A Pair of Sèvres Porcelain Bottle Coolers sold for £6,000 in the Country House Sale at Tennants Auctioneers on 13th September (all figures exclude buyer’s premium). Made in 1748 and painted with yellow jasmine and pink forget-me-nots by Antoine Buteaux, Sèvres factory records show they were part of a service made for Madame Comtesse d’Artois. Ten years after her death, her husband Charles Philippe, Count of Artois ascended to the throne of France as King Charles X. Despite damage to the feet of both coolers, they attracted interest from home and abroad before being knocked down to a bidder in France.
Elsewhere in the sale, good prices and competitive bidding continued, with notable results well above pre-sale estimate seen for a 19th century Treen Gingerbread Mould decorated with the Royal Coat of Arms (sold for £1,500), and a group of 19th century Creamware and Tin Glazed Earthenware Bin Labels (sold for £1,200). Amongst the clocks, a French "Boulle" Striking Mantel Clock, circa 1880, sold for £550.
Traditional furniture saw very strong results, achieving a house record selling rate for the section of 94%. Leading the way was a Stained Pine Breakfront Six-Door Cupboard, which by repute was once in Thimbleby Hall, North Yorkshire (sold for £3,500). A good George IV Mahogany Drum Table sold well, too, at £1,600. Interesting and useful modern furniture included a Prince of Wales Investiture Chair, designed by Lord Snowdon in 1966 (sold for £1,500), a Light Oak Handmade Orkney Chair by Fraser Anderson (sold for £2,100), and a Set of Twelve George III-Style Mahogany Framed Dining Chairs (sold for £1,100).
Paintings of animal subject matter performed well in the sale, with a characterful 19th century painting of Three Terriers Standing in a Landscape by J Clarke selling well at £1,500, and a copy of Air Edwin Landseer’s “A Distinguished Member of the Humane Society” sold for £420. Notable, too, was The Day’s Catch on a Grassy Riverbank by a Follower of Henry Leonides Rolfe (sold for £600), a Ploughing Scene with Two Grey Shires by DM and EM Alderson (sold for £800), and a Still Life of Primroses and Violets by Albert Durer Lucas (sold for £1,000).
The sale achieved a total hammer price of £207,170 with an 88% sold rate for 547 lots.
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