The earlier the better, of course, and the four shellwork studies, right, are late Victorian. Nevertheless, the four, consigned from Edmonton, Canada, raised considerable London trade interest at the April 20 sale at Canterbury Auction Galleries (10 per cent buyer’s premium). The upper tiers measured 14in (36cm) and the lower tiers 9in (23cm) diameter. Set into a contemporary ebonised stand, the display sold to a West London decorative arts dealer at £2900.
Going shell, going well
UK: THOSE decorative pieces worked by amateurs using seashells have always come low down in the art world pecking order but of late their attractions have become more and more appreciated as seen when an Irish pair of shellwork botanical studies took £26,000 at Mallams, Oxford, on February 3.
