9th Apr 2010 - LIVE BIDDING.......

Lawrences Auctioneers are please to announce that Live Bidding will be available for our forthcoming Collectors Sale on Friday 9th April.  We will be accepting Live Bidding for the Dolls Section of the sale.

For further details please contact Jo Quinn on 01460 73041 or click on the link below

http://www.the-saleroom.com/liveauctions/about.aspx

5th Mar 2010 - Free Valuations Mornings in Taunton

FREE VALUATION MORNINGS

Free valuations in Taunton every Friday 9.30-12.30 at the Corfield Hall, Magdalene Street. Easy parking in Canon Street car park and free coffee while you wait

Friday 12th February - Free general valuations morning including Collectors, Decorative Arts & Sporting Items with Simon Jones and Jewellery with Bimmy Amor.

Friday 19th March - Free general valuations morning including Collectors, Decorative Arts & Sporting Items with Simon Jones

Friday 26th March - Free general valuations morning including Collectors, Decorative Arts & Sporting Items with Simon Jones

Friday 9th April - Free general valuations morning with Chris Flower

For further details please ring Simon Jones on 01460 73041

8th Apr 2010 - Art Deco Lady to catch the eye....

A wonderful Art Deco figure is to be sold by Lawrences Auctioneers of Crewkerne. Made by the famous sculptor Josef Lorenzl, it is a classic piece of Art Deco design.   The figure shows a girl balanced on one foot and holding a scarf. This is one of a number of elegant designs he produced of figures dancing during the 1920's.   Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "Lorenzl is a very important designer for this period, and is highly prized by collectors. Art Deco items continue to be extremally popular, and it should command alot of interest"   The figure is expected to make £400-600 in auction, and will be sold in Lawrences Decorative Arts sale in April.  

For further information please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

22nd Apr 2010 - Florence Barlow Doulton Vase to be sold....

A wonderful art pottery vase is to be sold by Lawrences of Crewkerne. The vase is made by Florence Barlow, whose is best known for her wonderful animal designs at the Doulton factory.

Along with her sister Hannah, they were responsible for most animal designs at the Doulton factory in the late 19th century. Hannah joined Doulton as a student in 1871, with her sister joining later. They decided between themselves that Hannah would paint Horses and animals and that Florence would concentrate on Birds and Flowers.

This vase shows Florence at her best, with birds painted on a stoneware body.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "Works by the Barlow sisters do not come up for sale very often, and when they do there is always plenty of interest. There are a large number of Doulton collectors all over the world, who appreciate the quality of her painting"

The vase is expected to make £400-600 in auction, and will be sold in Lawrences Decorative Arts sale in April.

For further enquiries please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - A Victorian Toy Theatre to be sold....

A wonderful toy theatre is to be sold by Lawrences Auctioneers of Somerset. The theatre was made by the famous Pollock toy shop in convent garden, in the late 19th century.

Pollocks toy shop was established by Benjamin Pollock in the 1880's, and were best known for the toy theatres and scenery they produced. The company is still in business and reproduce Victorian style theatres to this day.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "These toy theatres are very collectable, and appear occasionaly in auction. This example is in very good condition, and also comes with a number of plays and props that can be used.

It is expected to make £200-400 in auction, and will be sold in Lawrences Militaria, Collectors and Sporting sale in April.

For further enquiries please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041

8th Apr 2010 - Dorset Fishing Collection to be Sold.....

A wonderful collection of Fishing items are to be sold by Lawrences of Crewkerne. The items were collected by a gentleman in Bournemouth over a 30 year period.

The collection includes over 150 antique fishing reels and over 70 antique fishing rods. The reels include legendary makers such as Hardy, Allcocks, Sharpes, Farlows and many more. The reels range in age from late 19th century through to modern, and cover all types of fishing.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, " This is an amazing collection for fishing enthusiasts, with something for everyone. He was obviously a compulsive collector and his collection covers all aspects of fishing. Antique fishing reels in particular are extremally popular with collectors, and there are some very early examples. "

Estimates range from £20- £200, and they will be sold in Lawrences Sporting Sale in April next year.

For further enquiries please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041

8th Apr 2010 - Teddy Bear needs a home.....

