A silver penny of King Stephen is estimated to sell for £5000-10,000 at London auction house Dix Noonan Webb on September 16 (pictured top).
Discovered by a metal detectorist in October 2018 in a ploughed field on the border of South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, the coin – minted in York in the early 1140s – is one of only 25 known specimens.
Stephen of Blois was the grandson of William I and reigned as King of England from December 22, 1135, to his death in 1154. For almost all of this time a civil war raged with his cousin Matilda, with the English royalist barons backing him while the Angevin French supporters picked her. She was the daughter of Henry I who had nominated her as heir. Stephen, however, claimed that his uncle had changed his mind on his deathbed, recognising him as successor.
The find-spot was not far from where the Battle of Lincoln took place in February 1141 between Stephen and Matilda’s half brother Robert, Earl of Gloucester. Stephen was defeated, captured and imprisoned for six months in Bristol Castle before an exchange enabled him to be released. In 1153, Stephen agreed to accept Matilda’s son Henry as his heir, thus ending the conflict which has become known as the Anarchy.
Sworders is selling two pairs of bronzed steel planters that stood outside 55 Broadway in London, as part of a September 8 sale of Arts & Crafts & Art Deco, estimated at £800-1200 per pair.
A great example of British Art Deco, 55 Broadway, next to St James’s Park tube station in London, was designed by Charles Holden c.1927-29 and adorned with carvings by Jacob Epstein, Henry Moore and Eric Gill. The cruciform building served many years as the headquarters of the Underground Electric Railways Company, the forerunner of London Underground.
As the site is now waiting to be redeveloped into flats, Sworders is selling two pairs of bronzed steel planters that stood outside the building.
As part of a September 8 sale of Arts & Crafts & Art Deco, they are expected to bring £800-1200 per pair.
Enamelled Venetian pilgrim flask, c.1500, estimate £20,000-30,000 at Bonhams on September 29.
Early European glass from an unpublished collection formed by Lady Maria Elisabeth Augusta Cartwright (1805-1902) of Aynhoe Park, Oxfordshire, form part of the Glass and British Ceramics sale at Bonhams on September 29.
‘Lili’ was the eldest daughter of Bavarian nobleman Count Thomas von Sandizell. She married the English diplomat Sir Thomas Cartwright she had met during the Munich carnival in 1824. She began collecting ceramics and glass in the 1820s, recording in her diary many of her expeditions to auctions and dealers.
Her holdings were added to by her eldest son William Cornwallis Cartwright (1825-1915), the Liberal MP for Oxfordshire and a client of the prominent Munich dealer AS Drey. In the family ever since, these pieces represent some of the best early Venetian and façon de Venise glass to come to auction since the celebrated Mühleib collection was sold by Bonhams in 2013.
Some are appearing on the market for the first time in nearly two centuries, such as this 12in (30cm) enamelled Venetian pilgrim flask, c.1500. The arms are those of the Nerli dynasty, the Florentine family headed by Tanai de’Nerli (1427-98), a wealthy ambassador who commissioned Filippino Lippi to paint the famous late 15th century altarpiece of The Madonna with St Catherine of Alexandria and St Martin of Tours (Pala de’ Nerli) in the church of Santo Spirito, Florence.
He had 10 sons and six daughters, many of whom married into the Medici family.
Estimate £20,000-30,000.
Elizabethan oil on panel portrait by George Gower depicting Thomas Arundell, later 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour, estimate £10,000-15,000 at Woolley & Wallis on September 8.
The paintings sale at Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury on September 8 includes more items from the trustees of Exbury House, home to Lionel de Rothschild (1882-1942) and his son Edmund de Rothschild (1916-2009).
This 2ft x 20in (60 x 51cm) Elizabethan oil on panel portrait by George Gower (c.1540-96) depicts Thomas Arundell, later 1st Baron Arundell of Wardour (c.1560-1639). Charged with the sitter’s coat of arms, it is also inscribed with the date 1580, the year the sitter was imprisoned for his fervent Roman Catholicism.
He later proved his loyalty to the crown by subscribing £100 towards the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 and distinguished himself in battle against the Ottoman Turks in the service of the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II.
Prior to arriving at Exbury the picture was in the collection of Constance de Rothschild, Lady Battersea (1843-1931), and possibly came by descent to her her husband Cyril Flower, 1st Baron Battersea (1843-1907).
