Summary
Two Day Fine Art Sale with European and Oriental Ceramics, Glass, Pictures, Works of Art, Clocks, Watches, Jewellery and Furniture
This auction has 777 fine art lots.
Sale Notes
As usual, the Fine Art Sale starts on the Tuesday with the Silver auction, which does include a few early pieces of provincial West Country silver including an Exeter trefid spoon dated 1673 and a Sherborne seal top spoon, by Joseph Arden dated a year earlier 1672.
However, the sale should get off to a good start with a rather striking Art Deco electroplate 'Cube' tea service by Wilkinson & Sons, which is virtually the first lot. The jewellery auction boasts a very healthy number of lots and an eclectic variety of watches that include a 14 carat gold pocket watch that has the benefit of a calendar and moon phase, an 18th century gold pair cased watch, a real 'boys toy' in the form of a Breitling Navitimer wristwatch, several Rolex and a Hermes lady's gold and diamond mounted 'Cape Cod' wristwatch, which certainly sparkles but is out shone by a stunning diamond bar brooch that boasts a weighty 6.5 carats of stones.
Contemporary works are making an increasing presence amongst the pictures, which includes a striking screen print and collage by Terry Frost - apparently one of his earliest jobs was to paint the RAF roundels on fighter planes and the work on offer 'Spirals' does rather hint at this utilitarian start.
However, John Piper seems right on target at the moment with his paintings being eagerly sought. The sale not only has a watercolour study of Holkham Gate, but also a number of printed fabrics that he undertook for Sandersons.
Other contemporary artists in the sale include Dame Elizabeth Frink, John Plumb and Ruskin Spear, but fret not if your taste in paintings is a little more traditional, there is also plenty to interest you as well. Chief amongst these must be the Edwin Bird oil 'Departure for London', exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1815 it seems to have distilled a novel's worth of information in a charming snapshot.
The Works of Art auction is likely to be dominated by its Oriental pieces, which include a speculative gilt bronze figure of a rather ferocious looking Lokapala, a simple but beautiful carved smoky agate cup and a Mandarin's court necklace of amber and jade. The longer the necklace the higher the rank - in short (excuse the pun) when in court before the Emperor the necklace would have to touch the ground, so a short one meant you had to stoop much lower! Another rarity worthy of note hallows from a little further west being a 17th century Indian, probably from Gujarat, mother of pearl and stone inlaid casket.
As ever the sale ends with the furniture auction, which also has the fullest offering for some time. Dominated by good traditional offerings of mahogany and walnut from a single local collector, it includes a crisply carved George II mahogany games table and a very desirable pair of library armchairs in the Irish taste with flower and lion mask carving to the legs and eagle terminals to the handles.
Thankfully, the ebook and online gambling haven't dented the appetite for good solid furniture. Those with more 20th century leanings are catered for as well with several lots of Art Deco furniture and a rosewood, chrome and white leather dining suite designed by Richard Young.
Buying at auction may be as old as the hills, but Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood show that across the two days of the sale they are reflecting current trends and are able to cater to their diverse clientele whether they are looking for ancient or modern pieces to complement their homes.
Order of Sale
The order of sale will be:-
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Tuesday, 14th July 2015 10:00am
Silver (starting at lot 1)
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Tuesday, 14th July 2015 12:30pm
Watches and Jewellery (starting at lot 141)
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Tuesday, 14th July 2015 2:30pm
Pictures (starting at lot 261)
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Wednesday, 15th July 2015 10:00am
Oriental and European Ceramics and Glass (starting at lot 401)
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Wednesday, 15th July 2015 12:30pm
Works of Art and Clocks (starting at lot 501)
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Wednesday, 15th July 2015 2:30pm
Furniture (starting at lot 681)