A wonderful Teddy Bear is to be sold at Lawrences of Crewkerne in April. Made by Chilton Toys in the 1930's, he comes complete with hooded jacket and muffler to keep him warm in the winter!

Known as the " winter skater ", this model was made by the firm for a number of years. However this version is 27 inches high, extremelly large for a bear of this sort.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, " It is very unusual to have a bear of this size, and in such good condition. I suspect he may have made for a shop display or made for an exhibition "

The bear will be sold in April next year in the Militaria and Collectors sale, in a large section of antique dolls and bears. For further information please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Matchbox Models to be sold.......

A wonderful collection of Matchbox models and memorabilia is to be sold at Lawrences of Crewkerne in April. The items were compiled by a former Production Designer of Matchbox when he worked there from the 1950's onwards.

Involved in all parts of the production process, he was responsible for designs of the models and the boxes they came in. Most of these designs he kept, and are now coming up for sale for the first time.

Amongst the large collection are three original watercolours of matchbox designs that later went into production, and a large quantity of product designs for boxes. There are also a large number of model cars, all in boxes and in excellent condition.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "This is a fascinating collection for Matchbox collectors. He was obviously a man who refused to throw anything away,and because of that we have an amazing archive of the factory including photographs of the production line in the 1950's. It is amazing to see the model cars and boxes in such mint condition, they barely look like they have been touched"

The items will be sold in the militaria and collectors sale in April, for further information please conatct Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Hunting Buttons to be sold....

CHARBOROUGH PARK ESTATE HUNTING BUTTONS TO GO UNDER THE HAMMER

A wonderful collection of over 1200 brass hunting buttons are to be sold by Lawrences Auctioneers in Crewkerne, Somerset. Consigned for sale by the Charborough Park Estate these buttons will be included in their April Sporting Sale.

The Charborough Park Estate, near Wareham, Dorset is probably best known for it's deer park and the enormous brick wall which surrounds the estate. The wall was built during 1841 & 1842 . The construction used over 2 million bricks and was commissioned by the then owner John Samual Sawbridge-Erle-Drax.

The buttons were made for the Charborough Hunt in the 1840/1850's. Originally part of the Blackmore Vale Hunt, a dispute between Sawbridge-Erle-Drax and the Farquerson Family, led to a split. Sawbridge-Erle-Drax founded his own hunt, hunting over his land only and subsequently named it The Charborough Hunt. This hunt eventually re-joined the Blackmore Vale Hunt and from this hunt saw a direct sucsession of masters of the hunt.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "It really is a remarkable find. We rarely see sets of vintage hunting buttons coming up in our sporting sales, so to see over 1200 buttons at one time and in such good condition is incredible. Most have initials of the hunt, or a fox mask with the hunts name on. Because of the short lived nature of the Charborough Hunt, the buttons rarely appear at auction. There are a large number of collectors of Hunt buttons, and they should attract a huge ammount of interest."

For further information about this sale please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Bronze Age Axe Head to be sold.......

A wonderful bronze axe head is to be sold at Lawrences of Crewkerne. The axe was dug up by a farm labourer, in a West Dorset field around 50 years ago. Not realising it's age, it was stored for many years until being inherited by relatives in the Taunton area.

The axe head is a flat axe of the early bronze age, around 2,500 BC, and has survived reamarkably well given it's age.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, " It is wonderful to handle an article of this age, that would have been in daily use. This would have been an extremelly valuable item to the people of this time, and not something that would have been discarded. Given it's excellent condition i suspect it was lost not long after it's manufacture, and the soil has preserved it ever since. "

Confirmation of it's age was given by the Dorset County Museum, and it is expected to make £100-200 in auction.

The axe head will be sold in the Militaria and Collectors sale next April. For further information please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Dolls Dolls Dolls.....

DOLLS DOLLS DOLLS !

A very large collection of antique dolls are to be sold by Lawrences of Crewkerne. Primarily from two private collections, there are a huge variety of Bisque head, cloth,and wax dolls, with over 100 dolls in total.