Estimate £10,000-15,000.
This parcel-gilt silver-mounted coconut cup in the form of an owl, unmarked but made in Germany, probably in the 16th century, estimate £15,000-25,000 at Sotheby’s sale online from August 28-September 9.
This parcel-gilt silver-mounted coconut cup in the form of an owl is unmarked but was made in Germany, probably in the 16th century.
Drinking vessels in the form of owls and birds of prey were popular in German-speaking countries during this time and they often incorporated carved silver feathers as can be seen to the head and legs of this example.
It is estimated at £15,000-25,000 at Sotheby’s sale titled Style: Furniture, Silver, Clocks, Ceramics and Vertu that will run online from August 28-September 9.
The medal group and effects of Corporal David James Hayden RAF, the first non-commissioned officer to ever win the Military Cross, is estimate on request at the Adam Partridge auction on September 11.
Adam Partridge is selling the medal group and effects of Corporal David James Hayden R8432726 RAF, the first non-commissioned officer to ever win the Military Cross.
Hayden was awarded the MC for outstanding courage and gallantry in 2007 when 1 Squadron RAF Regiment were attacked during a patrol of the village of Al-Waki near Basra in Iraq.
Leading Aircraftman Martin Beard was fatally wounded in the firefight and Hayden instantly volunteered to rescue Beard, unaware that he had already passed away and regardless of the approximately 50 enemy combatants firing on his position. Hayden then brought Beard’s body back to safety under heavy fire, killing a Taliban soldier en route.
This MC and medal group (also including Northern Ireland and Afghanistan service) is offered with the helmet and wristwatch which Hayden wore during the encounter, his RAF Regiment belt, photographs, letters and clippings relating to the event, a copy of the Patrol Report written by Squadron Leader Jason Sutton, plus many other related items (and the medal group of Hayden’s father who served in the first Gulf War).
The single lot will be offered in the Adam Partridge September 11 auction.
Estimate on request.
This 19th century wood artist’s lay figure is estimated at £1000-2000 in Wilkinson’s auction on September 6.
This 10in (26cm) 19th century wood artist’s lay figure with articulated limbs, carved facial features and hands has a guide of £1000-2000 at Wilkinson's in Doncaster on September 6.
This sepia vignette photograph of RFC Pilot Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson, the first airman to shoot down a German airship, is estimated at £100-150 at Tennants on September 4.
A strong selection of aviation memorabilia is coming up in Tennants’ Militaria and Ethnographica Sale on September 4.
This sepia vignette photograph of RFC Pilot Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson, standing before his biplane, is estimated at £100-150.
Robinson, at the age of 21, became the first airman to shoot down a German airship.
On the night of September 2-3, 1916, he was patrolling over Hertfordshire, when he strafed the Schutte-Lanz SL11 airship with incendiary bullets during the largest airship raids of the war. His actions established a fighting technique and marked a turning point in the battle against Zeppelins. Robinson became a national hero overnight and was awarded the Victoria Cross.
Shelley Art Deco coffee set decorated in gilt and green banding, estimate £80-120 in an online-only sale held by Rogers Jones that closes on September 4.
This Shelley Art Deco coffee set decorated in gilt and green banding has a guide of £80-120 in an online-only sale held by Rogers Jones in Cardiff that closes on September 4.
Two Fabergé lots to be offered by The Cotswold Auction Company on September 8 come from the Woollcombe-Boyce family collection – the same source as the Fabergé nephrite, rock crystal and gold sedan chair sold for £380,000 by the same saleroom in September 2019 (ATG No 2409).
One is a chalcedony, diamond and white enamel brooch with Moscow marks for 1899-1908 in its original box. This piece is listed in the family inventory and was purchased from Wartski of London in 1956 for £300. It is estimated at £5000-8000.
The other item is a pink enamel, gold and diamond-set cachou box by workmaster Michael Perchin of St Petersburg. In a Wartski case (it was bought there in 1950 for £115), it is guided at £4000-6000.
Cased Parker Field percussion 80-bore transitional revolver estimated at £2000-3000 in the Peter Wilson September 10 auction.
The sale of Arms & Militaria, Medals & Firearms at Peter Wilson in Nantwich on September 10 includes this cased Parker Field percussion 80-bore transitional revolver. Retaining most of the rich original blue and cased with a full complement of accessories, it is guided at £2000-3000.
