Auction Highlights
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Egyptian Granite Head of a Dignitary
Sold for (Inc. bp): £28,600
Carved with soft facial features and carefully executed cosmetic lines around the eye, earring, and carefully detailed duplex wig with gently wavy curls; likely from the Ramesside Period; mounted on a custom-made stand. -
Etruscan Bronze Statuette of Herakles
Sold for (Inc. bp): £18,200
Modelled in the round with a muscular nude body, his club resting on his shoulder and the hair dressed in rows of tight, close-set curls underneath the Nemean lionskin hood with cloak billowing over his left arm, the paws tied across his chest; mounted on a custom-made display stand. -
Roman Marble Portrait of a Boy as Worshipper of Isis
Sold for (Inc. bp): £17,550
Carved head of a prepubescent worshipper of Isis, with soft facial features, long nose, small downturned mouth, heavy-lidded eyes, the whole giving the face a sombre or mournful appearance; the hair textured to indicate a short cut and combed forward across the scalp, sidelock above the right ear; mounted on a 16th century carved breccia upper body with leather cuirass and pteruges to right shoulder, cloak draped across the shoulders and fastened at the clavicle on the right side with a disc-brooch; socle base; some restoration. -
Larger Than Life-Size Roman Bronze Sandaled Foot
Sold for (Inc. bp): £39,000
Modelled in the round and originally part of a monumental statue, the naturalistic right foot encased in a trochades leather sandal with median reversed tongue secured with side straps and thick looped laces; the thick platform sole slightly curved, toes and nails well defined; mounted on a substantial custom-made display stand. -
Life-Size Roman Marble Sleeping Girl from a Sarcophagus Lid
Sold for (Inc. bp): £20,800
Modelled in the half-round, nude with eyelids half-closed in sleep; a drapery partly covering the head and wrapping around the lower body under the hips; the hairstyle similar to those of the Antonine Dynasty, the peaceful face supported by the hands and the ear pierced to accept an earring; iron reinforcing rod to the feet and the right arm's armilla a later replacement; upper head restored in Parian marble. -
Byzantine Porphyry Relief with Cross Surrounded by Two Birds
Sold for (Inc. bp): £28,600
An imposing panel divided to four sections by a central cross on a stepped pedestal, the lower and upper arm with branch-like extensions; the upper quadrants with a circlet surrounding a palm tree-shaped motif; each lower quadrant with a bird in profile facing back; mounted on a custom-made display stand. -
Carved Marble Memento Mori Skull
Sold for (Inc. bp): £16,900
Carved skull on a short neck with musculature and blood vessels; mandible in place with some teeth in sockets, wisps of hair adhering to the dome of the skull; one zygomatic bone partly absent; square-section socle base. -
'The Kelton' Gandharan Head of a Bodhisattva
Sold for (Inc. bp): £24,700
Carved in the half-round head of a Bodhisattva (probably Maitreya) with fine detailing to the arched brow, aquiline nose, neat moustache and full lips; the eyes heavily lidded, urna to the forehead, long open lobes to the ears; the hair in multi-stranded curling locks gathered into an ushnisha with brow-band below; heavily cleaned, conserved, and mounted on a custom-made stand; supplied with original old wooden base with collector's label: 'Head of Bodhisattva / Fine grain schist / Gandhara, Northwest Pakistan / 4th century'.
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Blue Glass Bead Necklace String
20th century A.D. or earlierSold for (Inc. bp): £13
Restrung; composed of translucent blue glass beads interspersed with umber-coloured spacer beads. 8.01 grams, 76 cm long
UK gallery, early 2000s. -
Silver Plaque with Papal Heraldic Cameo
17th-18th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £936
A carved agate coat of arms within a lapis lazuli plaque, held in a silver canatille frame comprising elaborate filigree foliage and with suspension loop; arms of Pope Alexander VII (1655-1667). 176 grams, 17.5 cm
Private collection, England.
