News Bites — Year 2010

He has taken rooms in Crows Nest, on the Lower North Shore, and is the only antiques, collectables and art auctioneer located on the North Shore, serving areas from North Sydney, to Manly and Wahroonga.  

David Barsby formerly traded with Gina Lugosi as Barsby & Lugosi Auctioneers, and the firm established itself as a specialist in-house sales auctioneer in the North Shore.

Prior to joining with David Barsby in 2008, Gina Lugosi was a co-founder and decorative arts specialist with  Badgery's Auctioneers & Appraisers and left when the business closed.

Barsby Auctions plans to hold a combination of in-room and house sales on a monthly basis.

The Calyx Porcelain Factory Perth produced domestic and decorated wares from the early 1900's.  It was merged with Bristile and Wunderlich, c.1940's, to later become the Wembley Ware factory.

Decorated Calyx wares are quite rare, due to the fragility of the soft clay.  Calyx employed local and overseas artists to design and decorate their wares,

The McKenzies Auctioneers sale was held on  Tuesday  23rd November (art)  and on Wed 24th November (jewellery & collectables).

Calyx Ware rarely comes onto the market, and although the sale included a Calyx Ware plate decorated with a kookaburra, (est. $500-1,000)  the previous major Calyx Ware piece  was a jardinière sold by the same auction house in December 2009. The jardinière was decorated with four circular  Art Nouveau style bush scenes to the upper section, and sold for $4,830.

Other major lots sold at the November auction included an Australian ostrich egg presentation  casket circa 1869, (Lot 378 )  sold for $25,630, to a Melbourne collector, the obvious home, as it was attributed to the  Melbourne maker, William Edwards. 

Jewellery has long been a staple of McKenzie Auctions, and a Perth  secured the main jewellery lot, a 3.90ct fancy champagne  coloured diamond ring, at $25,630.

The cup (Lot 1 ) is inscribed “The Junius Cup, presented to Robt Fitzgerald, as the winner by his horse Creeper...” while the reverse bears the wording “NSW, Parramatta Racing Fund, October Meeting 1827”.Although the cup bears pseudo-British hallmarks, and a maker’s mark for James Robertson, it is suggested the cup may have been made by Alexander Dick, (c1791-1834), a free settler and silversmith from Scotland, arrived in Sydney from in  1824 and probably initially employed by James Robertson, Sydney's first non-convict silver retailer and also from Scotland,

Later  Dick soon established his own business at 104 Pitt Street as both a retailer and working silversmith.

It is believed the cup was sold to an institution.
 

Patti Sedgwick has over twenty years iof experience in the auction industry, including stints with Lawson’s Auctioneers, Leonard Joel, Bonhams and Goodman and Sotheby’s Australia.

From 1999 to late 2002, Patti was the principle of Sedgwicks Auctioneers in Melbourne, a specialist jewellery auctioneer based in the city centre.

Bonhams have held  two large decorative arts auctions in Sydney, since setting up in Australia in early 2010.

The fisrt sale, The Owston Collection was 1306 lots with no specific section devoted to jewellery.

The second auction held on November 13, 14 and 15 featured 1256 lots, of which only 140 were jewellery.

The portrait, (Lot 456 ) to be offered on Sunday, June 20, had spent many years in an eastern suburbs home until it was sent off to be cleaned and restored. When it returned the owners decided they weren’t so keen on the cleaned up picture and packed it off to auction.

The oval image, on a panel, is 22cm by 18cm and in a matching carved and gilded frame which Colin Vickers says is “definitely 19^th century if not before”.

His research suggests it may be based on another portrait of Cook, perhaps painted as a centenary memento in 1870. Estimate is $1,000 to $1,500.

The mixed sale also offers an interesting leather-bound book of 52 botanical watercolours (Lot 369 ), mostly American flora, with an inscription dated 1857 or 1867 but no legible artist’s signature.

There’s also been overseas interest in a vase (Lot 1 ) and charger (Lot 5 ) by the 1900s Arts & Crafts English pottery firm Della Robbia.

 The three-handled nine-carat gold “Loving Cup”, (lot 101) designed by James Steed in time for the 1919 race won by Artilleryman and still in use today, is one of the world’s most identifiable sporting trophies.

The field contained Tulloch, a turf icon widely regarded as one of the three finest horses in Australian history, which finished an unlucky seventh.

The three handled “Loving Cup”, designed by James Steeth in time for the 1919 race won by Artilleryman and still in use today, is one of the world’s most identifiable sporting trophies.

Lawson-Menzies will offer the cup (Lot 101) for auction as part of its newly introduced quarterly fine interiors sale in its Sydney gallery at 12 Todman Avenue, Kensington.

