Organisers of the Grosvenor House Fair have announced today, 30 June, two weeks after the June 2009 fair closed following (for some) an extremely successful 75th vintage year, that the Fair is to close. See post fair report below. Simon Phillips, Chairman of the Fair said “It is a great disappointment to me that The Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair has come to an end. I quite understand that it no longer makes financial sense to continue the Fair. It has been a very long and happy partnership but most great events have a lifespan and a Diamond Anniversary is a fitting point on which to end on a positive note”. The organisers, under the direction of Alison Vaissiere, note that the closure of the Fair, part of the traditional London in June season, presents an opportunity for the trade to mount a new event commensurate with maintaining London as the centre of the art market. Founder exhibitors, Delomosne confirmed today that they had no idea that the Fair was to close and exhibitors had only learned via email today. Director Tim Osborne of Delomosne said he was "completely shocked" and it was extraordinary that a Fair of this calibre could close so suddenly. He added that Delomosne had enjoyed a reasonably good fair, which had improved considerably with post Fair sales.

The latest trade only Swap Shop organised by the West of England Antique Dealers’ Association (WEADA) and held at McBains Antiques at the Exeter Airport Antiques Complex in Devon, drew plenty of industrious traders from a wide area including West Sussex, Warwickshire and Southern Ireland, to bask in the strong sunshine on Tuesday 30 June, 2009. After an early hiccup with the caterer’s van on the A303, everything was in place by 8 am with fifteen lorries lined up. More vehicles arrived as the morning progressed and a large quantity of the stock on display moved around the field with money changing hands or swaps agreed. Trading continued briskly until the last vehicles departed in the early afternoon, some of them more or less empty. Willie Clegg passed out invitations to the next Swap Shop at his premises at The Country Seat in Huntercombe, Oxfordshire on 7 July, 2009 from 8 am, organised by The Thames Valley Antique Dealers’ Association (TVADA). For full information and directions see The Country Seat Web Site via Trade Index.

Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair which had been started as a means of boosting trade during the Great Depression, was an instant success with both collectors and the smart set and ran for three weeks in September 1934. Echoing the past, the 2009 event, which closed on 17 June, took place in the worst recession known in recent times but sales throughout the Fair underlined the resilience of the art trade in this particular economic downturn. The Fair started well with record visitor figures on Preview Day, Wednesday 10 June, which were up by 5.1%. The tube strike undoubtedly affected visitor figures at the beginning of the Fair, but the overall visitor figure showed an increase of 2% at 19,537 visitors. A large number of red dots were seen throughout the room by the middle of the Preview Day and notable sales included first-time exhibitor Thomas Coulborn & Son, whose Swedish porphyry tazza received the Gold Award for Artefact of the Year, who sold a George III harewood, satinwood and crossbanded secretaire chest attributed to Ince & Mayhew, English c. 1785 for over £30,000. In addition to selling a carved limewood opium bed designed and signed by Gabriel Viardot, c 1885 with an asking price of £145,000 to a new collector, Peter Petrou was also spotted selling a pair of iconic Gerald Summers chairs, each made from a single sheet of cut and bent birch plywood to former Chairman of Sotheby's Alfred Taubman for a six figure sum. Glass dealer Mark J. West sold his one of his star exhibits of a wonderful set of 24 half litre size decanters engraved with fruiting vines, ex Royal House of Witteksbach, Bohemia, c. 1780-1800 for around £7000 Lewis Smith of Koopman Rare Art said that the Private Preview had been the best opening day "at any Fair for the last ten years". Early sales included a silver gilt tray c. 1805 by Benjamin Smith with an asking price of £350,000 to a private client.

