Standing 5ft 4in (1.63m) tall, it was by the successful Bond Street retailer Walter Thornhill (1807-87) whose inventions and luxury goods were exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851. His patents included a series of sumptuous travelling cases and an anti-garrotting device – basically an adjustable steel dog collar with ribbons on the female version.
This clock had a label to verso reading The chinaman clock from Prince of Nepal’s collection – thought to be a name Thornhill gave to a line of Oriental-influenced decorative objects. Entered by a local vendor whose descendant had bought it 60 years at an Ayr auction, it sold to a local private buyer at a top-estimate £6000 at the auction on May 25.
Salt surprise
Biggest surprise of the day was a 1¾in (4.5cm) tall hammered silver table salt by Charles Robert Ashbee.
Marked for London 1900, in good condition and with its original Powell green glass liner, it was pitched at a modest £200-300 but sold at £3000.
The top-seller at the sale was a pair of rare c.1930-40 Carl Zeiss Jena marine binoculars with original oak tripod and carrying case for which a buyer travelled from the south of England to the sale and finally bought at £19,000 against a £6000-9000 estimate.
