Gazette - Early Summer 2014 - Issue 39

DISS AUCTION ROOMS - GAZETTE - EARLY SUMMER 2014 - ISSUE 39

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Land & Property Auction at The Diss Auction Rooms Thursday 3 July Supported

by TW Gaze

ART & SOUL Treasured Paintings of Southwold

EVENING OF TREASURES SUMMER DRINKS & SPECIAL AUCTION PREVIEW

Wednesday 9 July 2014 TW Gaze, Diss Auction Rooms 7.00pm - 9.00pm An opportunity to enjoy drinks outisde at the auction preview of the Special Antiques Auction Guests tickets ÂŁ10 with concessions for members of the Diss Business Form, see website for details www.dbf.org.uk Sponsored by Spire Solicitors

15th June ~ 16th July Buckenham Galleries Southwold

The Kraka approaches…..

Modern Design - Saleroom 1 Saturday 14 June 2014 Contact James Bassam But don’t worry, it’s not some long lost monster from Diss Mere but rather the name given to a special piece of glass coming up in the next Modern Design sale on Saturday 14 June.

It is one of the highlights of a private collection of Scandinavian glass in the sale and dating from 1955, comes from the Swedish factory of Orrefors.

Designed by the master glass maker Sven Palmqvist he originally developed the ‘Kraka’ technique in 1944 by using a wire mesh over the blank piece and then etched creating a ‘fishing net’ appearance which traps air bubbles when the clear casing layer is applied.

It was named after the Nordic legend of ‘Kraka’ who was

summoned to appear before the Viking ruler Ragnar Lodbrok neither clothed or unclothed. Her dilemma was solved by wearing a fishing net.

Our piece shown here is fully signed by Palmqvist and numbered 349. Using records available this dates the piece to 1955. The technique was only used by Palmqvist and all are handmade apart from four shapes which were mass produced.

Palmqvist himself trained under the two great glass engravers of the 1930’s, Edward Hald and Simon Gate before going on to study design in Stockholm. His later training in sculpture at the Swedish Academy Art School led him to develop his own designs in glass when he was employed by the Orrefors factory in

1936. Firstly he produced wonderfully engraved pieces to rival his earlier masters but it was his ground breaking techniques ‘Graal’ ‘Kraka’ and the very popular ‘Ravenna’ ranges that made his name synonymous with high quality glass making and have been copied by many other makers since.

From the 1950’s he concentrated on more domestic wares and again had successes with the ‘Colora’ and ‘Fuga’ ranges, the latter winning him the Grand Prix at the Milan Trienale of 1957.

So, if you decide to have a ‘Kraka’ at this wonderful vase what is the auction estimate?

Well I have guided it at £350-450 and expect it to be a popular piece in the sale.

James Bassam

33’’ length for maximum reach, with the sword arm fully extended matching that of a lance or the bayonet

Spear point designed for thrusting

Steel bowl guard for hand protection

The Militaria Auction 100 years since the beginning of the First World War, ironically named “The War to End All Wars”; 70 years since D-Day, the beginning of the end of the Second World War. 2014 is the anniversary of two historic events which changed the world forever.

WWI was the transitional war: horses galloped into battle facing the ironclad tanks, aircraft (10 years into their existence) flew over the heads of petrified forces, difficult to shoot from the sky. Advances in technology clashed with traditional and basic principles of war, many unchanged for years, and countless lives were lost as the countries involved struggled to modernise.

The forthcoming Militaria sale features an example of a weapon then becoming obsolete- The 1908 pattern cavalry The Militaria auction on trooper’s sword. In the early 19 th Saturday 28 June represents Century it was determined that the centuries of warfare, cavalry had a need for a sword to be with a focus on WWI & II. suited to both thrusting and cutting, so With a diverse mix of from 1821 the cavalry sword was artefacts, there’s something designed to be curved and a to suit every interest. compromise of the two uses.

Unfortunately despite being adaptable, Please contact it wasn’t effective in either respect and Ed Taxil-Webber this lack of effectiveness triggered the for details. development of a non-compromise cavalry specialised design in 1908, the new trooper’s sword. Optimised for thrusting, the new model was designed with a sharp ‘spear’ point, with a long tapered blade and large steel bowl guard for hand protection. This model was used extensively in WWI and despite being widely considered a fantastic design; the days of cavalry in modern warfare were coming to an end. This resulted in it being the last service sword issued to the cavalry of the British Army.

A 1908 pattern cavalry trooper’s sword £300-400

Chequered grip of pistol form for a strong grasp Large pommel for balancing the sword to the guard

50th Anniversary Celebrations Bring Humpty out of His Shell Following the successful sale last month of a Humpty Dumpty toy from the popular BBC television programme “Play School” a similar figure has emerged to be offered for auction at TW Gaze in Diss, Norfolk.

“Play School” was broadcast every weekday morningByfrom Prudence 1964 to Hopkins 1988 for pre-school children and whilst it was hosted by a regular team of humans, the memorable stars of the successful show were the toys, Big Ted, Little Ted, Jemima the rag doll and Hamble, a plastic doll; but the favourite and most distinguished of all was Humpty, a plush version of the nursery rhyme character Humpty Dumpty.

Now 50 years on from its inception, celebrations of Play School’s significant anniversary are turning a spot light onto characters steeped in nostalgia for those who grew up watching the daily programme. In turn this interest has spawned some successful sales at auction, including the Humpty quoted as “one of only three original Humptys made” which realised £6,250 in a toy auction in May. In reality the actual number of original Humptys seems unknown, with estimates ranging from 3 to 20, some of which are quoted as being secured in BBC vaults! However, whatever the truth, it is agreed there were only a limited number made.