Pictorial map enamel sign from Associated Motorways Day and Night Express Coach Services estimated £400-600 at Chilcotts’ auction on September 5.
A collection of bus memorabilia and model buses features in Chilcotts’ September 5 Fine Art, Antiques and Collectors Items sale in Honiton, Devon.
The group of several hundred items was amassed by a resident of Barnstaple who dedicated an entire room in his home to display them all.
Estimated at £400-600 is this pictorial map enamel sign from Associated Motorways Day and Night Express Coach Services depicting England, Wales and part of Scotland, and a coach filled with passengers. The coach number plate is dated 1953 and the map is in its original painted wooden frame.
Associated Motorways was formed in 1934 when six coach operators pooled their services to provide a co-ordinated operation. Over the years it morphed into National Express.
Late Victorian aquamarine, ruby and demantoid garnet pendant stamped with the Child & Child trademark, estimate £300-400 at the Fellows sale on September 17.
Walter Child (1840-1930) and Harold Child (1848-1915), the sons of an East End pawnbroker who left a fortune of £30,000, opened as art jewellers in 1880 at 1 Seville Street, Belgravia.
The firm’s distinctive stock of enamelled and gem-set jewellery attracted the patronage of Queen Victoria, Edward VII and the Tsarina of Russia and a number of artists.
This late Victorian aquamarine, ruby and demantoid garnet pendant is stamped with the Child & Child trademark (C&C with a sunflower between) that can still be seen moulded in plaster above a first-floor window at the firm’s former shop at 35 Alfred Place (now Thurloe Street) close to South Kensington Tube station.
The pendant carries an estimate of £300-400 at the Fellows Fine Jewellery sale in Birmingham on September 17.
Derby green ground cabaret service featuring naval battle scenes painted by the factory artist George Robertson, estimate £5000-7000 at the Dreweatts auction on September 9.
This Derby green ground cabaret service features naval battle scenes painted by the celebrated factory artist George Robertson.
Each piece carries a moment from the engagement between the French frigate La Loire and the 18-gun brig-sloop HMS Kangaroo on October 18, 1798. Kangaroo chased La Loire as the French fleet scattered following the battle of Tory Island six days earlier. Finally brought to action, she was forced to strike her colours when she ran out of ammunition and later passed into the Royal Navy as HMS Loire.
This set, perhaps that pictured in John Twitchett’s Derby Porcelain (1980), comes for sale by descent from an English private collection at Dreweatts in Newbury on September 9. Estimate £5000-7000.
Trolleys, a Banksy from the edition of 500 in pencil published by Pictures on Walls in 2007, is estimated £20,000-30,000 at Forum Auctions on September 4.
The sale titled Only Banksy at Forum Auctions on September 4 includes 23 of the enigmatic street artist’s limited edition prints. Trolleys, from the edition of 500 in pencil published by Pictures on Walls in 2007 is guided at £20,000-30,000.
Cased pair of Henry Nock flintlock officer’s pistols, c.1800, estimate £5000-7000 at Holts’ auction on September 7-8.
A cased pair of Henry Nock flintlock officer’s pistols, c.1800, carries expectations of £5000-7000 at Holts’ Fine Modern & Antique Guns sale in Wolferton, Norfolk on September 7-8.
Signed to both the barrels and the locks, both pistols have seen remarkably little use, retain much finish throughout and come complete with their dark stained manufacturer’s oak case with original parchment trade label and accessories.
This silver novelty Mr Punch pepperette with marks for William Henry Sparrow of Birmingham, 1903, is estimated at £980-1180 in an online auction held by William George closing on September 15.
This silver novelty Mr Punch pepperette with marks for William Henry Sparrow of Birmingham, 1903, forms part of an online held by William George in London. The auction house expects bidding to reach between £980-1180 when the sale closes on September 15.
Howard Hodgkin lithograph signed, inscribed and dated [19]68. Girl on a Sofa (from Five Rooms), estimate £800-1000 at Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood on September 9.
A sale of 20th Century and Contemporary art at Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood in Exeter on September 9 includes this Howard Hodgkin lithograph signed, inscribed and dated [19]68. Girl on a Sofa (from Five Rooms) is estimated at £800-1000.
