News Blog

 Bidding was brisk with a crowded salesroom, constantly engaged telephone lines and plenty of commission bids.

Our clocks category did exceptionally well with Lot 816 a Goldsmiths Co, Newcastle Upon Tyne Large 8 Day Striking selling for £3100 almost double its high estimate.  Lot 818 J Smith, York 8 Day Striking Longcase Clock sold for just over a thousand pounds.

Garnering lots of attention was Lot 777, a Blue John and gilt metal bulbous table lamp bringing in inquiries and commission bids from far afield.  Blue John, a semi-precious mineral, is a form of fluorite with bands of purple-blue and/or yellow.  Objects made from Blue John were popular in the Victorian era and still sought after today with this item selling for £2400.  Another lighting fixture, an Arts and Crafts copper chandelier was also the object of pretty intense bidding—Lot 793 was a four-light chandelier with opaque glass trumpet shades selling for £780. 

In furniture A Victorian Burr Walnut Piano Topped Davenport, an excellent specimen of a traditional antique, went for £840 and a Victorian burr walnut Canterbury whatnot sold for £360.  But showing the increasing importance of mid-twentieth century design was a Corbusier tan leather and steel sofa sought after by several bidders and finally selling for £500.

Two embroidered panels of birds demonstrated the continuing popularity of Asian decorative items to the market.  Lot 714 was a pair of Oriental silk panels depicting stalks, fruit, floral, bat and tree decorations, both mounted in gilt frames, sold for £640.  Lots 744 and 745, two decorative fans sold for £390 and £360 respectively. 

Despite damage and evidence of earlier repairs Lot 61, an absolutely charming 19^th century Meissen figure of a seated dog, sold for £330.

An unusual item Lot 686, a box filled with microscope slides, also caught the crowd’s attention and sold for £440.

For a complete list of realised prices check our website.

There were nearly 900 items in October’s auction and less than a week later our office is filling up again with things for December 6’s auction.  Staff are busy sending out items purchased and cataloguing new items.  We’re also adding things to our online shop all the time.  For continuing information about what is coming up please follow us on Twitter @ PFWindibank.