DAVID LESTER AT OLYMPIA
Clarion Arts, organisers of Olympia Art and Antiques Fair, have confirmed that Florida based owner of American International Fine Art Fair in Palm Beach, David Lester has been in discussion with Simon Kemble, Chief Executive of Clarion Events, to discuss his suggestions about a possible joint venture including running Summer 2010 Olympia. Clarion state that the conversation will form part of the annual review of the June fair as part of a full de-brief from the Summer Olympia. An announcement about any developments will be made following the review. David Lester originally sold Palm Beach to dmg World Media for $18 million and bought it back in 2007 for $1.2 million
DMG SELL IDEAL HOME SHOW
Following the sale of its UK antique fairs, comprising events in Newark, Ardingly, Shepton and Detling, to International Antiques and Collectors Fairs, dmg world media has revealed that it is to sell off the eDF Energy Ideal Home Show to focus on business-to-business (B2B) exhibitions. The company has not revealed the name of any potential buyer. Last month, dmg world media announced that it was selling its UK Sports and Leisure Group to VOS Media, which includes The Ski and Snowboard Show, The Outdoors Show and The Vitality Show.

In 1979 well known local entrepreneur Keith Johnson opened
Bart's Bazaar in Bath, Somerset which would later become Bartlett Street Antique Centre. There was an art gallery and cafe upstairs with various stalls downstairs and he commissioned local artists to produce a unique interior for the Bazaar. A group of students from Bath Academy of Arts painted a series of twelve fairground themed panels to decorate the premises and thirty years later, five years after Keith's death, his wife Mary, who ran the Guinea Lane Antiques Centre, now closed, in Bath for many years, has unearthed the paintings from storage and would love to hear from anyone from the original group who painted the quirky almost life-size panels which are in perfect condition but unsigned. Mary wonders if any of the students have gone on to fame and fortune and might be interested to see their early work, now vintage, with the provenance of being part of Bath's heyday thirty years ago as one of the UK's most famous cities for antiques. If you have any information please Email Antiques News

Paintings currently in store, two Picassos with an insurance valuation of around £1.5 million and £290,000 together with two works by post-impressionist Pierre Bonnard, both valued at around £2 million, are the latest treasures of the Wildenstein art-dealing dynasty revealed in a family inheritance battle. The dispute is between 68 year-old Guy Wildenstein and his 75 year-old step-mother, who was married to his father for 23 years. Mrs Wildenstein's refusal to concede is bringing much unwanted publicity to this most discreet of family businesses whose wealth and stock has been the subject of myth and speculation for generations.

The West of England Antique Dealers' Association, WEADA, have announced the date of their next Swap Shop which will be held by kind permission of McBains Antiques at Exeter Airport Antiques Complex, Exeter, Devon, EX5 2LL on Tuesday 30 June, 2009 from 8 am. Tickets are £10 per vehicle which will include a hearty dealers' breakfast. All trade welcome to buy, sell or swap! For enquiries call 01749 860686.

Antique & fine art specialists, Mark Chudley International, have introduced their new direct Groupage service to Atlanta, GA which will be of interest to dealers in the UK exporting to the US as the service also includes arrangements for on-carriage outside Atlanta. Mark Chudley, managing director, said of the new service. "We have been aware that the current market conditions have changed the needs of many American dealers buying in Europe. This service has been created to enable them to ship without the pressure of needing massive volumes to make the shipping economical." For full details on the new service see Mark Chudley International web site via Trade Index.