Pope Alexander VII was born Fabio Chigi and took the role of head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death, in May 1667. He held a number of diplomatic positions in the Holy See, was ordained in 1634, and became bishop of Nardo in 1635. Pope Innocent X elevated him to the role of secretary of state in 1651, and in the following year he was appointed a cardinal. Alexander VII supported various construction projects in Rome, wrote poetry and patronized artists working on the decoration of churches. -
Antique Collectors' Cabinet Pair
20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
Matched pair of miniature coin cabinets, each with brass lock and key, six removable sliding trays with graduated circular slots. 1.85 kg total, 19 x 16 x 9.8cm each
English private collection. -
Madonna with Child Statue
19th-early 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £78
Hollow-formed cast iron figure of Mary in hooded ankle-length gown holding the infant Jesus, standing on a rectangular base. 4 kg, 39 cm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
Copy of an Historic Bronze Seal of the Lermonth Family
Circa 19th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £13
Comprising a fleur-de-lys handle and discoid body, underside with central heater shield and legend '*S' PATRICII*LERMUNTH (seal of Patrick Lermunth); the arms including a chevron and three mascles (voided lozenges). 24 grams, 32 mm diameter
Property of a Norwich, Norfolk, UK, gentleman. Accompanied by an original handwritten note about the heraldry of the seal dated 15 December 1997. -
Post Medieval Gold 'Chain' Ring with Garnet Gabochon
19th-20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
The shoulders with voided chain-link detailing, stepped bezel with inset garnet cabochon. 1.78 grams, 22.40 mm overall, 16.80 mm internal diameter (approximate size British M, USA 6, Europe 12.46, Japan 12)
From the collection of the famous author, writer and speaker, Gordon Bailey, Essex, UK; formed since 1968. -
Bactrian Style Lapis Lazuli Bead Necklace String
20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £7
Graduated group of beads, mainly tubular and annular types with spherical centrepiece and leaf-shaped dangles. 42 grams, 46 cm
London, UK, art market, 1980-2000s -
Medieval Style 'Billy and Charlie' Fantasy Pendant
19th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
By William Smith and Charles Eaton; obverse: robed figure with keys; reverse: two combatants with swords. 78 grams, 95 mm
From the collection of the famous author, writer and speaker, Gordon Bailey, Essex, UK; formed since 1968.
"Billy and Charlies", also known as the Shadwell forgeries, refer to a very extensive series of fake antiquities made in Victorian London by William Smith (Billy) and Charles Eaton (Charley). They were mudlarks who searched the Thames for items of value. William Edwards, a London antique dealer, made Billy's acquaintance around 1845, and he met Charley some years later. He paid them for items of interest that they found. Billy and Charley earned money from this until 1857, when they decided to counterfeit antiquities. They cast objects from lead or pewter, cutting dies into plaster of Paris moulds with nails and knives, and bathing the finished items in acid to simulate aging. Their commonest products were medallions, but others included daggers, statuettes, ampullae and even small shrines; as they were both illiterate the inscriptions on many of the objects are nonsense. They sold their forgeries to very prominent collectors of the time who thought they were genuine. Eventually, due to the large volume of objects that were appearing on the market, they were arrested and tried at court though they could not be found guilty of any crime at the time. They were released and carried on producing fakes but their style of manufacture had become well known and they eventually disappeared from history. -
Bronze Figurine Group
20th century A.D. or earlierSold for (Inc. bp): £33
Including a warrior with spear and shield, D-section plaque with bound captive and other types. 319 grams total, 62-92 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. -
Tudor 'Published' Bronze Clothes Fastener Collection
16th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £52
Group of hooked tags of various forms including rosette and openwork types; many of these objects are published in the Detector Finds book series and Buttons & Fasteners 500 BC-AD 1840. 25.3 grams total, 30-40 mm
From the collection of the famous author, writer and speaker, Gordon Bailey, Essex, UK; formed since 1968. -
Renaissance Stained Glass Panel of a Bearded Man
France, Troyes, circa 1530-1550 A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
Irregular cordiform angel in lead framing; head of a bearded man with downcast gaze, tousled hair. 80 grams, 14 cm
with Rieunier & Associes, 25 October 2004, no.52. Accompanied by a copy of a two page illustrated catalogue information page. -
Jadeite Pendant Necklace with 'Rubies' and Other Cabochons
Late 19th-early 20th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Plaque with floral design comprising inset glass cabochons, synthetic rubies and gold-coloured wire detailing, central floral plaque. 100 grams, pendant height: 98 mm
Property of a South West London gentleman.