If you crave ownership of your very own cuddly good egg, the opportunity to bid will be on Friday 20 June at Diss Auction Rooms when a Humpty Dumpty from a North Suffolk vendor will be looking for a new home. This one was obtained by the vendor at the end of the run of programmes from the then-manager of the photo/reprographic department of the BBC as a gift for his three year old daughter.

Pre-auction estimate is £4,000 – 6,000.

Please contact Robert Kinsella on 01379 650 306 for further information or see

www.twgaze.co.uk for details.

Humpty & The Famous Five

£10

Calling all birds

£65

A visit to any of TW Gaze’s Rural & Domestic Bygones auctions will demonstrate how fondly Colmans is thought of.

Illustrated here by this sample of results from the 24 May auction.

Traditionally made from wood and of whistle type, there are many interesting variations in bird calls. Mainly used by bird watchers, the shooting fraternity also employs them particularly for wildfowl. And not only birds – ingenious calls also exist for foxes, rabbits, dogs and other animals.

While wooden ones are most common, probably originally hand made by poachers, nowadays we find them in tin, bakelite, plastic and rubber. The latter are either of bellows type or pneumatic. The variation in design is extensive as the body of the call is designed to produce the distinctive sound. Realistic imitations of the calls of wild birds are not always just a case of blowing. Most of them require some skilful manipulation and fingering of hole or holes. Much practice may be required, preferably out of human earshot.

£460

£140

£42 Not just Mustard!

There are many other products that proudly carried the Colman’s name £170

A cased set of 32 German wooden carved bird, fox and rabbit calls by Hubertus, sold for £400 at the Rural & Domestic Bygones auction on 24 May 2014.

Next Rural & Domestic Bygones Auction Saturday 9 August

£42

Colman’s 2014 marks the bi-centenary of one of Norfolk’s defining names Jeremiah Colman started his business in the humble surroundings of a paper mill just south of Norwich. Soon these premises would be outgrown as Georgian Britain became seduced by Colman’s unique condiment. In 1862, keen to keep up with demand, they re-located to the Carrow Works, where mustard continues to be manufactured to this day. Expanded production on a site close to the railway and the river pushed the company on, and by the 1890’s it was recorded as being known from Peru to far Cathay.

Fashions and tastes come and go, so what makes a name endure 200 years?

Colman’s had a forward-thinking attitude towards their workers’ welfare; the family were philanthropists, who established schools and a pension scheme for the workers. They also developed a strong brand employing methods that are still being used.These marketing tools included establishing the iconic red and yellow colours and around 1855 the introduction of the famous bull head logo.

They also gave customers a chance to “get on board” with their products by producing special pictorial tins every year from 1880-1939; something to look out for.And in the 1920’s they established The Mustard Club. A virtual club instigated by bus posters asking “Has Father joined the Mustard Club?”

In 1973 Colman’s opened Colman’s Mustard Shop in the Bridewell Alley in Norwich. Now situated in the Royal Arcade, and rebranded as the Colman’s Mustard Shop & Museum it is owned by the Norwich Heritage Economic and Regeneration Trust (HEART).

On Saturday 7 June our Rural & Domestic Bygones team will be joining forces with HEART to hold a special event called My Colman’s at the Norwich Guildhall. The event will run from 10am-1pm , and is free to attend with an open invitation to bring along your own Colman’s memorabilia for discussion and valuation. We look forward to seeing you there.

Belleek (definitely) not Bleak Special Sale Report by Prudence Hopkins The Special Antiques auction held on May 23 had a number of items that took the sale by storm but the pieces that stood out and stole the show was a rare collection of Belleek.

From the private collection of a distinguished family of successful merchants and professionals from Dublin, Ireland with a history merchants and professionals, each piece was hand painted with the families crest, making it extra special for collectors.

Upon publication of the catalogue the rarity of some of the pieces was confirmed with calls from the Belleck Collectors Society and numerous other hopeful buyers; it was

a

clearly going to be a very interesting sale.

The first lot of Belleek up for auction was a 19th Century crested composite part dinner service with First Period marks, and after a few tense minutes of bidding it sold above estimate for £850 (d). However the best was still to come. An extremely rare “Limoges” Stork pattern composite part tea service was next.

Impressed with First Period mark and handpainted with storks in landscape scene with gilt rim. The delightful 19th Century service was certainly appreciated.

With a hushed saleroom, the bids

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flowed with the auctioneer taking bids from three phones, the room and the Internet.

The hammer finally fell exceeding all expectations at an impressive £4200 (a).

The collection also contained eight Belleek hand-painted plates decorated with floral sprigs, each plate depicting a different floral display, gilt enamel rims, and a matching comport which sold for £2600 (b) Six Belleek ‘’Thorn’’ pattern plates, First Period sold for: £2200 (e) and in another lot three matching comports flew out the saleroom for £1600.

However, the whirlwind didn’t stop there when other rare pieces were

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snapped up by buyers including a Belleek egg cruet of basket form selling for an amazing £230 and a matched pair of Belleek Belgian hawker figures making top estimate of £380.00 (c) Whilst First Period Belleek was the order of the day, Second Period was also popular amongst buyers. A collection of teawares and a ‘’Hippiritus’’ pattern epergne centre piece each making over their estimates.

The vendor with a smile at the end of the day said “it was all just packed away in the loft, now it can be loved and appreciated by enthusiasts.”

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c GAZETTE Issue 39/early summer ‘14

Diss Auction Rooms, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4LN 01379 650 306 auctions@twgaze.co.uk www.twgaze.co.uk