High visitor numbers, consistent sales and an global clientele made this year’s Summer Olympia International Art and Antiques Fair a success and cause for a sigh of relief for many of the international rosta of exhibitors. Visitor numbers were up ten per cent overall on last year with a total of 34,867 through the door including many celebrities and decorators to the celebrities including President Obama’s own Michael Smith who bought a number of pieces. Sales were particularly buoyant to private collectors, confirming the trend for investing in antiques and fine art rather than the stock market. Adrian Alan’s Linke bed sold for a six figure sum to an American client. The bureau from this suite, which was not for sale, won the LAPADA/COUNTRY LIFE Object of the Year competition, see Headline below. Dealers in early oak, Beedham Antiques had an exceptional fair having to restock the stand after the first day. Asian Art was also popular with Vanderven & Vanderven Oriental Art selling several pieces from the Kangxi period including a bowl originally made for the Imperial court, sold to an English private buyer for £45,000 and a black Japanese lacquer ware box, dated from c1850, with gold makie detailing was sold to another English private buyer for around £24,000. Greens of Cheltenham, whose recently-acquired c1918 emerald and
diamond necklace, priced at around £300,000, sold to a private buyer for an undisclosed six figure sum. Old Master artwork was well represented at the fair; the Tomasso Brothers were incredibly pleased with the response to their debut show at Olympia, and commented they looked forward to being at the fair next year. Sir Timothy Clifford, fair patron said: “In spite of the fact we are in a difficult financial period… we had visitors from all over the world and attendance figures were excellent… Many of the dealers were delighted with their sales … We have had several important new dealers from abroad and they tell me they intend to return next year and bring more of their colleagues.”

Delighted to find a rare and exceptional Lamb of Manchester Aesthetic Movement library bookcase for their stand at Olympia International Art and Antiques Fair Patrick Macintosh and Richard Nadin who trade from Sherborne in Dorset, were overwhelmed with the enthusiastic response to such an imposing piece both from the trade and the public alike, including a leading Philadelphia museum. Following a busy week with sales on every day, the bookcase was sold to a London private buyer for very near the asking price on Saturday. Patrick Macintosh's efforts in burrowing through the University of Exeter cellars had not been in vain... The vendors could not produce the original shelves missing from the interior. but determined Patrick would not be deterred and armed with the provenance of the piece departed for Reed Hall at Exeter University where the bookcase had resided since being commissioned, c 1870, by Richard Thornton West, a wealthy East India Company nabob who owned the vast Italianate mansion then known as Streatham Hall which later became part of Exeter University after his death in 1920. The bookcase had remained in the house until the present day. Mr Macintosh gained entry to the cavernous old cellars after some discussion with the university administrator and was delighted to find the original shelves tucked away behind the Christmas decorations! The exceptional parcel-gilt walnut library bookcase, with carved boxwood portrait roundels “History” and “Poetry” on the panelled doors, was designed by Bruce Talbert for Lamb of Manchester carried a price ticket in the region of £50,000 at the fair, which ran from from 5 – 14 June 2009.

Antiquesnews is delighted to welcome glass and ceramics specialists, Delomosne, founded in 1905 and exhibitors at the very first Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair in 1934 then known as The Antique Dealers' Fair. 2009 saw Delomosne exhibiting for the 75th occasion and in spite of the tube strike they managed to have a very satisfactory fair. Bernard Perret, son of the original owner, was one of the founders of and President of The British Antique Dealers Association and was closely involved with the creation of the Fair. Partner Martin Mortimer, now retired, joined the business in 1948 and went on to become an international authority on glass and in particular glass chandeliers. He wrote an introduction in the handbook for the Fair this year. Current owners of the business Tim and Vicki Osborne will be writing a feature article about the history of the business for Antiquesnews to be published later in the summer. See Delomosne web site via Trade Index.

Antiquesnews is delighted to welcome SCARAB ANTIQUES, dealers in fine, designer and costume jewellery who will be attending the Antiques for Everyone at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham from 23 - 26 July, 2009. Alan and Sue Poultney of Scarab Antiques who are well known on the UK fairs circuit will soon be writing about their hectic life on the road for the FEATURES Fairs and Exhibitions Page. see Scarab Antiques web site via TRADE INDEX.

Antiquesnews is delighted to welcome Clarion Arts' Antiques for Everyone held three times a year at the NEC in Birmingham. The next event will be held from 23 - 26 July, 2009. For more information about the next event see FEATURES, Fairs and Exhibitions section. See Antiques for Everyone web site via TRADE INDEX.