The 1960 Melbourne Cup field included Tulloch – a turf icon widely regarded as one of the three finest horses in Australian racing history. In his lead-up to the Cup, Tulloch had won three important races, and started 3-1 favourite. However, horse racing rarely follows the intended script and Tulloch finished an unlucky seventh (the only unplaced run of his distinguished career) behind the previously unheralded New Zealand mare and 50-1 outsider, Hi Jinx.

In November 2007, Bonhams & Goodman sold the last Melbourne Cup offered at auction for $168,000 (IBP) being the 1892 Melbourne Cup, won by "Glenloth". However the design was much more elaborate than the "Loving Cup" design introduced in 1919, featuring a cast figure of winged Victory holding a laurel wreath in each hand, on a shaped oval silver plated plinth on which were mounted three cast figures of racehorses with jockeys, flanking and facing the cup

It was part of an extensive taxidermy collection owned by an Adelaide family put up for auction that brought buyers from everywhere in their anxiety to obtain one of the animals.

Auctioneer Tony Philips couldn’t believe his eyes when more than 200 people filled the room, paddles at the ready to get a piece of the action. An outstanding example was the zebra head (Lot 17 ), which he had conservatively estimated at $1,000-$2,000, that changed hands for $12,694 including buyers premium.

However, even better returns were on the way when a giraffe head and neck (Lot 42 ) and an Alaskan moose head (Lot 46 ) each sold for $16,156 against respective estimates of $3000-$5000 and $2000-$4000 respectively.

The entire taxidermy collection of 46 animal heads, complete specimens and skins sold quickly, the success prompting one observer to allocate his collection of some 15 animals for the next auction

The table, estimated at $10,000-15,000 was  lent to the New South Wales Government for the purpose, and brought $14,400 (including buyers’ premium). It was a major attraction of the property, built 41 years ago by John and Therese Glennon.

The 18 matching mahogany dining chairs (Lot 109)  estimated at $6,000-8,000 fetched three times the upper estimate, changing hands for $29,400, while a suite of Gothic revival oak dining room wall panels (Lot 112) estimated at $15,000-30,000 did not fare as well, selling for $12,000.

A 19^th century Italian finely carved Carrara marble figure group depicting Romeo and Juliet embracing on a balcony, signed by P. Barranti,  (Lot 200) sold for $16,800, against an estimate of $8,000-10,000.

Leading the charge was the antique Victorian pianola organ (Lot 569 ) (with drum and castanet attachments) from the former Marysville museum – now a supermarket complex – which survived last year’s February 7 Black Saturday bushfires.  Briefly listed in the catalogue as 'An interesting organ formerly from The Marysville Museum', the organ sold for $23,700 including buyers’ premium.

Other encouraging results included the Duke of Cambridge attributed mahogany double pedestal partners’ desk (Lot 630 ) (complete with ducal crown markings from His Royal Highness Prince George 1819-1904) which changed hands for $18,250, a Beleek fruit server (Lot 177 ) which made $12,440 and a Carl Bechstein burr walnut grand piano (Lot 820 ) which sold for $14,220. 

The top lot in Leonard Joel's Toy Sale on Sunday was a rare pre-World War II trade box for six Dinky 28/1 delivery vans (Lot 55 ) on which Joel's placed an $8000-$12,000 estimate. It didn't disappoint, selling for the upper estimate, which equated to $14,400 including premium.

A good price was also achieved for a rare Japanese pre-war Clockwork Celluloid Rambling Mickey Mouse, (Lot 378 ), circa 1934, estimated at $1,800-$2,500, but selling for double this at $5,760 including premium.

Overall 360 of the 380 lots offered (95%) found a new home.

The collection was established on the death of William Robert Johnston a former antique dealer and collector of beautiful things, who traded as Kent Antiques in High Street Armadale in the 1970s and 1980s.  He made frequent buying trips to the United Kingdom and India, and established a base in Greenwich, Kent, hence the business name.

William Johnston decided he wanted the bulk of his  vast antique collection of antiques to be available to the public after his death.  He had enjoyed collecting it, he had enjoyed using it and it was a source of immense satisfaction that his friends received so much pleasure from his collection as well, so a charitable trust was set up to become effective after his death in 1986, overseen by four Trustees.

The collection is housed in three high Victorian houses in upmarket East Melbourne and is open to the public. However so as not to upset the neighbours, public inspection is only by appointment, and once a booking, guests are collected from  the nearby Hilton Hotel by mini bus and ferried to the house.

Jamie said one of his main challenges was to thin out the collection for the display period, so that there was more emphasis on some of finer pieces in the collection which he most admired.

