History is saved from a dumpster

A PIECE of Tyneside history has been saved after being pulled from a rubbish skip.

Precious Brian Bateman from Boldon Auction Galleries holding the Shipyard Visitor Book

This leather-bound book records the ships built at a shipyard along with 170 launches and the VIPs who attended them.


They were built by Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson at the Neptune Yard on the Tyne from 1910 to 1963.


At each launch the yard’s top brass and visiting dignitaries have signed the book, which also contains watercolour paintings of flags and crests of the vessels.


Now, Tyne Wear Archives and Museums has bought the book for £310 after it was put up for sale at Boldon Auction Galleries in South Tyneside.


It joins a similar visitors’ book which TWAM owns from the neighbouring Swan Hunter shipyard at Wallsend.


The Neptune Yard book was sent for auction by Trevor Ashman, who lives in Warkworth and served in the merchant navy before a career of more than 30 years in the fire service. He said: “It is a remarkable, one-off book which is an important piece of North East history. It was found in a skip by a man I knew when the Neptune Yard closed.


“Because of my time in the merchant navy I am interested in the sea and maritime items and I bought it from him.


“It contains the signatures of local and national dignitaries from admirals to Lords and Ladies.”


One of the signatures is of Susan Mary Auld – born Susan Denham Christie in Tynemouth – who was the first woman to graduate as a naval architect from Durham University and designed battleships for the Royal Navy and floating vessels used to land Allied troops on D-Day in 1944.


In 1903 Swan Hunter merged with the Wigham Richardson yard specifically to bid for the prestigious contract to build the liner Mauretania.


Visitor books were kept for both the Swans and Wigham yards.


Ian Whitehead, keeper of maritime history at TWAM, said: “The book is a significant piece of Tyne shipbuilding history and it is really good that we now have the visitor books from both yards.


“The launch pages were signed by the top people at the yards and the VIPs who attended which is valuable archival information and also gives you the feel for what happened on the day.


“The company also obviously had somebody who could do the watercolour paintings which illustrate the pages.”


The Neptune Yard launch page for the MS Bamburgh Castle in 1959 is decorated with a painting of the castle and beach, while a Roman soldier illustrates the launch of the Border Sentinel in 1955.


Launches of locally-named ships include the SS Alnwick in 1928, and the SS Craster in 1935.

Published in the Evening Chronicle Tuesday 27th September 2011, written by Tony Henderson

Flog It! success

We had another resoundingly successful day at our Fine Art and Antique auction on Wednesday 21st September - despite the fact that we had no broadband coverage at all and had to run the live online sale via telephone to the-saleroom.com in London!

One of the Flog It! experts Anita Manning at the Alnwick Valuation Day

The team from Flog It!  were filming the sale after an excellent valuation day at Alnwick at the beginning of August. 

We were selling over 30 lots for the program and all but one sold with most fetching higher prices than anticipated. Particularly good lots included Lot 200, a collection of 11 Stevengraph silk woven pictures of different sporting events which were in excellent condition and had been estimated to fetch between £120-180 but were so popular that the hammer finally fell at £1250;

lot 285, a pair of pistols marked A F Gerding and estimated at £300-400 which sold to a telephone bidder for £1100

and lot 300, a gold Dunhill Cartier lighter that illustrated how much gold prices have risen recently by selling for £460.

The entire BBC crew, lead by the extremely charming Paul Martin, were a pleasure to work with and the day ran incredibly smoothly.  The programmes made from the day's filming are expected to be screened in about 6 months but the BBC will let us know exact dates nearer the time so we will make sure that we announce it in plenty of time!

Other bestsellers included Lot 1, a 148cc Lambretta registered in 1959 which generated a lot of interest before selling for £2100

and lot 221, a Chinese incised Celadon vase, estimated to fetch between £3000-5000 that finally sold to an overseas bidder for £8800.

And one of our most interesting lots, a box containing a piece of bunting, a small piece of leather strap and a piece of cord with a papers stating that they came from the British Antarctic Expedition, really caught the bidders' imagination and sold for £200.

