Smiths Auctions are looking forward to their antiques and collectables sale on June 27-28. With over fourteen hundred catalogued lots and nearly four thousand photographs - most of the hard work is now done and it just a case of selling it all over the course of two days.
The sale includes a good selection of antiques and collectables with specialist sections for coins, stamps and postcards. An interesting album of early 20th century Newent postcards includes one of Church Street at the junction with Gloucester Road, showing the old terraced cottages which are no longer there. Outside the cottage fronts stand several mothers, with their children in prams or sat on the steps. One little girl is seated on a cute ride on horse with wheels, which one might guess her father would have made for her, rather than having been purchased in a shop. It makes a very evocative scene and the group of twenty five cards are estimated at £40/£60.
There is a large selection of interesting ceramics in the sale including collections of Royal Crown Derby, Worcester, Minton and Spode, as well as some charming rustic pottery pieces such as a selection of Victorian Staffordshire figures and animals. A rustic looking Victorian stoneware flat bottle might surprise people when they discover it was for feeding a baby. It is a rare and collectable example by the Brampton pottery, made to commemorate the coronation of Queen Victoria and features a bust of the young queen proudly wearing her crown surrounded by a ring of stars. It is estimated to make £100/£150, which is not a bad price for an old baby’s bottle! Other rustic pottery includes a rare early 18th century Delft flower brick and a large Victorian brown pottery tavern snuff jar, which would have sat on the bar for customers who would be able to buy a pinch to go with their ale. The jar is moulded with a rather unattractive portrait of an old woman taking snuff and would probably have been quite a conversation point !
The silver section of the sale features an extensive collection of antique caddy spoons as well as a good selection of other silver. A rare Georgian silver argyle looks like an ordinary teapot but hidden within is a removable cylinder which could be filled with hot water to keep the contents warm. It is in fact a very elegant form of gravy boat – although some argue that since the cylinder in this instance is totally removable it could have doubled up as a teapot when required. Both the lid and the pot are engraved with a lion crest – indicating that it obviously came from a home of distinction. It is estimated at £500/£700 and will probably only be of interest to serious collectors of fine antique silver.
There are of course lots of exciting and interesting things to find in the collectables section of the sale including a fantastic antique carpenter’s tool box with a fully fitted interior including a removable bank of drawers from the back section of the chest and a hidden fitted compartment to the inner lid. Estimated at just £100/£200 it would be a fine gift for many a practical man who has a soft spot for tools.
When buying at auction it can be very difficult to predict if you will be successful or not, however this sale provides the perfect solution in the form of an antique crystal ball on stand. Complete with a book of instructions on how to use it, this item could have the power to change your life - or so the book would have you believe!
Smiths fully illustrated catalogue and online bidding is available at www.smithsnewentauctions.co.uk . Viewing is available Tuesday and Wednesday prior to the sale 10am-5pm and on the morning of the sales 9am to 10am.
Entries for the August sale are invited by appointment from July 3. The sale includes a full range of antiques and collectables as well as a specialist section for antique and collectable toys. Please telephone 01531 821776.