"For example, I moved the 18^th century English longcase clock  from the narrow hallway into the far wall of the drawing room, aligned to the door so it's the first item of furniture that visitors see when the enter the room",  Jamie said.

Presented under the title, Jamie Allpress Rearranges Mr. Johnson's Collection, the display runs until June 25, 2010.

Elsewhere in the ceramics is a Grace Seccombe pottery kookaburra group “The Open Sliprails” with an inscription. It’s estimated at $1500 plus

Among the tribal art is what Williams describes as a particularly fine Aboriginal tjuringa with a lovely patina collected in Alice Springs around 1945. Estimate is $400 plus but that could prove conservative.

There is also some classy furniture including a Georgian double-door corner cupboard and mahogany bureau, plus oriental rugs with certificates from the very reputable firm of Nomadic Rug Traders.

Among the corkers are a number of vintage French corking machines in various combinations of iron, wood and brass (Lot 109 ) and (Lot 110 ), which are estimated at $800 plus, while the very decorative corking machine by Fonderie De Maronne (Lot 119 ) is estimated at $500 plus.

An antique French poplar winemaker’s bench (Lot 107 ) 2.5m long stamped Bourgogne, carries an estimate of $2,500 plus while an old brass-bound oak wine pitcher 20 cm high, (Lot 102 ), is estimated at $200. There is an antique wine barrel on stand, antique iron and walnut grape press, oak and other wine racks and two Art Deco bottle drying racks.

There’s also a massive array of furniture, desks, bronzes, clocks, ceramics, orientalia, mirrors, garden furniture and who knows what else in a catalogue numbering some 750 lots.

The piece - which was highlighted on this web site some weeks ago -is one of a series from the Burslem factory painted by Katherine Smallfield around 1890-1900, based on original designs from a Miss Rutherford of Bathurst.

An ornate four-piece toilet set featuring bottle brush, flannel flowers and other native species brought a similar price. It is believed former media figure Trevor Kennedy - these days a keen Australiana buyer - was among those showing interest.

John Williams’s is currently awash with toby jugs and beer steins - hundreds of them - from a massive one-owner collection which will be offered at its sale on March 27 and 28.

Fauna aside, the broad miscellany included an antique cylinder front bureau bookcase, partnership desk, dumb waiter, sets of chairs, portrait miniatures and jewellery, Marjorie Graham pottery, glass, lamps, sterling silver and garden furniture.

If the flyer for the sale was any guide, Williams's labrador has also found a home in an antique mahogany wine cooler with paw feet (the hound presumably not for sale).

Then there’s the Strehlow sale scheduled for March 14, which as well as four paintings by Albert Namatjira includes an exceptional Otto Pareroultja and other work by Hermannsburg artists. There are also important pictures by John Gardner, a colleague of Hermannsburg school mentor Rex Battarbee in the 1930s, which are based on Strehlow’s early photographs of Aboriginal sacred ceremonies.

And in another coup the firm will offer on March 6 an amazing collection of World War II Ferrets - formidable light armoured vehicles equipped with Rolls-Royce engines which saw service mainly towards the end of the war in desert campaigns .

The collection comprises four vehicles - one of which, a Ferret D Mark II, comes complete with smoke launcher, periscope and fitted military radio. There’s even a warehouse full of motors, gearboxes and other spare parts, all carefully greased and stored.

Most hairdressers settle for something gently sporty like a Toyota Celica, but not Egyptian born Robert Chabert, it seems, who has now loosed his battle-ready Ferrets onto the market. Chabert hopes to sell the collection as one lot - perhaps to a museum. The individual vehicles are worth $20,000 to $25,000 each, the auctioneer says, but the whole collection should fetch $120,000 to $150,000.

It should be enough to put militaria buffs into transports of delight.

Of particular note are the 50 pieces of Moorcroft pottery Nancy Edwards brought with her from England to NSW before she died.

The Evans estate leaves a James Jackson painting of Sydney Harbour and a rare Remued aubergene coloured pottery jug complete with koala claw marks on the back while from Wonga Park comes two Grant Featherstone R160 chairs purchased from him in 1952 and still with the original upholstery.

The Linda Lindsay estate at Ashburton contains jewellery, silver and furniture and 250 character and golfing jugs she began collecting in the 1970s.

The long-established auctioneering firm must have set aside a sizable portion of its capacious Annandale warehouse space to display its star turn for its art and antiques sale scheduled for Friday, Jan 29 - a 10 metre wide Chanel sign used as the backdrop for a memorable Kidman TV advertisement a few years back. The ad, for Chanel No 5 perfume, featured the star of the recent hit movie "Australia" suspended from a 3 metre high interlinked CC logo with, as you'd expect, lots of bright lights and razzamatazz.

