Under the Hammer: News of what is making the salerooms buzz from Kevin Lines of Keys Fine Art Auctioneers of Aylsham, the leading East Anglian fine art and antiques auction house.
Keys' winter Fine Sale saw strong bidding across a wide variety of lots, including another collection of fine Lowestoft porcelain, some stunning 19th- and 20th-century jewellery, and nearly 300 paintings.
The three-day sale also stood out for the number of online bidders, making up considerably more than a third of buyers. This is a growing trend, and is allowing regional auction houses to compete with bigger national and international names, as it has greatly increased our reach to buyers around the world.
The Fine Sale also included our second wine sale of the year, and once again it was a MacAllan whisky which stole the show, achieving a hammer price of £2,400, four times its pre-sale estimate.
Some of the star items:
A rare 'Trifle from Lowestoft' inkwell from the Lowestoft porcelain factory dating from around 1790, one of a number of excellent pieces in the sale, sold for £4,500.
A stunning diamond three-stone ring, set with a row of circular brilliant cut diamonds, sold for £3,900.
An early 20th-century diamond and sapphire brooch, which boasted a total of 60 diamonds and 12 sapphires, sold for £2,100.
Interest was strong in 20th-century designer furniture, especially an Alvar Alton for Finmar Ltd birch circular dining table, complete with lazy susan, which sold for £2,000.
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