Footed Pink Bowl with Bronzed Rim by Dame Lucie Rie, estimate £15,000-25,000 at Sotheby’s Made in Britain sale that runs online from September 9-16.
Footed Pink Bowl with Bronzed Rim by Dame Lucie Rie (1902-95) is estimated at £15,000-25,000 at Sotheby’s Made in Britain sale that runs online from September 9-16.
The sale will offer art and objects made by artists working in Britain in the 20th and 21st centuries and estimates start at £200.
Steiff Record bear, c.1915, estimate £1500-2000 at Special Auction Services on September 9.
“It’s time to part with some of my collection, I have bought quickly over eight years and now have over 600 bears and a much clearer vision of how my collection should look.”
Hilary Pauley, a retired headmistress, only began buying teddy bears following a gift from her daughter-in-law in 2012 but has quickly built a private museum of arctophilia in a 16th century barn in Buckinghamshire.
Close to 350 lots from ‘Grandma’s Teddy Bear Museum’ will be dispersed by Special Auction Services in Newbury on September 9 including this rare Steiff Record bear, c.1915, estimated at £1500-2000.
Early television transmitter, hand-built by Vic Mills in the workshops of Logie Baird, in the early 1920s, estimate £500-800 at Burstow & Hewett on September 17.
The Terry Ransom Vintage Radio Collection comes to auction at Battle, East Sussex, saleroom Burstow & Hewett on September 17.
Shown here is an early television transmitter, hand-built by Vic Mills in the workshops of Logie Baird, in the early 1920s, purchased direct from Mills by the vendor. The base board is 14 x 13in (35.5 x 33cm) and the height of coil is 7in (18cm).
Estimate £500-800.
Eighteenth century perspective of Shrewsbury attributable to John Bowen, estimate £10,000-15,000 at Halls on Septenber 16.
The contents of a Shropshire country house have been consigned to Halls of Shrewsbury, with the principal works appearing in The Autumn Auction on September 16.
Halls says the vast majority of the works being sold have been in situ in this property since the 1930s. Two 18th century perspectives of Shrewsbury include this example attributable to John Bowen.
Estimate £10,000-15,000.
This Robert Thompson-era stool is estimated at £300-400 in Keys’ auction on September 4.
This Robert Thompson (1876-1955) era stool has a burr oak top. It has a guide of £300-400 at Keys in Aylsham on September 4, part of a sale of 20th Century Design and Modern Art.
One of a pair of oak ‘triple mouse’ bookends by Robert Thompson, estimate £1200-1800 at Hutchinson Scott on September 3-5.
A pair of oak ‘triple mouse’ bookends by Robert Thompson carries a guide of £1200-1800 at Hutchinson Scott in Skipton on September 3-5.
Landscape I & AOC, Landscape by Qiu Deshu, estimate £4000-6000 at Chiswick Auctions on September 29.
On September 29, Chiswick Auctions will hold an auction devoted to a single-owner collection of Chinese contemporary ink paintings.
The 92 works of the Nanyue Pavilion Collection have been acquired over 30 years by a connoisseur based between London and Singapore and were sourced through dealers, auctions, and acquisitions directly from artists.
Many of the works are deeply rooted in the tradition of classical Chinese painting, such as this 4ft 11in x 2ft (1.50m x 60cm) mixed media on paper Landscape I & AOC, Landscape by Qiu Deshu (b.1948). Estimate £4000-6000.
Silver Sultan’s Medal, estimate £1600-1700 at Lockdales on September 12-13.
This silver Sultan’s Medal is pitched at £1600-1700 by Lockdales in Ipswich on September 12-13. The Sultan’s Medal was given by Selim III of Turkey for actions against French troops in 1801. Gold medals were awarded to officers and silver equivalents for NCOs.
Carved marble of a King Charles spaniel signed MW Johnson, 1818, estimate £400-600 at Catherine Southon’s sale on September 9.
This 10½in (26.5cm) carved marble of a King Charles spaniel is signed MW Johnson, 1818.
A monumental mason and sculptor based for much of his career on the Euston Road, works by Matthew Wharton Johnson (1800-81) can be found in churches in and around London and examples have been identified as far afield as Australia, India, and Barbados.
This small canine carving, made early in his career, has a guide of £400-600 at Catherine Southon’s sale in Selsdon, Surrey, on September 9.
