Out with the old and in with the new – unless it’s an antique or valuable collectable!
As we look forward to a new year and prepare to bid farewell to 2024, we thought it would be timely to look back at some auction finds that excelled under the hammer in the last 12 months.
And as the days grow longer, if sunlight illuminates a forgotten treasure in a corner of your home, perhaps you’ll be inspired to discover its value. After all, you could be sitting on a windfall.
Bidders the world over love British auctions. The rich array of rare antiques, vintage collectables and unique and quirky finds they attract make them incredibly popular. It may be a fast-paced, changing world but there appears to be no danger of auctions ever going out of fashion.
In fact, they are expanding. Specialist and single-owner sales have blossomed in recent years. The likes of toys, militaria, jewellery, silver, watches, coins and sports and music memorabilia are so sought after they often have dedicated auctions all to themselves.
This is certainly the case at Derbyshire saleroom Hansons Auctioneers. It’s a big hitter when it comes to specialist sales, major finds and hammer highs, and 2024 has delivered another year of success. Among top lots this year was a 1955 signed portrait of Sir Winston Churchill by artist Paul Trevillion. It achieved a premium-inclusive total of £94,896.
And Harry Potter waved his magic wand. A hard back first edition of Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone, one of only 500 books in the first Potter print run in 1997, achieved a premium-inclusive £85,000. It was part of a niche sale featuring just 13 rare Potter tomes. Together, they achieved £151,720 at Rare Book Auctions of Lichfield, Staffordshire, part of the Hansons group.
Other hammer highs included £11,800 for a gent’s 18ct gold, diamond-set Rolex Oyster Perpetual Day-Date watch. Vintage designer watches are desired by collectors all over the world.
But all manner of objects attract bidders. In April, a diecast live steam 4in gauge Burrell traction engine achieved £12,000 at Hansons. Sports memorabilia scores too. A rare Manchester United v Wolverhampton Wanderers football programme, dated 8th February, 1958, made £6,500. Most of these programmes were destroyed because, tragically, the match was abandoned after eight Manchester United players died in the Munich air disaster.
Music memorabilia can excel too. From vintage vinyl to pop and rock star autographs, returns often rock sellers – in a good way! Like all sales, they offer an eclectic mix of finds. One item which enticed strong bidding was a Wurlitzer 2000 Centennial jukebox. Built to celebrate the company’s 100th anniversary in 1956, it hammered at £10,000. In similar vein, an unusual circa 1900 German Mikado Polyphon music box reached £5,400. Find linked to leisure and pleasure keep gaining momentum. Another example to excel was a Jennings Prospector 1946 Club Console one-arm bandit which hit the jackpot at £7,000.
Moving on to art, a quirky Jean-Michel Basquiat (American 1960-1988) signed crayon drawing of a native American, dated 1984, reached £6,000. Basquiat rose to prominence after initially achieved notoriety in the late 1970s as part of graffiti duo SAMO in New York. By the early 1980s, his paintings were being exhibited in galleries internationally and he was earning $1.4m a year. Following his death from a drug overdose at 27 in 1988, his work has increased in value. In 2017, a 1982 painting depicting a black skull with red and yellow rivulets, sold for a record-breaking $110.5 million (£86.6m), becoming one of the most expensive paintings ever purchased.
Let’s finish in a more classical style with an oil painting of Venice, Italy, by Antoine Bouvard Snr (French 1882-1956). It also achieved £6,000. Those two artworks underline the extreme variety of taste and style, both in terms of auctions and the bidders who seek out the antiques and collectables which make waves.
Perhaps 2025 could be your year for a family heirloom to shine bright at auction. I hope you’ve enjoyed exploring the discoveries, history and hammer highs with me. I have certainly enjoyed sharing them with you. Happy New Year.
Hansons Auctioneers’ salerooms reopen after the festive break at 9am on January 2, 2025.
Entries invited for all forthcoming general and specialist sales. Email [email protected] or call 01283 733988.