We are now accepting entries for our next Fine Art and Antique Auction to be held on Wednesday 14th December.  Our next General Sale will be held on Wednesday 5th October with an Open Valuation Day on Friday 7th October between 10-12 and 2-4.

From the Borders to Boldon

Antiques Road Trip will be broadcast on Wednesday 14th September at 5.15pm on BBC2. (Series 3, Episode 3 of 30)

Anita Manning and Mark Stacey's antique hunt takes them from the Scottish borders to Boldon Auction Galleries in an episode that was filmed in the early Summer.

Antiques Road Trip pairs up some of Britain’s best loved antiques experts and sends them on a road trip across the UK in a selection of beautiful classic cars. Along the way, they compete with each other to make the most money buying and selling antiques, continually trading up so that they increase their profits each time they sell at auction. While searching for antiques to sell, they paint a picture of Britain as they travel through stunning landscape.


At the end of every week the expert who has traded up best and made the most money will be the winner. The final episode of the series sees all of the experts team up for the final auction where the ultimate series winner is decided.

Our next Fine Art and Antique Sale

We are very much looking forward to our next Antique and Fine Art Sale, to be held on Wednesday 21^st September 2011, which has a fantastic selection of over 500 lots including this particularly fine pair of rare Qianlong Chinese bell shaped incense burners estimated to fetch between £15,000-20,000.

The Qianlong Emperor reigned from 1735-1796 and was the fourth Qing Emperor to rule over China. He was a major patron of the arts, and saw himself as an important preserver of Chinese culture.

Each burner is finely decorated with two oval panels depicting mountainous lakeland scenes with pine trees, flowering foliage, farmers and fishermen, against a millefleur gilt background. The undersides are decorated on a turquoise ground with an iron red Qianlong six-character seal mark.

Viewing will be held on Saturday 17th September from 10am-1pm and Tuesday 20th September from 2-6pm.

 Our full catalogue is now available online.

Sale Highlights

Our Fine Art and Antique Auction held on Wednesday 6th July 2011 was a tremendous success with Giles Hodges, Auctioneer, describing it as “Fantastic! The best sale we’ve ever had which is fitting for our 30 year anniversary.”

There was added excitement to the day as the team from ITV’s Dickinson’s Real Deal were filming the sale. Giles had attended their Dealer’s Day in Middlesbrough on Saturday 28th May and had persuaded a number of people to put their items to auction rather than accept the dealers’ offers.

In the vast majority of cases this plan paid off handsomely – Giles had confidently predicted that Lot 60, an American Gibson banjo ukulele, would reach £800 at auction and was therefore delighted when it dramatically exceeded expectation and sold for £1400.

A collection of postcards estimated at £80-150 sold for £260 and Lot 471, an etching by Sir Frank Brangwyn estimated at £50-100 steadily rose in price before finally selling to the room at £460. There were a couple of lots that didn’t sell including Lot 20, a pair of Royal Doulton stoneware vases, but on the whole the day was a resounding success for Boldon Auction Galleries and Dickinson’s Real Deal.

A 1956 BSA Bantam sold for £1150

There were so many interesting items ranging from the vintage motorbikes that started the sale through to the large ethnographic section with the highlight being Lot 510, a Polynesian Tongan carved ironwood apa’apai war club which sold for an incredible £2700 to a telephone bidder.

We had one large private consignment of lots as well as two private collections from Kirkheaton and Belsay in Northumberland as well as individual items from across the region.

Ceramics sold well with a pair of Italian Majolica vases heading back to Italy for £1700, a large Moorcroft anemone vase selling for £2700 and a Canton enamel porcelain vase soaring up to £3500 before going to a telephone bidder.

Following on from the sale of the banjo ukele we continued to have great success with musical instruments with a cello and silver mounted bow selling for £5600, two violins and bows selling for £4500 and £2300 and a Wheatstone and Company concertina selling for £2300;

and news of a sale was music to one vendor’s ears when their Columbia wind up gramophone, estimated at £60-100, played its way up to £750.

