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THE Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association has hit back at criticism levelled at the trade in a court case involving a serial thief of valuable maps.

“In 20 years I have never seen anything quite like it,” says auctioneer Richard Bromell of Sherborne’s Charterhouse. “It has a central dial for Greenwich which is surrounded by 11 smaller dials telling the time in the various countries. Having originally been presented to a Victorian relative [of the vendors] who built railways for a living, he would have been able to keep track of time with all his business interests.”

A 90-year-old member of the Wine Label Circle has lost 70 items from his collection during a break-in at his East Sussex home. The wine labels were the only items taken in the theft.

HIGHLIGHT of the 1440-lot Asian section of Nagel’s (33% buyer’s premium) mammoth November sale series was this rare 11in (28cm) high cylindrical cloisonné enamel vase of c.1900 by the highly regarded Namikawa Yasuyuki decorated with a striking design of bamboo and a snail on a black ground.

PORTRAIT dealer Philip Mould has been awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours.

A militaria section at Lawrences’ (15% buyer's premium) October 28-19 sale featured a quality, privately entered, 12-lot cache of weapons which suffered not one casualty and racked up a £30,000 total.

OVER half of ArtCurial’s sale on December 8 was devoted to the Paris Design firm XO, founded in 1985.