The Dexter Sale: Results

The unique Dexter Collection of Ottoman, Islamic and Indian Interiors sold at Tennants Auctioneers on 18^th January, attracting new bidders from around the world. The nearly 400-lot collection was put together by A.T. Dexter, a second-generation antiques dealer who fell in love with Eastern art forms and culture. Mr Dexter has travelled extensively in India, Turkey and Egypt, and amassed a unique collection with the eye of a dedicated connoisseur.

With a 97% sold rate, the intricate inlaid furniture, colourful rugs and Asian works of art certainly caught the eye of bidders, many of whom were new to Tennants and joined in with the sale online. One of the strongest elements of the sale were the numerous decorative occasional tables; inlaid with bone and mother-of-pearl, these attractive and useful tables sold well above their estimates. Amongst the contested lots were a pair of 20^th Century Syrian Bone and Mother-of-Pearl Inlaid Hardwood Occasional Tables, which sold for £1,200 plus buyer’s premium.

Along the same theme were further highlights of inlaid furniture, such as an impressively sized Mother-of-Pearl and Bone Inlaid Marquetry Wall Mirror made in Damascus c.1900, which sold for £1,350 (plus buyer’s premium), and a Mother-of-Pear and Bone Inlaid Hardwood Cabinet, also made in Damascus as the end of the 19^th century, which sold for £1,300 (plus buyer’s premium).

Rugs also sold well, in line with recent traditional antiques sales at Tennants, such as a Kashan Pictorial Rug from Central Iran, which sold for £700 plus buyer’s premium against an estimate of £200-300. Tribal weavings were popular too, with a colourful Bukhara Susani from the late 19^th/early 20^th century selling for £1,000 plus buyer’s premium.

Amongst a selection of Asian Works of Art, a gilt bronze figure of a Wrathful Deity from the 18^th/19^th century also caught the attention of buyers, selling for £1,000 (plus buyer’s premium), double the bottom estimate.

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