Attributed to Alessandro Magnasco, known as Il Lissandrino, this oil painting, Figures in a Landscape at Dusk, is estimated at £15,000-20,000 in John Nicholson’s auction on September 25.
Attributed to Alessandro Magnasco (1667-1749), known as Il Lissandrino, of the Genoese School, this 2ft 9in x 4ft 2in (84cm x 1.27cm) oil painting, Figures in a Landscape at Dusk, will appear in John Nicholson’s Fine Paintings Auction in Fernhurst on September 25.
Estimate £15,000-20,000.
Porcelain medallion bowl with a famille rose and yellow ground and blue and white interior with a six-character Daoguang mark to the base, estimate £500-1000 at Eastbourne Auctions on September 9.
This 6in (15cm) porcelain medallion bowl with a famille rose and yellow ground and blue and white interior has a six-character Daoguang (1821-50) mark to the base.
On September 9 at Eastbourne Auctions, the estimate is £500-1000.
George III 12lb cast iron cannon on a wooden carriage, to be sold without reserve as part of the Fort Paull collection, at Gilbert Baitson on September 19.
Fort Paull, a historic gun battery situated on the north bank of the Humber, opened as a heritage museum in 2000 – complete with waxworks illustrating the fort’s history and an armoury of artillery pieces and armoured vehicles.
In January 2020, it was announced that the attraction would not be opening for the season and the contents of the museum are now coming for sale on September 19.
Hull auctioneer Gilbert Baitson will conduct the 608- lot auction – which includes this George III 12lb cast iron cannon on a wooden carriage – without reserve.
Chris Rudd in Norwich is perhaps the most specialist auctioneer in the country, selling only ancient British gold and silver coinage.
His next sale – a timed online event with bidding ending on September 20 – includes this Celtic gold half stater c.75-50 BC struck with images of a left-facing head with a tattooed cheek and a naked female warrior on horseback.
Estimate £2500.
Pencil sketch by Barnes Wallis illustrating how the bouncing bomb worked, estimate £800-1200 at Cuttlestones’ auction on September 11.
Among the highlights of Cuttlestones’ Collectors’ Sale on September 11 are the childhood books of Harry Stopes-Roe (son of the famous birth control campaigner and author Marie Stopes) and of his wife Mary Stopes-Roe (whose father, Barnes Wallis, invented the Dambusters bouncing bomb) with many books and items gifted, annotated or originally owned by their famous parents.
Pictured is a pencil sketch by Wallis illustrating how the bomb worked. Signed and dated April 8, 1946, it is on the reverse of a ticket issued to Flight-Sergeant R Scott for the Reunion of Ex-Halton Aircraft Apprentices at Royal Agricultural Society’s Old Hall, Vincent Square, London, SW1. The item is framed together with a copy of the front of the ticket and a photograph of Wallis, measuring 14 x 17½in (35 x 45cm) overall.
Estimate: £800-1200.
Johannes de Mol cup and saucer made at his Oud-Loosdrecht factory, c.1770, estimate £100-200 at Charterhouse on September 4.
Charterhouse in Sherborne is offering a collection of 18th and 19th century ceramics discovered in a 1920s Somerset house.
The pottery and porcelain in the house includes Italian dry drug jars, Dutch Delft tobacco jars.
This little Johannes de Mol cup and saucer made at his Oud-Loosdrecht factory, c.1770, is estimated at £100-200 on September 4.
The online-only sale being staged by Richard Winterton on September 7, includes this Russian ormolu chamberlain’s key dating to the reign of Alexander II, estimate £2000-2500.
The next online-only Antiques & Home Sale being staged by Richard Winterton in Lichfield, on September 7, includes this Russian ormolu chamberlain’s key – a badge of office – dating to the reign of Alexander II (reigned 1855-81).
Estimate £2000-2500.
A Stag at Bay, by Sir Edwin Landseer, estimate £6000-8000 at Tennants’ auction on September 19.
A Stag at Bay, a drawing by Sir Edwin Landseer (1802-73), is one of the highlights of Tennants’ Sporting Art Sale in Leyburn on September 19.
The pencil and crayon vignette, presumably set in his beloved Scotland, depicts the denouement of a day’s stalking.
Landseer’s The Monarch of the Glen, which resides at the Scottish National Gallery, is one of the best-known British works of the 19th century.
Estimate £6000-8000.
