May 24, 2021
To be fair, it was a mangled wreck, yet someone decided to pay nine times its lower estimate of £10,000 to secure it at auction. Why?
The remains of the 1960 Jaguar XK150 S.38 Drophead Coupe look ready for no more than the scrapheap, but a mixture of faith and hope – and possibly a little charity – mean that it will now rise again to wow petrolheads in what must be the ultimate recycling exercise.
This vintage Jag was a very limited edition originally: just 69 of the right-hand drive models were made. It also played a massive role in the development of sports cars; quite an eyeful on its own terms, it also proved to be the stepping stone to the iconic E-Type, arguably the most important British sports car of the 1960s.
This model has been with the vendor since 1969, and they remained the proud owner until it had a serious argument with a tree in 1996, since when it has languished in its current state.
Now though, someone with enough vision and money to make the difference has snapped it up at auction with a view to restoring it to its former glory. I just hope that they film the entire process as they could make a mint out of the rights.
When fully restored, it is thought that it might be worth up to £250,000, so the new owner will have a chance of getting their money back and more if they ever decide to sell.
There has been a lot of talk about antiques being green as they are recycled through the secondhand market at auction or via dealers. But I can’t think of any better illustration of that argument than this XK150.
May 17, 2021
News that the late great Tommy Cooper’s trademark fez is up for auction with an estimate of £3,000 reminds me of my favourite joke of his: “I’m on a whisky diet; I’ve lost three days already.”
And if the fez is as closely associated with Cooper as the large corona cigar is with Churchill, then nowhere in Scotland – the spiritual home of whisky in more ways than one – is the single malt more closely associated than the island of Islay.
Its various forms include Bowmore (named after the island’s capital), the oily, peaty Lagavulin and Ardbeg, sublime Caol Ila and perhaps the smoothest of all single malts, Bunnahabhain. Port Ellen, Laphroaig and Bruichladdich are other leading brands.
Between them they are thought to provide Islay with one of the highest value exports per capital of any community in the world. With around 3,000 inhabitants and a whisky export industry worth close to £300 million a year, that figure comes out at around £100,000 a head. That beats the leading country per capita export value (Liechtenstein) of around $100,000.
No surprise, then, that dedication to the ‘water of life’ is so strong and widespread, not just on the island itself but among wealthy collectors.
Now there is news that the most extensive and complete collection from Islay is going under the hammer as part of Fèis Ìle, the annual festival of music and malt, on May 24.
The consignment comes from Pat’s Whisky Collection, the largest private collection of whisky ever to come to auction. Those Pat has selected from his 9,000 “bottle library” includes the legendary single cask 1982 Port Ellen, of which only 220 bottles are thought to exist, and a limited issue Bowmore 25-year-old, produced in only 100 bottles.
It’s a collector’s dream.
May 10, 2021
The fine art market is home to a concept known as “wall power”. This advocates a notion of the-bigger-the-better, particularly when it comes to contemporary art. Partially this is because a larger work of art on your wall – or a larger sculpture in your hallway or garden – is likely to have a bigger impact. However, wall power can have its drawbacks at auction. In order for substantially sized paintings or sculpture to do well (assuming they’re any good, of course), an auction house must be able to attract buyers not just with enough money to raise the level of bidding, but also with homes and gardens large enough to accommodate such purchases to scale.
So works like these can also be status symbols, because they tell everyone that the buyer is of sufficient means both to buy the work at a significant price and also must have a big enough wall to hang it on.
Never underestimate status as a strong driver of demand when it comes to buying art among the wealthy.
Fortunately, not all art is priced by the inch. In fact, some of the world’s most expensive pieces are very small indeed. The world’s rarest and most desirable stamp, for instance, the 1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta, has been valued at around $15 million for auction in New York soon, while Leonardo da Vinci’s beautiful signed drawing of the head of a bear is expected to fetch up to £12 million at auction this summer. However, for my money, the most desirable work per inch sold at auction must be an ancient carving known as the Guennol Lioness. Around 5,000 years old and from Mesopotamia, the limestone sculpture has a remarkably modern Art Deco air about it. Its chiselled features stand out strongly along it 8cm high frame. When it came to auction in 2007, it sold for $57.2 million.
