The Gentleman Magazine Issue 4 | August/September | Page 69

From Millington Adams Ltd comes a superb George III carved
mahogany Chippendale period double chair-back settee,
c.1760, £29,000. Valerie Main Ltd, specialist dealer in antique
porcelain, is bringing a rare Royal Worcester pot pourri vase
and cover decorated with swimming swans by Charles Baldwyn,
dated 1900. Also of the same date is a fine Royal Crown Derby
cabinet plate signed by Desiré Leroy, marked with the Royal
Warrant for Queen Victoria and Leroy's special production
numbers, as well as retailer marks for Davis Collamore, 5th
Avenue, New York. Ceramics dealer, Graham Ruddock has
sourced a rare spill vase with a wagtail and exotic birds in flight
by John Randall, made at Yorkshire’s Rockingham factory,
c.1830, priced at £1,800.
Very evocative of the period is an exquisite Edwardian pendant
set in platinum with old brilliant-cut diamonds in the shape of
a basket of flowers with a ribbon. Not forgetting the gentlemen,
there are sets of Art Deco cufflinks from the late 1920s. Howell
1870 brings a selection of vintage watches, as well as jewellery,
including a 9 carat gold full hunter with white enamel dial with
Arabic numerals, 1920, £750.
Currently, the Arts & Crafts movement is a popular area of
collecting and there is an excellent choice available within
the fair including a Tudric pewter and enamelled copper
clock made by Archibald Knox for Liberty & Co, c.1902 from
Morgan Strickland Decorative Arts, £8,000. There are also a
number of outstanding pieces from Solo Antiques such as a
stunning Art Deco gilt bronze figure of a standing female nude
by Joseph Descomps, c.1925 and an unusual Loetz cobalt blue
on blue glass Papillon vase, c.1895.
One of the many alternative investments to the stock market
today is to buy silver. The fair is an excellent place to browse
the silver dealers’ stands to find Georgian silver, candlesticks,
wine coasters, cocktail shakers, antique silver spoons, vintage
jewellery boxes and much more. A good example is an attractive
George II silver kettle on stand by Augustin Courtauld,
London, 1739, £6,500 from Jack Shaw & Co of Ilkley. Other
silver dealers include J H Bourdon-Smith Ltd and Stephen
Kalms Antiques.
Insect brooches are inclined to fly off the stand such is their
popularity. Howards Jewellers is showcasing a French antique
ruby, emerald and diamond bug brooch, c.1895, as well as
pieces by famous jewellery designers such as an enamel and
diamond brooch by Fabergé, c.1890; a diamond, coral and
onyx swan brooch with an emerald eye by Asprey, c.1980s
and a ruby and diamond brooch and earring suite by Tiffany,
c.1970.
18th and early 19th century furniture and decorative period
home accessories such as toleware, papier mâché, ormolu,
bronzes and lighting can be found with Roger Lamb Antiques
& Works of Art. From William Cook is an eclectic range of fine
quality furniture and objets d’art carefully selected for the fair.
Melody Antiques, well known for oak and country furniture,
is bringing a wide selection of primitive and decorative pieces
from chairs and dressers to treen and ceramics. There is also
the opportunity to seek advice and look at examples of work
carried out by T L Phelps Fine Furniture Restoration, based in
Knaresborough.
To add sparkle to the fair Licht & Morrison is displaying a
magnificent array of jewellery such as an enchanting 1920’s Art
Deco diamond brooch in the shape of a macaw parrot.
Pair of 19th century Irish oak benches, attributed to Robert
Strahan of Dublin, c.1845, £2,850 the pair from William Cook
The Gentleman Magazine | 69