Prime amongst the Insley Blair entries was this 7 x 71/2in (17.5 x 19cm) creamware pew group of c.1745 which sold for $140,000 (£82,350) plus premium to Jonathan Horne on behalf of a client. After the auction the London pottery dealer described the group as "the nicest one that has been on the market for as long as I can remember".
Pew, what a scorcher!
Alongside the Americana offered in the New York salerooms earlier this month, there was a strong representation of early English ceramics. Sotheby’s January 20 sale of the pottery collection of Harriet Carlton Goldweitz was followed the next day by Christie’s auction of the Mrs J. Insley Blair collection, which included some key Staffordshire productions alongside its blue chip American furnishings.