Having located the spacious industrial premises, complete with a gasometer and pylons, off the Kings Road, London SW6, late in 2000, Roderic Haugh went on to gather a galaxy of ten stars from the antiques trade to form Core One which has become the first port of call for international decorators, dealers and private clients looking for the best examples in furniture and objects from the 17th century to the 1970s. Roderic has been a dealer in the decorative trade since the late 60s and his showroom at Core One is testament to his eclectic taste underpinned by his classical training. Roderic is a founder exhibitor at the Bath Decorative and Antiques Fair. See Roderic Haugh Antiques web site via Trade Index

Following some very hard work by the LAPADA staff, the trade decided to really get behind the first LAPADA Object of the Year competition which was organised in conjunction with Country Life magazine. From a total of seventy-two entries submitted by fifty-seven LAPADA members, a final shortlist of fourteen objects were selected following what was a most difficult task by the judging panel. The final selection was displayed at Olympia where the results were announced by the Olympia Fair patron, Sir Tim Clifford Smith on Tuesday 9 June, 2009. In first place was Mayfair dealer Adrian Alan’s remarkable Grand Bureau by François Linke, c.1890, which won the Médaille d’Or at the 1900 Paris Exposition Universelle. An exceptional tour de force, the sheer audacity of its design and the technical brilliance of its execution make this desk one of the most significant pieces of furniture produced at the end of the 19th century and the apotheosis of what became known as the belle époque. The two runners up were a magnificent musical bell box from the Antique Enamel Company and a rare pair of tapestries from Witney Antiques. The original idea came from CADA member Sean Clarke of Christopher Clarke Antiques in Stowe on the Wold, Gloucestershire, who said he was delighted with the outcome of the judging and “...the quality of the entries showed the expertise and talent of the LAPADA members taking part.” Congratulations also to Richard Gardner, Havard and Havard and The Country Seat who all had objects shortlisted in the competition.

Staff at Fairfax House Museum in York are celebrating the return of a valuable 17th century barometer stolen in an audacious theft from a corridor while the museum staff were guarding other rooms on 23 May, 2009. CCTV footage from the museum showed a man wearing an overcoat and a woman unscrewing the ivory and brass-plated barometer from the wall of an empty corridor of the 1762 former Georgian town house. It is believed the couple were only on the premises for fifteen minutes before they strolled out of the museum with the 3ft antique hidden under a coat, their noses in a magazine. After studying film footage, and armed with forensic evidence from a thumb print left in a book during the raid, Wakefield Police identified one of the suspects and made an arrest at a private house early on Sunday 14 June, 2009, where the barometer worth tens of thousands of pounds was found buried in the garden wrapped in bubble wrap. Luckily there was only slight damage to the barometer, part of the renowned Noel Terry collection of English furniture and clocks dating from 1695, made by celebrated craftsman Daniel Quare. Director of the museum, Peter Brown said special security brackets are currently being made so that the barometer could be returned to its original position. He said he could not speak highly enough of the work by the insurance company, police and media resulting in the safe return of the barometer

At the time of the 65th anniversary of the D-Day landings, a pair portraits of the founder of the Parachute Regiment, Group Captain Maurice A Newnham, OBE and his wife were shown together at Olympia International Art and Antiques Fair by Darnley Fine Art, dealer in fine paintings, watercolours and prints. The two portraits are by renowned official war artist William Dring and were commissioned by Group Captain MA Newnham.
Adrian Pett of Darnley Fine Art said the two portraits which had been apart for some years had created a lot of interest during the fair and a private buyer was interested in buying them. He said it was remarkable that they were able to find the portrait of Mrs Newnham in an antique shop just a few weeks after buying the portrait of Group Captain Newnham privately. The two portraits, painted just after the war had finished, are extremely rare, as they are private commissions. Dring’s other portraits of war veterans were official commissions and are largely housed in the Imperial War Museum

