Woolley & Wallis’ Silver and Objects of Vertu sale in Salisbury on January 23-24 will include a private collection of silver, ivory and tortoiseshell toothpick boxes.
Among the 20-lot group is a 3½in (9cm) long George III gold-mounted ivory toothpick box, unmarked and dated to c.1790-1800, the period when toothpick boxes were at their height. Of oval navette form, the box has a hinged cover inlaid with an oval panel of doves and an urn with ribbon-tied garlands.
Estimate £200-300.
woolleyandwallis.co.uk or see this item on thesaleroom.com
A pair of bookends by renowned Kilburn furniture maker Robert ‘Mouseman’ Thompson (1876-1955) is estimated at £150-200 in Richard Winterton Auctioneers’ sale on January 17 in Lichfield, Staffordshire.
The 6in (15cm) high oak pieces are each carved with the trademark mouse on the concave side.
richardwinterton.co.uk or see this item on thesaleroom.com
A 15in (38cm) long Tibetan white metal scroll holder, decorated with repoussé grotesques and stylised foliage, is included in Chiswick Auctions’ sale on January 16 in London.
According to the auction house, the holder once belonged to Terry Waite (b.1939), the English humanitarian and author who was held captive in Lebanon for several years.
Estimate £200-300.
chiswickauctions.co.uk or see this item on thesaleroom.com
The sale of a second and final tranche of a vast collection of vesta cases will take place at Lawrences of Crewkerne on January 15. The firm is adding an extra day to its January sales series this year, to run from Monday to Friday, January 15-19.
The vesta cases were assembled over a 50-year period by the late John and Patricia McKenzie. The group comprises around 125 lots ranging in date from the reign of Charles II to Queen Victoria, with estimates from £100-10,000.
This late Victorian silver example, made by Sampson Mordan & Co, London 1895, is estimated at £300-500. It has a flip cover enamelled on the front with a coaching scene and is inscribed to the reverse B.J. Barnato Esq. M L A with all good wishes from E Coward 1895-6.
lawrences.co.uk or see this item on thesaleroom.com
