A Chanel Classic bag was the star of the first day of Halls Fine Arts’ two-day bumper Christmas auction in Shrewsbury this week.
06/12/2024
The designer medium double flap bag, purchased by the vendor from Callaghan’s of Shrewsbury, eclipsed its pre-sale estimate of £2,000 to £3,000 to sell for £3,700.
Other highlights included a pair of 9ct gold and enamel cufflinks, which were presented to Mr Albert George Hart by Queen Elizabeth II in 1961 to mark his service as head conductor on the Royal Train for nearly 20 years.
The cufflinks, together with a collection letters, photographs, a menu and newspaper cuttings, more than doubled their estimate to sell for £1,800.
The original cufflinks were stolen in a burglary in 1979 and Mr Hart’s son wrote to Queen Elizabeth II asking if they could be replaced, offering to donate the cost of providing a replacement to a charity of her choosing.
A replacement pair was sent alongside a letter from Robert Fellows, a British courtier who later became the Queens private secretary.
Top sellers in the jewellery section were an 18ct gold three stone emerald and diamond ring that made £2,500, a suite of ruby and diamond jewellery at £1,700, a diamond set gate link bracelet and a pair of 18ct white gold aquamarine and diamond ear pendants at £1,500 each and a large blue topaz and diamond ring at £1,400.
Leading the silver section were a large rectangular silver tray by Walker & Hall, Sheffield, at £1,100, a Victorian five piece silver tea and coffee service by John Aldwinckle & Thomas Slater, London 1891, at £950 and a three piece silver tea service by Ernest W. Haywood and 'T S', Birmingham 1940 at £750.
The watches section was headed by an 18ct gold half hunter pocket watch with a 9ct gold Albert at £1,900, a Longines gentleman's 9ct gold dress watch at £960 and an 18ct gold open face pocket watch at £950.
Top prices in the furniture section were £1,100 for a pair of 19th century caned bergère library chairs, £1,000 for a 17th century and later carved oak part headboard or overmantel and £550 each for a 19th century mahogany campaign chest and a pair of Gothic revival walnut jardinieres.
The second day of the sale featured a quality collection of Caughley porcelain from a London collector which came home to Shropshire to be sold and made more than £8,000.
Stars of the collection, which including many rare pieces, was a three pint Caughley porcelain porter mug, circa 1780, transfer-printed with the 'La Promenade Chinoise' pattern, accompanied by the secondary print 'La Peche', which sold for £1,000.
Other notable prices from the collection were £700 for a rare 'Thorny Rose' baluster mask-head jug, £550 for a very rare 'Gooseberry / Fruit Sprays' ecuelle and cover, £500 for a 'Strap-Fluted Floral' sauceboat, £440 for a 1790 Chamberlain-decorated Caughley monogrammed mug and £420 for an unusual 'Apple and Damsons' finger bowl or pot.
“There were some really good prices for the rare pieces which were hotly contested,” said Caroline Dennard, Halls Fine Art’s ceramics specialist. “Halls Fine Art has developed a strong reputation for selling Caughley and other notable consignments of 18th century English porcelain.”
Pieces in the collection were made by Ambrose Gallimore and Thomas Turner who produced some of the finest English porcelain in the 18th century at Caughley, near Broseley from around 1775-’99.
The ceramics section also included a collection of 15 Troika vases, consigned by the widow of a late Shropshire collector, which sold for nearly £1,800.
Leading the prices in the pictures section was an abstract titled ‘Red Boat’ by contemporary British artist Leigh Davis, which sold for £1,000. The oil painting was accompanied by the preparatory sketch, which was given to the seller by the artist.
Other leading prices were £900 for ‘Shipping at Sunset’, an oil on panel by James Webb (1825-‘95), £800 for a painting by John Frederick Herring II (1815-1907) showing horses and farm animals grazing beside a pond, £750 for ‘Return from Hawking’ by John Frederick Pasmore (1820-‘91) after Edwin Landseer (1802-1873) and £650 for a watercolour by Arthur Suker (1857-1940) showing waves crashing against the cliffs at Land’s End.
Contemporary Northern England artist Adrian Rigby, whose works from a northern gallery clearance have sold well at Halls Fine Art this year, was again on demand. His ‘Snow Leopard, Ghost of the Mountains’ sold for £650, and an American Bald Eagle preparing for flight and ‘Blue and Gold Macaws, Friends for Life’ each made £460, while ‘Polar Bear in an Arctic Storm’ made £440.
Other leading prices were £600 for ‘The Sirens’, an oil painting by William Edward Frost (1810-‘77), £550 for a ‘Study of The Alcazaba of Almería’ by Tristram Hillier (1905-‘83) which was signed and personally dedicated to the seller and £480 for a pair of Dolomite landscapes by Frank Salisbury (1874-1962).
“There were good results in all sections of the auction and it was a positive way to end our live sales in 2024,” said Maryanne Lineker-Mobberley, Halls Fine Art’s associate director and silver and jewellery specialist.
“It has been one of the most successful years for the fine art department and we are looking forward to our programme of specialist sales in the new year.”
View the full results of the sale below or for more information, please contact the Halls Fine Art team on Tel: 01743 450700 or email fineart@hallsgb.com.
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