Latest News Articles by Roland Arkell

Florida auctioneer faces $1.5m and jail over illegal rhino horn

02 February 2015

The owner of leading south Florida auction house Elite Decorative Arts has pleaded guilty to wildlife trafficking and agreed to a fine of $1.5m.

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Mahogany commode with more than a hint of Chippendale

26 January 2015

A fine quality mahogany commode with a blue-chip provenance proved the star lot at Lawrences’ latest furniture auction in Crewkerne.

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Global sales at Spink hit £29m in strong coins and stamps market

19 January 2015

Philatelic and numismatic specialists Spink have posted annual sales figures of just under £29m.

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Asian art and jewellery drive regional sales in 2014

16 January 2015

Annual auction totals hold steady across provincial salerooms.

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More Dambusters relics on offer in Dorset

16 January 2015

Sherborne auctioneers Charterhouse have been instructed to sell the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) and Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM) pair awarded to a member of 617 Squadron, more commonly known as The Dambusters.

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Huge interest expected for Dambuster pieces

14 January 2015

Five truly remarkable items of British wartime history are being offered for sale at J.P. Humbert Auctioneers of Towcester.

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Record-breakers of the Tudor realm

13 January 2015

A recent sale in London saw the auction records for Tudor coins rewritten by two choice examples of a golden denomination.

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Safra’s Canaletto heads to Sotheby’s

06 January 2015

As part of Old Master Week in New York, Sotheby’s will sell paintings assembled by J.E. Safra on January 29.

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Chinese Republic panels bring £140,000 in Sherborne

24 December 2014

Sherborne auctioneers Charterhouse are on a roll with Republican period (1911-49) porcelain.

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Qianlong vase brings seasonal cheer at £520,000

23 December 2014

Appearing at a recent sale held by Toovey’s of Washington, West Sussex, this Imperial Qianlong famille rose and calligraphic vase sold for a house-record £520,000.

‘Innocent until proven guilty over CITES’

22 December 2014

The burden of proof in CITES court cases should now switch from the defence to the prosecution, says a lawyer who has just won an important victory on the matter.

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Salisbury’s £47,000 record for Rie

18 December 2014

The stock of the Austrian-born British studio potter Lucie Rie (1902-95) continues to rise in the saleroom.

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Giants among dinkys as rare Type 1 vans sell to UK collector

10 December 2014

Pre-war delivery vans advertising commercial brand names have long acquired trophy status in the Dinky toy market.

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The seal of the Bruce returns at £125,000

09 December 2014

It was, say Timeline Auctions, “probably the most important medieval seal to come to market” and certainly the most important object the firm had ever offered for sale, according to CEO Brett Hammond.

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Symbols of good fortune at £350,000

04 December 2014

Nantwich auctioneers Peter Wilson set a new house record at their latest sale with this large Qianlong (1736-95) mark-and-period doucai ‘lotus and bats’ jar and cover.

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Cromwell’s coffin plate on the auction block

03 December 2014

This copper-gilt coffin plate, bearing an inscription in Latin with the dates of Oliver Cromwell’s birth, death and inauguration as Lord Protector and the arms of the Protectorate to the reverse, was found when his body was exhumed from the Henry VII chapel at Westminster Abbey on January 26, 1661.

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The £40,000 London Bridge corkscrew

28 November 2014

The £40,000 corkscrew with an old London Bridge connection sold by auctioneers Reeman Dansie on November 26 is an extremely rare Victorian patent.

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Fine feathers for faithful Lady Franklin

27 November 2014

Lady Jane Franklin (1791-1875) gained worldwide admiration for her efforts to trace her husband’s disappearance on his fatal 1845 voyage seeking the North West Passage.

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Twelve bidders compete for Peter Waals secretaire in Exeter

11 November 2014

A walnut secretaire cabinet by Peter Waals (1870-1937) has sold for £34,000 at Bearne Hampton & Littlewood in Exeter.

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Christopher Dresser coffee pot makes £80,000 in Edinburgh

05 November 2014

A possibly unique electroplated coffee pot, designed by Christopher Dresser (1834-1904) and made by James Dixon & Sons in Sheffield, proved the highlight of Lyon & Turnbull’s sale auction ‘Decorative Arts: Design from 1860’ when it was knocked down for £80,000.