Antiques
Secret Agent Pete writes about antiques. A Lot.
Celebration of a French military victory goes under the hammer
In 2003, the Canadian satirist Steven Lerner created the most famous ‘Googlebomb’ in history. Anyone searching for ‘French Military Victories’ using the Google search engine was directed to a fake website resembling the Google homepage, which read: ‘Your search did … Continue reading
Forty years of theatrical costumes go under the hammer as RAF bows out
A large collection of costumes, props and equipment amassed by a Wiltshire theatre company over 40 years will be going to auction in June.The curtain at RAF Lyneham fell for the final time last year as the airforce bowed out … Continue reading
Auctioneers get stuck into stamps
As the posting public reels from the price of stamps going up to 60p – or 50p if you don’t really mind how quickly your letter gets to its destination – auctioneers at Cirencester’s Moore Allen & Innocent getting stuck … Continue reading
Auctioneers get excited about the Olympics… the 1984 Olympics
Olympics fever is hitting antiques auctioneers Moore Allen and Innocent this week. But being an auctioneer of antiques, it’s not London 2012 they’re getting excited about – it’s Los Angeles 1984. A limited edition 80-colour silkscreen print commemorating the LA … Continue reading
Lowry-esque orchard scene makes top price at auction
A Lowry-esque painting of Apple Pickers Going Home, by the contemporary artist Mary Newcomb, exceeded all expectations when it was sold at a Cotswold art auction last week. The long, thin painting, measuring 44 cm by 213.5 cm, was expected … Continue reading
Auctioneers hope for Arab Spring
Auctioneers in the Cotswolds are hoping for an Arab Spring as paintings with a Middle Eastern flavour go under the hammer next week. The Selected Picture and Book Sale at Moore Allen & Innocent in Cirencester features two watercolours by … Continue reading
Old bears go head-to-head with plastic action figures
In a toy story worthy of Hollwood treatment, a group of teddy bears clashed with the combined forces of goodies and baddies from Star Wars, some heavy-hitting Transformers, He-Man, the Thundercats, a platoon of GI Joes, and martial arts experts … Continue reading
Joy as hammer falls on Chinese vases
An innocuous-looking pair of matching vases caused a great deal of excitement at an antiques auction in the Cotswolds today (Friday). Pulled out of a box of miscellaneous items from a deceased estate by an eagle-eyed valuer, the Chinese amber … Continue reading
Gimson made his bed – but who’ll lie in it next?
A bed said to have been designed by and for Ernest Gimson – one of the leading practitioners of the Cotswolds-based Arts and Crafts revival – will be sold at auction in Cirencester next month as part of a larger … Continue reading
Auction features thousands of toys from the 70s and 80s
Not long ago, in a galaxy not too far away, a movie pitched as a western in space spawned a multi-billion dollar franchise whose action figures and vehicles dominated birthday and Christmas wish lists for a generation. Now, as the … Continue reading