May 4, 2021
“I am the greatest,” shouted Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) in 1963 on his comedy album that is now seen as a precursor of rap and hip hop. It may have been a semi-serious claim at the time, but the world sat up and took notice when he became World Heavyweight Champion six months later, beating the heavily favoured title holder Sonny Liston.
Many consider Ali the greatest sportsman of the 20th century – an amazing claim but one sustained by the strength and individual nature of his character and his ability to tap into the public mood.
In the world of rock and pop memorabilia, for all their worship at the altars of Elvis and Buddy Holly, auction records and the fans have made it very clear that there is no one to touch The Beatles, the most iconic band of all time – a status that they are unlikely ever to cede to anyone else.
Now Roger Federer has announced that he is to auction 20 lots of his match-worn clothing and racquets from his Grand Slam wins on June 23 to raise money for his foundation.
Nadal may have matched his men’s Grand Slam record of 20 titles, and Djokovic may even pass that to set a new record in the next year or so. But the frustrating thing for Djokovic, to whom this means so much, is that the number of titles doesn’t matter because we all know – and he knows – that what makes Federer the GOAT is something that surpasses the results board: that untouchable mix of grace, athleticism and perfectionism leavened by a healthy dose of self-deprecation and the seemingly effortless ability to charm the fans.
So far, Federer is a shoo-in for the greatest sportsman of the 21st century, proving that, in the end, being the greatest is about character. This auction should be a landmark sale in every way.
Apr 26, 2021
With headlines celebrating huge prices for modern collectables like sneakers, comics and plastic toys, the traditional world of fine furniture and silver auctions can seem a long way away. The reality, though, is that at heart little has changed except for current tastes.
People of all ages like to have nice things and they also like to make a bit of money from things they no longer want or need, which other people might appreciate.
The factors that govern values in Pokémon playing cards are little different from those that determine what people will pay for other, older works on paper, especially rarity and condition.
Sometimes people of different generations like the same things without realising it because they call them different names: what younger collectors refer to as vintage posters, advertising packaging and other transitory pieces of design would be called ephemera by the collectors of yesteryear. The trick is getting people to appreciate that ‘antique’ is not dead and gone, it’s simply transitioning as the years go by, along with the terms we use to describe it.
The result is that auction houses have begun to change the way they present their sales calendar and departments to reflect the changing attitudes of the public who tend to think of objects in terms of furnishing and design rather than as academic collectables. Furniture, lighting and works of art sales have now sometimes come together under the title of Homes & Interiors, for instance. And the types of furniture, from the way they are designed to the materials they are made from, have also moved on, with the occasional backward glance as out-of-fashion pieces suddenly become à la mode once more.
Apr 19, 2021
What is the most expensive shoes you have ever comes across? A pair of Manolo Blahnik’s? Jimmy Choo’s? No longer, thanks to a pair of sneakers once worn by the rapper Kanye West, which have just sold for a cool $1 million at auction.
These were the first pair of Nike Air Yeezy 1’s ever worn by West and he slipped them on for the 2008 50th Annual Grammy Awards.
It’s hard to think of something manufactured as recently as 13 years ago as being of such value as a collectable, but it’s a lesson to us all that serious sums are not always associated with rarities from the distant past. In fact, a 2019 report by Cowen Equity Research classifying sneakers as an alternative asset class predicted that their resale market would be valued at around $30 billion by 2030. That’s the equivalent of over half the value of the entire global art market in absolute terms today.
Some auction houses already have departments dedicated to vintage fashion, but it looks as though others will soon have departments dedicated solely to sneakers.
It’s a far cry from the traditional furniture, jewellery, ceramics, glass, silver, books and fine art departments of the past, but times move on. Guessing what other alternative asset classes will emerge to change the profile of auction houses is an interesting game. What’s your prediction?
Apr 12, 2021
The death of the Duke of Edinburgh, although anticipated owing to his great age, nevertheless came as a bit of a shock as he seemed to be rallying after hospital treatment.
Tributes have poured in for what was a remarkable life in many ways, from its beginnings among the fading vestiges of European royalty swept away in the First World War and Bolshevik revolution to its completion as the standard setter for royal protocol globally.
Sacrifice, duty, honour and commitment were all instantly recognisable qualities in Prince Philip, who carved a path through life like no one before or since.
