Jan 2, 2021
This is the time of year I like to look ahead to see what the next 12 months are likely to bring. If the last year taught us anything, it is to avoid predictions. So here goes: Auctions will continue to transfer increasingly online now that attitudes and confidence have caught up with technology. While we may lose some of the excitement of the live auction room experience, health considerations, as well as the convenience and cost savings of being able to do everything from the comfort of your own home will win through.
Brexit changes mean we will have to work harder on filling out customs paperwork for purchases sent overseas. It’s a pain, but something we will just have to deal with.
More people will start to buy fine art and more younger people will switch on to the possibilities and wonder of antiques as they log on to bid. Often they will come across antiques for the first time by accident as they scour online catalogues for luxury goods like jewellery and watches.
Anniversaries will play an important role once more: Chanel No 5 turns 100 in May, the month before Prince Philip reaches his centenary. Louis Vuitton turns 200 in August, while the pre-Renaissance poet Dante marks his 700th birthday in September.
November 11 marks the centenary of the first Poppy Day to mark the Armistice.
So much to remember, honour and celebrate.
Dec 14, 2020
A friend of mine has just bought a pair of perfectly serviceable table lamps from an online retailer. They will be delivered within the next week and should fit in with the interior décor of their house nicely. They look fine for what they are, but if I’m honest they are made out of fairly cheap materials and I suspect will have a fairly short shelf life, despite actually being rather pricey, to my mind.
I know I’m biased, but I would argue that with a little bit of patience and the help of a free online auction alert service, my friend could have found a much better pair of lamps of classic design and more solid materials in a saleroom like mine. Recycled, well designed, long-lasting, chic and almost certainly a great deal less expensive than the repro versions they have just bought, antiques like these are the ultimate ‘green’ must-haves that everyone keeps saying they want.
It’s still not too late to find that special something for your loved ones this Christmas at auction, and it’s as easy as browsing online and registering to bid. What’s more, it’s an exciting and enjoyable process. Why not give it a go.
Dec 7, 2020
One of the legacies of the Second World War and rationing was the hoarding mentality.
I can well remember an elderly relative who used to collect plastic and paper bags, as well as string. She would use the latter to tie up neat piles of the former and stack them – never to be used again – in the hall cupboard.
For today’s de-clutterer, this approach to life is as alien as it gets, but it was an understandable mental state for those faced with long-term uncertainty, and a hard habit to kick once the threat of war receded.
Really, we should be thankful for the hoarders, for without them numerous attic finds would never have emerged into the light. Some of the best stories we read in the news these days about auctions are those that involve the discovery of some extraordinary item that has been hidden away in a barn, old chest or mouldy cupboard.
It’s not just the windfall these can bring to their unsuspecting owners; it’s also about rekindling our burning curiosity for hidden secrets that have the power to transform lives. Perhaps that’s why tales of buried treasure feature so often in our literary canon.
My favourite story is about a man who bought a painting in a Philadelphia flea market for $4 in 1989. It was the frame he wanted and when he removed the picture to re-use it, he discovered an original copy of the Declaration of Independence hidden behind. Its estimate value? Around $2.5 million.
Nov 30, 2020
One of the most fascinating collecting fields is that of coins. Created as trade goods, for thousands of years they have made their way across land and sea in exchange for commodities and services. As such, the most ancient of coins can be found far from the places where they were minted. They can also cast light on the lives and influence of those who lived in ancient times. For instance Ancient Greek coins were minted in what is now Sicily, part of Italy, but was then part of the Classical Greek empire.
Secrets from our own ancient history can also be uncovered by coins. The important thing is to preserve as good a record as possible of the find site; this is largely successful today thanks to the excellent Portable Antiquities Scheme, which rewards finder and land-owner alike, provided the rules have been followed.
All this sprang to mind a week ago with news of a record auction price for one of the most exciting finds ever: the first known gold coin of Caractacus, king of the Catuvellauni tribe in the first century AD. Caractacus entered legend as a leader of the resistance against the Roman invasion and features in the work of Tacitus, the Roman historian, who writes about Caractacus’s famous speech to the Roman Senate following his defeat and capture. So impressed were the Romans that they pardoned him and allowed him to live in Rome until he death.
The fact that Caractacus could mint such an impressive coin demonstrates his power and influence, while details that appear on the coin fill in other gaps in our knowledge.
Nov 23, 2020
The current debate around the TV series The Crown reminds me of the great closing line from the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, starring James Stewart: “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”
I suppose it was an early example of what we now call Fake News, something that has become endemic in the multi-media modern age. Does it matter that much of what is broadcast in The Crown did not happen? I suppose it doesn’t if you approach the whole series as fictional entertainment, but because it is so clearly presented as the story of our current Royal Family, the risk is that many, if not most, people will take it at face value, and that may be neither fair nor healthy.
A similar challenge has arisen among all the art and antiques programmes on TV over the past 20 years or so. Have they been a good thing?
Many in the industry dislike them because in some cases they have presented a rather misleading picture of how things work. In reality, few people would buy from dealers in order to sell at auction – i.e. buying retail to sell wholesale – because it reverses the process, meaning you are more than likely to lose money. But sometimes the truth has to take a back seat in the interests of drama and entertainment.
It’s an irony that this fantasy is now referred to as Reality TV. Having said that, the burgeoning interest that these programmes have created in our wonderful industry is only to be welcomed.