Highlights include a Kammer & Reinhardt Character Doll, which can be put in a crawling position, and a collection of 19th century wax dolls. Other factories represented in the sale are, Armand Marseille, Simon & Halbig, Adolf Wislizenus, Schoenau & Hoffmeister, Heubach Koppelsdorf, Kestner, Bahr & Proschild, Chad Valley, Norah Wellings, and many more.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said " This doll section in our next Collectors sale, should attract a huge ammount of interest. There are some very unusual dolls in this sale, and with estimates ranging from £50-£300 there should be something for everyone. "

These dolls will be sold in Militaria and Collectors sale next April. For further information about this sale please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Cecil Aldin Plates to be sold......

Two very unusual Royal Doulton plates are to be sold by Lawrences of Crewkerne. Both are decorated with caricatures of dogs, from original designs by Cecil Aldin.

Cecil Aldin was born in 1870, and is best known for his paintings of animals and rural life. His first drawings were published by the graphic in 1891. His illustrations include the original 1893 magazine publications of the Jungle Book, and the 1910 edition of Pickwick papers. He also published a short series of fully illustrated books in 1923, Old Manor Houses and Inns.

Drawing on the popularity of Aldins designs, Royal Doulton produced a series of plates called "Aldins Dogs". They were first made in the 1920's and were produced in relatively small numbers.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, " This is the first time i have seen these designs before. These plates will appeal to both Royal Doulton collectors, and Cecil Aldin enthusiasts "

The plates are expected to make £100-200 in auction, and will be included in the April Sporting sale. For further information please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - TALLY HO!!

A wonderful pair of Silver stirrup cups are to be sold at Lawrences of Crewkerne. Consigned from a vendor in the Minehead area, they are modelled as Foxes heads.

Cast in silver, the cups are made by Richard Comyns and are hallmarked for 1977. They were given as a gift to a gentlemen from his friends in the Worcestershire Hunt.

Stirrup cups have been made in a variety of different materials to hold drinks for the departing horseman, with the early examples made in porcelain and pottery. During the 19th century silver examples began to be produced, and are still being produced as gifts today.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "Stirrup cups are always popular when they come up in auction, and particulary when they are silver examples. There is still a large demand for Hunting related items, and the Sporting sales we run always attract alot of interest"

The cups are expected to make £200-400 in auction, and will be sold in the April Sporting sale. For further information please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

8th Apr 2010 - Fox hunted at Crewkerne....

A wonderful Bronze figure of a Foxes head, is to be sold at Lawrences of Crewkerne. Made by a contemporary sculptur called Emma MacDermott, it has been entered for sale by a Somerset vendor.

The Bronze shows the fox with snarling teeth, and is superbly modelled. The head has been mounted on a stone base and stands 9 1/2ins high. It is signed by the artist underneath.

Lawrences Auctioneer Simon Jones said, "Any models of foxes are always popular with our customers, whether in porcelain or bronze. This is superb quality, and i expect alot of interest from Sporting enthusiasts"

The bronze will be sold in Lawrences Sporting sale on April 8th, 2010, and is expected to make £300-500 in auction. For further enquiries please contact Simon Jones on 01460 73041.

3rd Mar 2010 - Bumper Sale at Lawrences.....

The General Sale and Collectors Sale on Wednesday 3rd March promises to be an exciting sale, with over 1000 lots.

Highlights include the monthly Collectors Sale which has been inundated with Steiff Teddy Bears, Dolls, Model Vehicles, Beswick Horses, Halycon Days boxes, and even Knights Armour.

Also included is the entire contents of a London flat. From this property are a large number of items, including 1960's retro furniture, China, Pictures, and various other items. Many items were purchased from department stores in central London.

Lawrences Saleroom Manager Tony Lacey said, "This promises to be an exciting sale, with a huge variety of items. The collection of Steiff Bears have attracted alot of attention, and the items from London are top quality."

For further information please contact Tony Lacey on 01460 73041.

18th Jan 2010 - January Fine Art Sale RESULTS......

Lawrences Auctioneers started 2010 with a packed Fine Art Sale.

Keen interest right across the board at the salerooms in Crewkerne on Monday (18th) established an encouraging start to the firm's week of sales, set to come to a close today with an auction of pictures, clocks, works of art and furniture.

