Thursday 14 December 2017


The last two Auctions of the year at Boldon Auction Galleries have been quite literally a flying success.  The first in November was a surprise for auctioneer Giles Hodges when on a routine valuation a Narwhal tusk (Monodon Monoceros) was pulled out from behind a large mahogany display cabinet. Measuring 8 feet in length, it was brought to the North East in the 1930's from Greenland, carrying a pre-auction estimate of £2,000-£3,000 the Narwhal tusk realised on sale day £12,500 plus buyer's premium.



The December sale saw two Martin Brothers grotesque birds fly away at £14,000 plus buyer's premium and £6,500 plus buyer's premium (the second bird was damaged).  The birds had originally come from the client's father who worked the barges on the river Thames and found them lying in a skip.  The idiom One man's trash is one man's treasure clearly ringing true on this occasion!



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