Gold and silver prices remain impressive and we had a number of particularly nice lots including a late 19th Century Russian silver gilt and enamelled kovsh which attracted commission and telephone bids before selling to an internet bidder from Eastern Europe.

Lot 410, a platinum and solitaire diamond ring sold for an impressive £3200 and a gold curb link necklace with 5 full sovereigns reached £1550.

The 19th Century bronze Apollo by Georges Emile Henri Servant sold for £1400 and one of the most charming lots, Lot 439, a collection of 12 pencil and chalk drawings of dogs by M Gear sold particularly well at £750 to an internet bidder leaving some very disappointed competitors.

Our furniture section was strong and although the market seems to be dropping for Ercol and oak, mahogany and teak were selling well. Lot 560, a large Victorian mahogany serving table sold for £1900 and Lot 611, a 19th Century mahogany library table in the manner of Gillows sold for £1850.

We had a couple of nice pieces of Robert “Mouseman” Thompson of Kilburn in the sale and although Lot 612, an octagonal dining table and four chairs initially failed to reach its reserve in the auction the vendor was pleased to accept an after-sale offer of £2700.

Finally it became apparent that threadbare condition was no barrier to success at auction when a very worn Turkish Ushak carpet from the late 19th Century, estimated at £100-150 because of its wear and tear, received a wide range of commission bids before finally selling to the room for an amazing £1350.

We are now accepting entries for our next Fine Art and Antique Auction to be held on Wednesday 21st September 2011. This sale will be filmed by BBC’s Flog It! and there will be a valuation day at Alnwick Castle on Tuesday 2nd August if you have any items that you wish to take along.

Our next General Sales will be held on Wednesday 3rd and 24th August and 7th September and while the focus of our newsletters tends to be on our Fine Art sales, Giles Hodges remarks that our “General Sales are flying as well – prices are ferociously high.”

Antiques Road Trip

BBC2's Antiques Road Trip travelled back to Boldon Auction Galleries this week for another successful day's filming.

The experts for the day were Anita Manning and Mark Stacey who arrived in a vintage Morris Minor.

Their Lots in the auction included a 9ct gold brooch set with turquoise which sold for £55, a silver bottle top in the form of a jockey with a Birmingham hallmark which sold for £25  and a 1930s art deco Crown Devon jar which sold for £55.  

Mark Stacey's biggest success was with a rare Victorian ceremonial cased whistle with belcher chain and lionhead buckle that sold for an impressive £280 - making him a profit of £180 less commission and lotting fee.

The team were very pleased with the "roaring success" of the day and the programme is expected to be shown in the autumn.

 Our television coverage will continue when our next Fine Art and Antique Sale on Wednesday 6th July is filmed by ITV's Dickinson's Real Deal.

Dickinson's Real Deal

Dickinson's Real Deal on ITV 1

comes to Middlesbrough

SATURDAY 28TH MAY

Middlesbrough Town Hall, Albert Road

Middlesbrough, TS1 2QQ

Contact the team if you have a special item

on 0117 9707618 or email at

dickinsonsrealdeal@rdftelevision.com

or just turn up on the day!

Doors open 9-5pm

Cash given for your antiques and collectables

Items put forward for auction will be sold at our next Fine Art and Antique Auction on Wednesday 6th July.

Valuation Mornings in May

Two early Goebels figures of a boy reading
  Fine Art and Antique Sale 16th March 2011
sold for £75

We will be holding two Valuation Mornings in May on

Saturday 7th May

at St Barnabas’ Church Hall

Bournmoor, Houghton-le-Spring

from 10-12

and

Saturday 21st May

at Dinnington Village Hall

Dinnington, Newcastle

from 9.30-12

A blue and white china condiment set
 Fine Art and Antique Sale 16th March 2011
sold for £170

These are fundraising events and a donation of £1 will be required for each item valued.