Amongst a host of four-figure hammer prices, highlights included £3220 paid for an East Anglian seal top spoon of about 1660; £1790 for a cake basket from 1747; a remarkable £8360 for a George I teapot dating from 1718, purchased at Aspreys in 1968; £2740 for an Indian/Burmese ewer of the 19th Century; £2150 for a fine and decorative salver of 1778; £3100 for a suite of three George III wine coasters by William Plummer; £3700 for a tapering octagonal coffee pot from 1711; £2980 for a bowl by the celebrated silversmiths Omar Ramsden and Alwyn Carr; £2270 for a tortoiseshell snuff box; £2740 for a slim and skilfully made cigarette case by Anders Nevalainnen working for Karl Faberge; £2150 for a well-fitted Victorain walnut dressing box of 1853, with all its glass-topped bottles intact; and £2620 for a small Victorian musical box with a tiny singing bird under a hinged enamelled cover.

A distinguished collection of West Country spoons ranging in date from about 1590-1730 covered examples made in such towns such as Exeter, Plymouth, Sherborne, Salisbury, Taunton, Tiverton, Barnstaple and even Crewkerne itself. Top price within the collection was £3340 for a spoon of about 1620 by John Quick of Barnstaple. A four-pronged fork by Martin (or Marlin) Gale dated from about 1669 and is believed to be the earliest English four-prong fork in existence but it is unlikely to end up on the buyer's dinner table. "Routine silver forks from the Victorian era can sometimes make just a few pounds each," observes Lawrences' specialist Alex Butcher. "But the chance to own the earliest known fork in a style we all recognise today attracted bids from many keen collectors. It exceeded its estimate of £800-1200 to take £1790 and the collection made £33,900 in total. Quality and rarity are in demand at the moment and we had plenty on offer to satisfy collectors' tastes in all fields." This collection contributed to the day's total of £178,800 with very little unsold.

The second day of Lawrences' recent auction of books and manuscripts in Crewkerne featured the usual wide variety of items, ranging in date from two French manuscript leaves written in the mid-15th Century through to modern editions by Mervyn Peake and Cecil Day Lewis. It was 90% sold.

There was strength throughout the auction, with bids from all over the world (including notable interest from America) and scores of commission bids. Amongst the strongest prices, £2500 was paid for a folio of Italian etchings by Edgar Chahine; £1490 for a John Speed map of the Turkish Empire amongst many other maps of subjects closer to home in the £300-600 range; "A volume of Experiments" by Robert Boyle of the Royal Society made £1730; and £2500 was paid for a collection of Almanacks by the popular children's illustrator and author Kate Greenaway.

A well-received selection of works relating to Bristol comprised volumes describing the maps, potteries, sonnets and architecture of the city (£3600). Other books of West Country interest also did well. A collection of items relating to Admiral Jervoise of Herriard Park in Hampshire attracted interest: the lot contained a ship's log 1876-1880, watercolours of the ships in which he served in Canada and the West Indies and his medals. It was bought for £8600. The diaries of, Harry Whistler, a merchant in Hankow, China from 1883-1911 included the poignant observation that, upon proposing to his wife in 1897, she replied by saying that "she thought she could make herself like me" as well as details about the approaching Revolution of 1911 that forced Whistler's escape back to London. This lot made £2090.

The two major focal points, however, were somewhat different. A fine album of watercolours by Lewis Kennedy, proposing detailed alterations to the architecture and gardens of the estate of Trebartha in Cornwall in 1815, encapsulated the blend of extravagance and elegance that characterised Regency England. A determined American bidder fought off interest from eight other telephones to pay £16,100 for this fascinating album. The highest price of the day was for Jeremy Bentham's "Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation", published in 1789. Bentham (1748-1832) was a philosopher and campaigner for social reform whose carefully preserved body still sits, fully clothed, in a glazed cabinet at University College London (an institution which he helped to establish) so that he may still attend all the college's meetings. This rare and historically fascinating volume was found on a bookshelf in a house in North Somerset and singlehandedly contributed £29,875 to the day's total of £132,000

Lawrences Book Specialist, Rose Sanguinetti, is shown with the album by Lewis Kennedy that was bought for £16,100

