The c.1755 Bow Thames Waterman figure, £4500 at Dore & Rees.
A portrait of an Indian man by artist William Melville (£8500), a group of early 19th century cavalry sabretaches (£11,000), an ancient Egyptian blue faience shabti figure (£4600) and this 18th century Bow figure of a Thames Waterman (£4500) were among the top lots when the immense and eclectic collection of the late George Withers came to auction.
The sheer scale of the collection led to 12-hour stints on the rostrum across the three-day affair, running from February 21-23 at Somerset saleroom Dore & Rees.
Reluctant dealer and collector Withers (1946-2023) filled his house, Ye Grange in Bathampton, also in Somerset, to the rafters with his objects of desire that he began buying in the 1960s.
The top lot of the sale was this rare set of 12 Elizabethan circular sycamore trenchers with a wooden lacquered box could have come from the 16th century Stockton House, near Salisbury, according to a written label accompanying the lot. Estimated at £2000-3000, they were hammered down at £14,000 at Dore & Rees.
More than 2200 lots were offered in this first instalment in Frome with further sales planned across interiors, silver and Asian art at Dore & Rees as well as another with partner firm Wincanton Auctions.
The c.1755 Thames Waterman figure (pictured top) took a hammer price of £4500 (plus 25% buyer’s premium) against an estimate of £400-600.
Bow Thames Waterman figures are desirable as the modelling was original and not derived from Meissen.
Instead, they depict an historic event on the Thames. In 1715 Irishman Thomas Doggett founded an annual rowing race for the watermen to commemorate the accession of George I. A smart coat and badge was the prize.
The figures were made in a variety of colour ways, with this example featuring a red coat and Doggett’s badge with a single anchor. Other examples have sold upwards of £10,000.
The top lot of the sale was this rare set of 12 Elizabethan circular sycamore trenchers with a wooden lacquered box could have come from the 16th century Stockton House, near Salisbury, according to a written label accompanying the lot. Estimated at £2000-3000, they were hammered down at £14,000 at Dore & Rees.