In the insurance company's Review 2009, AXA Art UK's non-executive director, London fine art and antiques dealer Deborah Gage poses the question, "Where will the global art market stand in the next six months?" She concludes, "Like everything else in the world at present, it is in free fall, and the outcome remains to be seen. However, over the next five years or so, for those who do it astutely at least, collecting art may prove a more viable option in terms of sustaining value than investing in the stock market or other financial equities, with the added advantage of the enjoyment and enhancement of the spirit that art offers - something no bond or share can compete with."

dmg World Media have announced the sale of the UK division of their antiques fairs. Newark, Ardingly and Detling International Antiques & Collectors Fairs and the Shepton Malllet Antiques & Collectors Fair have been purchased by exhibition organisers Robert Thomas and Keith Harris. The new name for the company will be IACF Ltd - International Antiques & Collectors Fairs Ltd, the name of the business prior to it being brought in line with the dmg Antiques Fairs brand. New owner Keith Harris, who was the Managing Director for DMG Exhibitions Ltd, when they purchased the fairs in 1994, said: “This has always been a tremendous business -one that fulfils a vital role in the supply chain for the antiques trade …” Mr Thomas, an experienced exhibition organiser, said “There is a really dedicated and professional team based in Newark and we are looking forward to working closely with them to ensure that these fairs maintain their pre-eminent position as the UK’s biggest - and best!” The next event in new IACF calendar is Newark International Antiques and Collectors' Fair from 4 -5 June 2009.

eBay UK today announced a new anti-counterfeit campaign to recruit members of the antiques industry to work in partnership with the online marketplace to tackle the global challenge of counterfeits online causing damage to consumer confidence and the reputation of Rights Owners and legitimate businesses alike. The new anti-counterfeit campaign, ‘Fighting Fakes with eBay’ is part of eBay’s ongoing commitment to drive down the number of fake antiques sold on the site. The campaign will encourage Rights Owners to join eBay’s Verified Rights Owner programme VeRO and use their expertise to ensure that potentially fake items are removed before consumers are able to purchase them. Doug McCallum, Senior Vice President, eBay Europe said: “Counterfeiters’ sophistication keeps increasing, making it ever harder to differentiate a genuine item from a fake. …We invest millions of dollars annually to prevent potential counterfeits from appearing, and millions more removing from our sites the few that slip through … we are unable to tackle the problem alone… The fight against counterfeits requires a coordinated and global approach – with Governments, Rights Owners, law enforcement and industry working together to combat the issue.. .”

Prince and Princess Lobanov-Rostovsky attend the charity gala evening of the Russian Art Fair at the Jumeriah Carlton Tower, London 6-8 June 2009. The new event's director, Peter London, in partnership with established UK fair organiser Robert Bailey, hopes this will become the next major player on the global fairs circuit and intend to make it an annual event. The public and trade will be welcome Saturday 1-6pm, SundaY and Monday 11am-6pm.

Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, has acquired a new £2 million home in the north of the city, close to the capital's original antiques village, Camden Passage. The house is in a fashionable street close to the Angel, Islington. Already a champion of small businesses, the mayor who is well-known for travelling round London, will not have far to pedal to discover that the antiques trade is still attracting international buyers, especially on Wednesday and Saturday market days in Camden Passage.

Following the letter sent to the Editor of The Times by Iain Brunt and Henry Sandon - reprinted below, members of the trade are being asked to sign the petition on Antiques.co.uk or via the link on About Us

The petition has received tremendous support to date at 3 June 2009, with more than three hundred signatures and comments posted from a wide selection of UK and international trade. Sarah Percy Davis, Chief Executive of LAPADA posted the following comment: "Congratulations on this impressive initiative. Business rates are crippling for many of our members and contributing to shop closures and the cloning of the high street. We give this campaign our full support!"

Iain Brunt, has contacted ANTIQUESNEWS to share the following heartfelt comment from an American dealer who has signed the petition:

"It is a petition I wish that we had in the town in which I live. I realize that I am from The States, however, one of the reasons I come to England and Scotland is for the charm AND the shopping for antiques. If you begin to suffer the same result that we have in The States, then, a big reason to come to you will be lost. I do not need to visit another Starbucks, nor any UK equivalent, when I tour. That is not what I have come to see.

