culloden. It was inscribed 'His Royal Highness William Duke Of Cumberland'.

Just a little less famous than Fry’s 'Five Boys' image is the illustration by Tom Browne of a multi-class group outside a sweetshop with the line from 'Troilus and Cressida: One touch of Nature makes the whole World kin'.

Although the Hugo Lonitz factory produced a range of domestic tablewares and small collectables, it is best known for its naturalistic majolica groups, particularly animal and bird examples modelled in lifelike size and detail.

Offered with an a/f catalogue caveat, this early 20th century marine chronometer, below, quadrupled expectations at Chichester saleroom Henry Adams (20% buyer’s premium).

After the Hartleys (17.5% buyer’s premium) September 4 sale, auctioneer Andrew Hartley admitted: “Furniture did not perform as it was hoped from tiny chinks of daylight discernible in the last few months.”

Boosted by the contents of a fine country home, the autumn sale at Cheffins (22.5% buyer’s premium) enjoyed moments of floor-to-ceiling success.

Boosted by the ‘wrong therefore rare’ factor – so important in the world of collectables – a 1977 British quad film poster for the first Star Wars film took top billing in a 250-lot specialist sale at Ewbank’s (24% buyer’s premium).

Estimated at just £40-60, this ebonised wood and alabaster table casket sold to a bidder using thesaleroom.com for £1600 at Peter Francis (20% buyer’s premium) of Carmarthen on August 28.

A model example of trans-European trucking, this diecast van advertising a Swiss company was made in Italy and sold to a German buyer at the Runcorn rooms of British Toy Auctions (18% buyer’s premium).

Pitched at £500-800, this grand sonnerie carriage clock came with little information for bidders at Jacobs & Hunt’s (22% buyer’s premium) sale in Liss other than plentiful illustrations and the name C Marcks & Co, Bombay and Poona engraved to the silvered dial.

A pocket globe with some areas still a mystery leads a maritime auction at Exeter saleroom Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood.

Entered by a vendor who hated them, a pair of 6in (15.5cm) long 19th century nutcrackers reflected in their way two different aspects of auctioneering today: how smaller country firms see their future and what will happen to antique ivory items when most of the trade in them is banned.

Japanese carved ivories of a tiger and an elephant soared far above estimate at Chorley’s (22% buyer’s premium).

Early English oak and yew and ceramics from St Petersburg to Stoke-on-Trent were features of a 250-lot sale which left auctioneer Jeremy Lamond in a quietly upbeat mood after Halls’ (23% buyer’s premium) summer sale at Shrewsbury.

The first lot up at the Batemans (20% buyer’s premium) sale at Stamford on August 3 was this 8¾in (22.5cm) long 'Huntsman', model 1501, stamped 'Beswick England' and the painter’s number '94'.