Letters to the Editor

Perth auctioneer Nick Burns of Lindsay Burns & Company was the winner of this year’s Scottish Auctioneers & Art Dealers golf tournament.

I have recently been visited in London by an American-based auctioneer who is looking for sporting paintings for his upcoming sales in Kentucky in the New Year.

In the July 1 edition (ATG No 2599) there is the sad case of the theft of £100,000 of jewellery and a letter from a dealer on a number of other thefts.

Some years ago I wrote a letter you published saying that the digital catalogue is no substitute for the printed form, as I believed the latter has a much greater attention span and it was something you tended to look at several times.

Every year there are large and small robberies committed against members of the antiques trade. These vary from ‘opportunist’ thieving – a brooch, a bag, a candlestick – to much more extreme and planned attacks.

I have been shown an article in ATG (No 2586) regarding Richard Cawood, the former organiser of the Antique Home & Vintage Fair that ran at York Racecourse for several years.

I would like to thank George Kingham of Kinghams Auctioneers and Michael Jefferies at Woolley & Wallis for organising two exhibitions to commemorate 150 years since the Martin Brothers Pottery was founded and 100 years since Robert Wallace Martin died (see ATG Nos 2587 and 2594).

I despair of this government. After banning antique ivory sales we now will see the disappearance of what I consider works of art from sailors long ago passing the time by carving on animal tusks (ATG No 2595).

The latest transnational operation to tackle cultural property crime raises serious concerns once again about claims from Europol and Interpol.

This week we have heard that the government plans to ‘extend the Ivory ban’. It has been reported in the press, on the radio and on television.

In this coronation week, I thought I would share some moments when my path working in the jewellery trade has crossed with that of members of the royal family, including our new king and the late queen.

Brexit has done it again!

I’ve always understood that Gwen Raverat (1885-1957) produced woodcuts, not wood engravings, and The Knight of the Burning Pestle, 1909, (ATG No 2587) is certainly a woodcut

I was wondering if anyone could help answer a question that has arisen with some research

Further to the issue raised in ATG No 2589 regarding problems importing items

I was intrigued to read about the forthcoming sale of TRX-293 Trinity, the first complete Tyrannosaurus Rex to be offered in Europe, estimated at c.£4.45m-7.1m (News Digest, ATG No 2584).

Can any of your readers identify the painter of this picture, an oil on wood panel French beach scene, please?

How sad to read of the passing of Hugo Morley-Fletcher. No, I didn’t know him, but he was one of my favourites on the Antiques Roadshow.

I read with sadness Hugo Morley-Fletcher’s obituary in the ATG No 2583 by Roger McIlroy, who accurately summed up his personality.

I have recently acquired this portrait miniature measuring 4 x 2½in (10 x 6.5cm) and I would be very interested to know if any of your readers can throw light on the identity of the sitter.