The three-minute ad reputedly earned Kidman a record $US3.7m, or a lucrative $US1m or so a minute.

It's not Lawsons's first dabble with Nic-orama. A decade back it hammered a truckload of memorabilia related to her earlier movie Moulin Rouge, from the Baz Luhrmann collection, which brought in around $40,000. The auctioneer figures the Chanel sign is likely to fetch $5000-plus and is likely to appeal to operators of swish shops, bars and nightclubs. Or perhaps add just the right touch for the Bellevue Hill rumpus room?

And you won't need an aircraft hangar to store it after all - the sign, constructed from marine plywood, can be demounted into separate components.

If Our Nic doesn't push your buttons, Lawsons also offers an accumulation of Georgian and Victorian furniture from sideboards to bookcases and dumbwaiters, bronzes, even a Luis Vuitton steamer trunk from the days of Port Out, Starboard Home - or posh, as we pukkah pith helmet people used to say.

An unexpected gem is an Arthur Streeton watercolour of Venice that was unearthed in a Balmain unit during a valuation by Lawsons boss Martin Farrah.

After Farrah had sniffed over a couple of mid-level bits and pieces in the flat without any great enthusiasm, the owner flourished the painting which had been kept under the bed. When Farrah asked why he hadn't shown him the Streeton first, the grizzled veteran said: "Just testing you, young feller."

Among them is a fine Doulton vase painted with native fuchsia (correct) which could be a dead ringer for one in the Powerhouse museum collection (though the Powerhouse is too poor to put its picture on the website). The diminutive yet lovely native or heath fuchsia, epacris longiflora, which can be found on stony ridges all around Sydney, quickly drew the eye of early visitors to New South Wales - there's one illustrated in Robert Sweet's Flora Australasica published in the early 1800s.

The museum's fuchsia vase is 28cm high, but no one from the Williams team could be contacted early this week to detail the size and price expectations on this example. The Powerhouse says the pieces came from the Burslem factory and were painted by Katherine B Smallfield around 1890-1900, from designs from a Miss Rutherford of Bathurst, NSW. The museum also has flannel flowers, native iris and Sturts desert pea from the same series. It was an era when Australia was an important market for the Doulton firm, hence its readiness to offer special designs to suit local tastes.

The sale also offers an ornate four-piece toilet set including large jug and basin painted with bottle brush, flannel flowers and other native species.

Furniture in cedar, huon pine and mahogany, paintings, silver, jewellery, lamps, rugs and chandeliers complete the eclectic offering at Williams's rooms in the heart of industrial Alexandria - now increasingly becoming faddish apartment territory.

We spotted leopardskin and ocelot muffs and a muskrat throw, all illustrated in the online catalogue. Cold hands, warm heart, isn't that what they say? For the cherished pooch there was even a chinchilla dog collar and a sable and mink fur dog coat. Not to mention another natural wonder from the animal world, an 18-foot diamond python skin. Hush my pounding heart!

Among a stack of other wild stuff were ceramics including a French majolica seated bear and an English majolica teapot modelled as a fish, plus a Royal Doulton Australian wildflower coffee set and a line-up of subtle Chinese Song ceramics - which hail from around 1000AD and are not commonplace in mixed auctions. Well, not in Anzac Parade, Kensington, anyway.

Big chests might be a great asset for movie stars, strippers and nightclub bouncers. But in the world of chests of drawers, small is better. On the British antique market choice small early Georgian chests can command sums like $40,000 and up, whereas the broad, high "clunkers" of the Victorian era are cheap as chips. Australian chest makers, coming late on the scene, so to speak, mostly made whopping clunkers complete with a hat cupboard in the middle - probably because the people who could afford them had plenty of stuff to store in them.

Nowadays we want compact chests of drawers because bedrooms are often small. Bay East's John Madden says clunkers are a bit of a glut on the market. Large chests and sideboards that once could be guaranteed to fetch $1100-$1200 sometimes reach only $800. Similarly with large Victorian sideboards, he says. That sounds suspiciously like a fall of 25 per cent plus.

The smaller chests, four in cedar and one in pine, are expected to fetch towards $1000 apiece. There's also a nice 18th century English walnut one.

Bay East Auctions is part of the former Bonhams & Goodman operation, which is now Sotheby's Australia, in case you forgot. And it's an outlet to keep an eye on, since it's likely to be the repositary for virtually all the furniture that doesn't make the cut into the new upmarket all-singing all-dancing Sotheby's connoisseur sales this year.