Three early 19th century Grand Tour marble models of famous Italian landmarks, made headlines at a fine art, antiques and jewellery auction last week.
The rare models, discovered during one of Halls Fine Art’s regular valuation events in Montgomery, sold for nearly £6,000 at the company’s successful auction in Shrewsbury, which produced excellent results in all sections.
A 45cms high model of the Temple of Castor and Pollux lead the way at £3,000, followed by a marble and bronze model of the Colonnadi Foca at £1,850 and a model of Trajan’s Column at £1,050.
“They were really lovely things and we see them very rarely,” said Halls Fine Art’s senior valuer and auctioneer Alexander Clement. “We first saw these Grand Tour models around 10 years ago when we valued them for insurance purposes.”
Growing demand for quality watches resulted in a series of excellent prices. A Cartier gentleman’s stainless steel and 18 carat gold Santos 100 wristwatch made £2,900, a Longines stainless steel military issue ‘Dirty Dozen’ wristwatch sold for £2,000, an 18 carat gold open face pocket watch made £1,550 and an Art Deco diamond set cocktail watch made £1,400.
Mr Clement, who is the company’s watches and Asian art specialist, said: “Virtually all the watches sold and it’s nice to see the strong prices continuing. One of the highlights for me was an Omega gentleman’s stainless steel Seamaster wristwatch which raced away from its estimate to sell £550.
“With such a strong market for quality watches, it’s very important that owners receive an up-to-date valuation. I already have a number of good watches consigned for our next silver, jewellery and watches sale on May 15.”
Halls Fine Art sold a number of items from the estate of the late owner of Wirswall Hall, Whitchurch, including a Fabergé surprise egg which made £7,000.
Other items consigned by the estate included two early 19th century Regency giltwood and parcel ebonised convex mirrors which sold for £1,050 and £850 and a Regency brass inlaid rosewood sofa table which made £700.
Headliners in the pictures section were works by Sidney Richard Percy (1821-1886), famous Welsh artist Sir Kyffin Williams, OBE (1918-2006) and English landscape artist Henry H. Parker Parker (1858–1930).
Percy’s oil painting of ‘Cattle Watering at a Lochside’ sold for £8,000 while Sir Kyffin’s watercolour titled ‘Welsh Pony in Winter’ made £3,200 and Parker’s haymaking scene found a new home for £2,700.
The works by Sir Kyffin and Parker were entered in the auction by an Oswestry area vendor and sold to the same buyer.
A collection of 47 botanical watercolours of garden flowers, plants and orchids by an unknown British artist from the late 19th or early 20th century also sold well at £1,700 while equestrian paintings by Arthur Louis Townshend and in the manner of John Frederick Herring Snr (1795-1865) sold for £750 each.
Top price of £900 in the ceramics section went to a rare Worcester ‘William Pitt (Earl of Chatham)’ mug or tankard from 1760, consigned by a Cheshire seller.
Other notable prices were £800 for a pair of Chelsea vases and covers from the 1760s, £600 for an 18th century Elers type red stoneware mug and £500 for a group of nine Herculaneum porcelain coffee cans.
Garden furniture was in demand as a British bidder held off competition from China to buy a pair of 20th century bronze crane birds for £1,300 and a pair of late Victorian cast iron garden urns sold for £850.
Furniture highlights were a George III cross-banded oak break-front housekeeper’s cupboard at £780 and a George II cross-banded and feather-banded walnut chest on stand at £750, while two brass cast fire screens sold for £600 and £480 after attracting Chinese interest.
