Mr Street said enquiries started to flood in after buyers saw the large three-storey, Georgian-style townhouse with its six rooms and three landings advertised in the Antiques Trade Gazette.
Part of a large consignment from the deceased estate of the late Susan Byrne Holmes, the house was thought to have been made in 1869 for the daughters of John Hall Gladstone (1827-1902) and had remained in the family since.
What boosted the price were the house’s contemporary and highly collectable contents. These included pressed painted metal and wood furniture, and, in five of the rooms, hand-stitched needlework carpets. On top of this, there were ten small china-headed dolls in period costume representing the household and domestic staff.
Another factor was its condition. It had been internally re-papered in 1899 and externally restored in 1974, but it was in good order and attracted more interest from collectors and specialist dealers than any other entry in the 432-lot outing before selling to a local collector.
From the same consignment came a handsome late Regency davenport by the London maker M. Wilson.
“I thought this was a first-class example with an unusual cut of burr wood that was probably walnut,” said Ivan Street.
In good untouched condition, this example of a currently unfashionable piece of furniture fetched £3000 from the trade.
Another deceased estate provided the top piece of furniture – an early 19th century inlaid mahogany breakfront bookcase. Measuring 8ft by 7ft 11in (2.44m x 2.41m) and with a slightly unusual configuration of drawers, its dimensions fitted the domestic requirements of a private buyer who successfully fought off a dealer for ownership with a bid of £7500.
Overall, buyers were found for around 90 per cent of the sale which totalled £120,000.
House contents boost costs...
ALDRIDGE’S (15% buyer's premium) are yet to be convinced of the marketing powers of the Internet (they have no website and no e-mail) but specialist Ivan Street’s belief that “on-line sale catalogues do not improve prices” was given weight when a collector tendered a punchy £7100 for a large Victorian doll’s house with pre-sale hopes of £2000-3000 at their March 30 outing.