In a very well-received selection of jewellery, specialist Miranda Bingham saw keen interest from private and trade buyers alike and there were strong prices throughout. Attractive mixed lots of costume jewellery performed particularly well, with two lots realising £4900 and £6210 respectively and even a small group of mourning items in jet taking £590. Attention often focuses upon the rings in these sales and diamonds proved to be in demand yet again: a 2.2 carat solitaire on a white gold band doubled expectations to take £8120 whilst an impressive sapphire and diamond cluster also exceeded its £1500-2000 estimate to make £5730. An elegant diamond jabot pin set with cushion-shaped and circular-cut diamonds was modest in size at 9cm long but determined bidding pushed it beyond its £800-900 estimate to take £7880 whilst the top price of the day was the £10,150 paid for a 1.3 carat brilliant-cut diamond ring with seven smaller diamonds on the shoulders (estimate was £10,000-12,000, see illustration). "Many private buyers, who are encouraged by the stability of gold in these tentative times, also appreciate the enjoyment and the value for money when buying at auction," said Miranda Bingham. "The wide range of items of offer, from cufflinks and cameos to brooches and bracelets, ensured a very healthy demand right across the sale."

Similar breadth of scope characterised the ceramics section with items as diverse as a Persian arborello from the 12th Century (£470) through to modern decorative arts by Moorcroft, Royal Doulton and Ruskin. A scarce Royal Doulton figure of a jester made £1310 and two small Chinese porcelain pieces justified their half-page illustrations when interest from abroad resulted in bids of £1670 for a saltglazed figure of a squatting Chinaman (11cm high) and £2500 for a polychrome saltglazed tea caddy just 13cm high. A single tiny Continental porcelain egg cup in the Kakiemon palette would grace any breakfast table at £230, twenty assorted Delftware tiles (far too good for any bathroom) made £570; an impressive Chinese vase and cover in the famille rose palette exceeded its £800-1200 estimate to make £1550 whilst a bowl in a similar palette on a lime ground made £1310. Total for the day, including buyer's premium, was over £230,000

The weeks' sales drew to a close with a day's worth of pictures and furniture under the hammer. "Dealers and collectors are particularly eager to buy in January," observed the firm's picture specialist, Richard Kay. "We were not competing with many other auctions of such size and variety in January and crowds of people turned up in Crewkerne to view and to bid. News that Britain was coming out of the recession emboldened bidders and, of course, we had numerous lots of quality and distinction in every department. It was a very full room all week and the prices reflected keen buying right across the board."

Highlights in a 250-lot picture section included £5000 for a delightful little watercolour by Rose Maynard Barton of a young girl at an open door; £3340 for a sketch by Sir Stanley Spencer for his major work at Tate Britain entitled "Zacharias and Elizabeth"; and truly trans-Atlantic interest in a fine selection of 140 drawings by William Heath Robinson with bids from British and American collectors, offered as twenty lots. These realised a total of £85,200 and the top price was the £20,300 paid for his absurd and amusing "Correspondence Course for Mountain Climbing in the Home" of 1928. In the oil paintings section, £17,900 was paid for a portrait by Irishman Nathaniel Hone of his son Camillus with a hound, c.1776 (see illustration); £10,700 for a large and decorative figure group by Maria Spilsbury (c.1804); £8360 for a scene of Venice by Antoine Bouvard; £7100 for a tempera study of poppies by Eliot Hodgkin; and the sell out of the studio sale of Cornish artist Bernard Ninnes - 35 lots had been retrieved from an attic in North Somerset and sold for a total of £14,300, much to the delight of the artist's family (some of whom were in the room to watch their ancestors' pictures sell to new collectors). Less than 9% remained unsold in this section of the sale.

Amongst the works of art and furniture, £4060 was paid for twenty silk-woven Stevengraphs in superb condition; £4420 for a 16th Century Flemish carving of the Virgin and Child; and a host of high prices included £3940 for a George III oak dresser; £13,740 for an impressive serpentine commode of the same era; £6200 for a French marquetry side cabinet inlaid with a profusion of flowers in an urn ; £10,750 for a George I walnut tallboy; and £15,290 for an Arts and Crafts table made by Philip Webb for William Morris. The days' total exceeded £500,000 and the firm's total for the week of auctions attained over £1.1m