He was also innovative, forward-thinking, clever and brave, with little patience for time wasters or laziness.
With so much experience and having been central to so many memorable events as he supported the Queen over almost 75 years, what he saw and heard along the way would make the most fascinating biography. He is said to have kept meticulous records for posterity. If he approached them with the same no-holds-barred acerbic wit that he approached life, then they would be a best seller in the making. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for that.
Meanwhile, such close attention of a royal life like this can also have the power to create new fascination in nascent collectors. Items linked with royalty can already make very significant sums at auction. Reflections on the Duke of Edinburgh’s life may well encourage a new generation of fans to join the fray.
Apr 6, 2021
Detective fiction, whether in print or on the screen, is possibly the most popular fiction of all. Think of everything from Agatha Christie to Line of Duty and you get the picture. Like crossword puzzles and treasure hunts, they challenge while entertaining, allowing the reader/viewer to exercise their “leetle grey cells”, as Hercule Poirot would say, as they try to guess whodunnit, as well as how and why, before the denouement reveals all.
In some ways, cataloguing items for auction present the specialist with the same challenge and excitement. The mystery can range from what an item is – we have had a few of those – to who originally owned it and where it came from.
If you consider that the value of an object can be heavily influenced by its past associations, finding out as such as you can becomes a vital task, especially if you are thinking of putting your own possessions up for auction.
In recent years, discovery stories that have made the headlines have often involved an old vase or plate that turns out to be an ancient Chinese rarity worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, if not millions.
One of my favourite stories involved the sale of a piano. Bought by the niece of the woman who had previously owned it for just $25, she discovered that one of the pedals kept sticking. On having it repaired, she found that what was causing the problem was a secret stash of 100 antique baseball cards, which appeared to have been concealed for 80 years – probably hidden by one of the previous owner’s children.
Among the cards was a real rarity of the great Babe Ruth. That card alone later sold for $130,000.
So keep your eyes peeled and get your magnifying glass out.
Mar 29, 2021
The most expensive sold at auction for over $6.5 million; around one trillion are taken every day thanks to the ubiquity of the Smart phone; nearly all of us have taken them and own them. Few things are familiar to the average person than the photograph.
They are windows on the past, and where they have been faithfully reproduced rather than tampered with, provide us with the earliest unfettered and unfiltered clues to how we once lived.
When it comes to collecting, I can’t think of another discipline that it is as accessible or fascinating to the masses.
Vernacular or street photography has long been popular, never more so since then discovery of the extraordinary archive left by the unknown Vivian Maier (1926-2009), an American nanny who pursued a secret career as a street photographer for 40 years and whose work can now sell for thousands. From Victorian cartes de visites to anonymous everyday subjects that sell on eBay for a few pounds, this is a craze that keeps growing and keeps on giving.
So it is with some excitement that original works by the father of modern photography Sir William Henry Fox Talbot (1800-77) come to auction at Sotheby’s in April.
Featuring people, objects and places, including his celebrated home, Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire, the images date back to the early 1840s and include one of Lady Elisabeth Feilding c.1841, who was born in 1773, three years before the American Revolution.
Photographs bring local history alive. Precious relics, they create a unique connection that never existed before Fox Talbot and his fellow pioneers worked out how to fix those images in permanent form.
Mar 22, 2021
If you’ve ever wondered how much money is spent on art, antiques and collectables around the world each year, we have just been told: $50 billion. That may sound a lot, but to put that in perspective, the annual spend of the entire global art market is less than the market capitalisation value of all top 16 companies in the FTSE 100.
The value of the annual global art market has risen to almost $68 billion before, but as with nearly all other forms of commerce, the pandemic has taken its toll. Nonetheless, as this column has noted in recent months, art and antiques auctions have entered a booming new era thanks to the rapid acceleration of adoption of online sales.
The $50 billion figure was announced in mid-March by Arts Economics, the research company behind the eagerly anticipated Art Basel report, the Rolls Royce annual assessment of the art market and what is happening to it.
One of the report’s headline claims that online-only sales at auction doubled in the past year. Another was that although UK sales as a whole fell by 22% to $9.9 billion, it still held on to its top-three spot after the US and China as the world’s most important market for art and antiques.
It’s reassuring to know that even in troubled times, the knowledge, skill and expertise of British art market professionals still shines through.
