News

A COPY of the most important document in the history of the Irish nation, the Proclamation of Independence printed at Liberty Hall, on Easter Sunday, 1916, realised £140,000 at Sotheby’s on December 16.

The rise and rise of Winifred Nicholson (1893-1981) out of the shadow of her husband, Ben, can be compared to that of Gwen John, now recognised as at very least equal to the artistic talent of her brother Augustus.

IN late autumn there were three major sales of Orders, Decorations and Medals. Their combined total was £1,373,461 with 2592 lots offered. This compares with a total for 2004 of just over £6m and 6219 lots offered by the London auction houses. (The 2004 annual tabulation for numismatic sales will appear in a future ATG.)

STAYING with the international mood of the Diary this week, Sweden’s top antiques event, the 28th annual Stockholm International Antiques Fair runs at the Stockholm Messan from January 27 to 30 with a preview on the evening of January 26.

BIDDERS at this week’s sale of the Rowler Collection of Georg Jensen silver at Christie’s Rockefeller Center, New York, might be interested to learn that, according to Michael James, founder and director of Jensen specialists The Silver Fund, virtually the entire collection of some 800 pieces was acquired for Rowler by The Silver Fund over the past six years.

A UNIQUE archive of journals and notebooks, including the secret recipe for Tiffany’s signature Favrile glass, is now available for public inspection at the Corning Museum in New York.

The 1150 lots offered at Essex auctioneers Ambrose (15% buyer’s premium) at Loughton on December 9 encompassed most areas of the market and, outside the jewellery, generally sold for three-figure sums.