+44 (0)1428 653727 sales@johnnicholsons.com

Graduates can look to auctions as a career, while Apple provide a rich seam of collectables

Students have headed back to college, pupils to schools, but there are also a lot of new graduates and school leavers looking to their careers now. Should they consider becoming auctioneers?

Having started at the bottom and worked my up, I have no regrets. I still think the best way in is the traditional one: starting as a porter at one of the larger auction houses, graduating to cataloguing and developing specialist knowledge in your chosen field while studying for a fine arts valuation qualification. There aren’t many courses left around the country, but they are worth doing if this game is for you.

A lot of the auction business has already gone online, and I have no doubt that more will in future. However, I also believe that there will always be brick-and-mortar salerooms for people to visit, view and handle the goods first, particularly at the top end of the market where prices run into the millions.

Auctioneering as a career still holds a lot of promise and the chances of setting up your own business and working for yourself in the long term are greater than in most other industries. It’s something you might want to have a think about.

Meanwhile, with the release of the new iPhone 16 Pro at £1,000, it’s worth remembering that Apple products are already sought-after collectables, with some of the earliest Macs selling for hundreds of thousands of pounds. The 1993 Apple Newton MessagePad, the 1998 iMac G3, the 2003 Apple iPod and the 2007 iPhone can already command decent prices if the condition is right.

They all feature in the collection of the Science Museum, providing a fascinating study of the development of technology and its association to social development over the past 40 years and more.

If this is the attitude that the Science Museum has to these objects – presenting them as museum exhibits – then you can be sure that they will also make their impact on the world of collecting in years to come. Millions of iPhones may be circulating the globe as we speak, but as they get updated and the defunct ones disappear, eventually only a limited number will be left to become sought-after collectables. The development of mobile phone technology, as they morphed into handheld computers, thereby changing the way the world communicates and interacts socially, has been the biggest game changer of all. Expect it to be a force at auction as a whole new niche collecting area develops in the future.

 

 

It’s time to turn your hidden treasures into hard cash!

Thanks to our eagle-eyed specialist, bowls that lay unnoticed during a house clearance sold in Fernhurst for £35,000

As we continue with our new weekly series of consignment valuation days at John Nicholson’s, we can reveal that we have already found amazing treasures locally – and we know many more are waiting to come out of hiding!

Take the pair of Chinese famille rose porcelain bowls shown here. Beautifully decorated with coral red fish to the exterior, this 14.5cm diameter pair has a wonderful interior, garnished with blue and white sprays of flora. Each bowl has a Daoguang mark to the base. They may well be contemporary with that period of the Qing dynasty, which lasted from 1820-50.

The bowls came to light during a routine house clearance in Hindhead. The owner was moving to the United States and had called in John Nicholson’s to assess the contents and manage the process of their dispersal. Unaware of the significance of the bowls, the owner did not single them out for inspection, but luckily our specialist spotted them during a visit. Estimated at £4,000-6,000 in our May 17, 2023 Islamic & Oriental auction, they sold to a collector in Hong Kong for £35,000.

Also sold from the clearance were several antique Chinese jade pieces, which attracted very healthy prices indeed

The Surrey/Sussex border region has also proved to be very fertile ground for antique and Contemporary Islamic art. A recent example of this was the abstract study by the Turkish artist Mubin Orhon (1924-81). Signed and dated 1961, the 80cm square canvas left its £3,000-5,000 far behind when it sold for £15,000 at our November 17, 2023 Islamic & Oriental auction.

Now it’s time to see what treasures you may have in your home. Bring them along to our consignment valuation day at Fernhurst saleroom each Friday between 9am and 5pm. No appointment necessary. Or on other days by appointment only.

 

ARE YOU SITTING ON A FORTUNE? VALUATION OPEN DAYS EVERY FRIDAY OR BY APPOINTMENT ON OTHER DAYS FOR CONSIGNMENT TO AUCTION

VALUATION OPEN DAYS EVERY FRIDAY OR BY APPOINTMENT ON OTHER DAYS FOR CONSIGNMENT TO AUCTION

We are inviting you to bring in your jewellery, watches, clocks, pictures, oriental works of art, antiques, vases, porcelain, etc for valuation and to consign on any Friday starting on Friday from 9am-5pm. We will have specialists on hand to assist you. If you have a car or van load or just one piece, do bring it along. Appointments not necessary on Friday’s.

Our address is:
Longfield,
Midhurst Road,
Fernhurst,
Haslemere,
Surrey,
GU27 3HA

email: sales@johnnicholsons.com
Telephone: +44 (0)1428 653727

 

 

Announcing our new bidding platform – John Nicholson’s Bidding!

We’re pleased to announce that as of today we have launched our own bidding platform John Nicholson’s Bidding, which you can access straight from our website at www.johnnicholsons.com.

You can bid online with: John Nicholson’s Bidding, saleroom.com and EasyliveAuctions with all our future auctions. All these are easily accessible from the home page of our website.

See the link to our Fine Painting auction direct here: https://bid.johnnicholsons.com/auctions

If you require any assistance with the new bidding platform, please do not hesitate to contact us at our offices via email: sales@johnnicholsons.com or by phone on +44 (0)1428 653727.

John Nicholson & Team
www.johnnicholsons.com

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OPENING HOURS, VIEWING AND ATTENDING AUCTIONS

Normal opening times are:

Monday – 9.00am-5.00pm
Tuesday – 9.00am-5.00pm
Wednesday – 9.00am-5.00pm
Thursday – 9.00am-5.00pm
Friday – 9.00am-5.00pm and 9.00am-7.00pm (on general sale viewing days)
Saturday – 9.00am-5.00pm (on general sale days) and 10.00am-2.00pm on viewing days
Sunday – closed

Please see our website for viewing days and times and also our auctions dates!

All are welcome for viewing and attending auctions. We look forward to welcoming you!

For any further enquiries, please call during office hours on 01428 653727 or email sales@johnnicholsons.com