Smiths Newent Auctions have a saleroom bulging at the seams with antiques and collectables all ready and waiting to be sold on tSeptember 19-20. With over fourteen hundred lots it will involve two long days on the rostrum, with the three auctioneers taking it in turns to work their way through the sale at around one hundred lots per hour.
The fully illustrated catalogue can be easily found on Smiths website and bidding can be done either in person or by bidding live in real time on the internet. The sale features a special section for watches but also includes extensive selections of silver, jewellery, furniture, paintings, books, ceramics, glass and collectables.
The catalogue is crammed with interesting items such as two early 19th century alabaster models of The Colosseum and The Leaning Tower of Pisa. These would have most likely been bought back by wealthy travelers from a ‘Grand Tour’ of Europe. On a similar theme two beautiful 19th century Italian watercolours depicting classical ruins in the landscape are also sure to prove popular.
They are painted in the style of Claude Lorrain, a 17th century artist who developed a formulaic style for painting idealized scenes of Italy. He used golden tones to create atmosphere and a very structured layered composition with blue tones to create distance. The overall effect is one of effortless harmony and beauty and paintings such as these were extremely popular with ‘Grand Tour’ gentry eager to absorb Italian art and its culture. Other Italian items in the sale include an antique carved wood and polychrome painted angel’s head as well as a collection of attractive rustic Italian pottery items.
The sale includes a very large selection of paintings from a number of sources with some rather unusual examples, such as a self-portrait by the little known female artist Dora Noyes.
She mainly painted illustrations for her sister’s books on English and Italian history and traditions. The vendor’s husband, who was very interested in the sister’s published works, purchased the painting many years ago. Estimated at £300/£500 it will be interesting to see if this rare portrait creates interest amongst other fans, especially now there is more interest in the work of female artists and writers. Other unusual pictures include two portraits by contemporary artist Nathan Ford – they may not be to everyone’s taste though as the sitter’s faces are always distorted rather in the genre of Sir Francis Bacon!
The collectables section includes the final consignment of military cap badges from a property in the Forest of Deans as well as quirky items such as an antique eel spear from the River Severn and two very ancient looking iron cooking pots for use on a real open fire. A wide selection of clocks includes a fine alabaster example with an impressive gilt lion surmount all housed under a tall glass dome – a fantastic item for a grand mantelpiece. Other collectables include a decorative selection of propelling pencils, a beautiful selection of miniature silver boxes and a wide ranging section of postcards and ephemera. An Edwardian album of photographs documents the travels
of two ladies and their companion as they travel through the Himalayas. It is quite amazing to see the women riding donkeys and hiking through rocky gorges and snowfields in their fancy hats and dresses – how on earth did they manage?
The furniture section also excels again with a range of good quality antique furniture from a variety of house clearance. There is a superb George III style secretaire chest on chest with a very finely inlaid satinwood interior to the secretaire drawer. Offering a large amount of useful storage, this handsome piece is estimated at just £500/£700. Other furniture includes a number of chairs, a Regency sofa, bookcases, a large antique pine dresser, chests of drawers and display cabinets.
The jewellery section of the sale also offers a range of more unusual pieces this time with a strong emphasis on antique jewellery although modern pieces do feature as well such as a white gold and diamond pendant necklace and a fine diamond and ruby bracelet. A small number of Indian jewellery items add a flavour of the exotic whilst a selection of Scandinavian silver and jewellery items are bound to prove popular.
Smiths are now thinking ahead for their November sale which features a special section for Silver, Gold & Jewellery as well as a wide range of good quality antiques and collectables. Please telephone 01531 821776 for an appointment or visit www.smithsnewentauctions.co.uk for further information.