An oak cased Junghans Castle mantle clock
Fine Art and Antique Sale 16th March 2011
sold for £65

Our next Fine Art and Antique auction will be held on Wednesday 6th July and will be televised by ITV's Dickinson's Real Deal.

BBC Flog It! returns to Boldon Auction Galleries!

We are delighted to confirm that BBC Flog It! will be coming to Boldon Auction Galleries again to film at our Fine Art and Antiques Sale on Wednesday 21st September and at our viewing day on Tuesday 20th September.

The ever popular BBC show is in it's 9th Series and we are proud to have supported Flog It! since 2002.

The Valuation day with Paul Martin (pictured above) will be held at the prestigious Alnwick Castle on Tuesday 2nd August.

Doors open from 9.30am to 4pm.  This may be an outdoor event weather permitting.

The Flog It! team will value just about any antique or collectable, as long as you can bring it yourself to the valuation day.

For any enquiries about the valuation day, please contact us at Boldon Auction Galleries 0191 537 2630, email boldon@btconnect.com or if you wish to contact Flog It! their contact details are below:

Phone: 0117 974 7839
Standard geographic charges apply and calls may be included in your telecoms provider's call package. Calls from mobiles may be higher.

Email: flogit@bbc.co.uk

Write:
Flog It!
BBC
Whiteladies Road
Bristol
BS8 2LR

Sale Highlights

Our Fine Art and Antique Sale on Wednesday 16th March 2011 proved to be a bright start to Spring with a bustling saleroom full of eager buyers.

Items sold well throughout the sale with popular lots across the board:

Lot 7 - A large circular Crown Ducal wall plaque by Charlotte Rhead  - sold for £200

Lot 15 - a pair of Japanese cloisonne vases - sold for £180

 

Lot 20 - A 19th Century mahogany tea caddy with with marquetry and parquetry inlaid decoration – sold for £460

Lot 34 - A 19th Century Indian coromandel work box sold for £260

Lot 39 -  A Goldscheider figurine of a dancing lady - sold for £280

Lot 52 - a small Clarice Cliff "Fantasque" pedestal bowl, and an orange preserve pot and a shallow circular pot - sold for £130

Lot 97 A Wells of London boxed "Mickey Mouse" clockwork hand car – sold for £230

 

Lot 113 – A leather bound 'The Book of Common Prayer and Administration of the Sacraments', imprinted at London by Robert Barker, dated 1635 – sold for £340

Lot 132 - A large silver circular pedestal bowl embossed with scrolls and flowers, London 1900 - sold for £240

Lot 154 - A 9ct gold pocket watch – sold for £360

Lot 187 – A Pair of oils on canvas by Oliver Clare – sold for £820

Lot 231 - A Victorian walnut pier cabinet – sold for £1150

Lot 248 - A pair of French Kingwood and veined marble topped standing corner cabinets – sold for £1100

Lot 282 - A 19th century mahogany circular centre table with marquetry inlaid top, decorated with flowers and butterflies - sold for £1600

Lot 263 - An Original 1970 Child's Chopper bike – sold for £170

Local Interest

As always, we had an interesting selection of local items which proved very popular with the buyers:

Lot 13 -  A Sunderland purple lustre jug by J Phillips of Hylton pottery with a South View of the Sunderland Bridge - sold for £200

Lot 36 - A Sunderland purple lustre rectangular plaque "Thou God, See'st Me" - sold for £480

Lot 71 - A postcard album containing North East postcards including the Newcastle Pageant – sold for £85

Lot 99 - A death plaque and medals with photographs and related ephemera.  Awarded to 20509 Pte J Collingwood of the Durham Light Infantry – sold for £320

Lots 171 and 172 - Folders of black and white photographs of S.A.F.C footballers from 1920-1970s - sold for £110 and £200 respectively

We are now accepting entries for our next Fine Art and Antique Sale which will be held on Wednesday 6th July 2011 and will be filmed by the team at Dickinson's Real Deal!