I reside in a small town whose charming Main Street has been devastated by strip malls and, specifically, Walmart. People's attention to Main Street became diverted by Super Walmart and the rest of the chain stores that moved into the "Mall" , and now, the galleries, antique shops and cafes are gone, leaving the remaining businesses to struggle and eventually close. We now have a 50% vacancy rate. I don't measure the success and the progress of the town by how full the Mall parking lot is...it is how empty the Main Street has become. Take heed. You have the right mix of charm and progress...don't muck it up.
Sincerely
Mark Polo IIDA, Allied ASID"

Original letter to Times reads....

"While other sectors are receiving help from the Government, the antiques industry - which is partly reliant on the housing market - does not. Even the recent VAT reduction does not help us," say doyen ceramics specialist Henry Sandon of Worcester and Ian Michael Brunt of Ledsham, Leeds, co-signatories of a Letter to the Editor of The Times, published in London on 4 April 2009. Under the headline, "Preserve Antiquarians" the letter concludes: "With sterling at its lowest for some considerable time, UK products are once again attractive to overseas buyers. With some marketing support from the Government, we could be using this opportunity to reach the world market for antiques." To justify the suggestion of government aid the letter quotes unspecified statistics that the UK's antiques and art market in 2007 contributed ten per cent of the global market share of £40 billion. In 2008 there was a significant fall from that £4 billion to £2.75 billion.

Whilst in London for the major June fairs collectors and dealers have traditionally made a pilgrimage to the antiques district of Chelsea. Close by Olympia is the internationally famous King's Road attracting visitors from around the world. This year they will find one of the capital's oldest antiques centres, Antiquarius, has closed its doors. Long established stallholders have moved on - some not so far. Just along the road, opposite Chelsea Old Town Hall on the corner of Sydney Street, the Bourbon Hanby Arcade continues to offer an eclectic selection of antiques and decorative things. In particular there is a large stock of fine quality jewellery much at tempting trade prices.

After many years Peter Nahum has left The Leicester Galleries, Store Street, London WC1, and will be working from home where he will not have gallery space. Paintings will be available for view elsewhere by appointment. He continues to buy on behalf of clients.

Well-informed burglars broke into the home of UK opposition leader David Cameron's father-in-law, Sir Reginald Sheffield at Sutton Park near York and stole £40,000 worth of antiques. Ignoring other valuables in a two-minute raid, the thieves selected just two items, a Meissen teapot in the shape of a monkey and a Charles Henri Cordier bronze bust of an oriental woman. Sir Reginald, a direct descendant of Charles II, has offered a £5000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the thieves who it is believed were stealing to order following a visit to the house whilst it was open to the public.

The Wallace Collection usually known for its collections of Old Masters including Titian, Rembrandt and Velazquez, will host an exhibition of oil paintings by Damien Hirst in October 2009. The paintings have been entirely produced by Hirst without the help of his assistants who have in the past created some of his most famous pieces.The new collection of twenty-five works is to be called
The Blue Paintings and will be hung in ornate gold, silver and antique wooden frames against a silk backdrop, in keeping with the rest of the museum's collection of old masters. Damien Hirst said: "I've chosen to show my new paintings here because I love the fact it's a family collection. It's like a world away from the world. My new works somehow feel like they belong there with other works and objects from other time … They are more about collecting and preciousness and fragility. They feel timeless but deeply connected to the past.”
The Wallace Collection revealed visitor figures have boomed over the past year alongside fellow smaller galleries. The Courtauld enjoyed a record 56 per cent rise over 12 months to 168,000 visitors. Its Cezanne show was the best-attended exhibition in its history.The Wallace Collection recorded a 25 per cent growth to 346,347 and the Dulwich gallery from 141,000 to 150,000.

Remember to read TRADE ROUNDABOUT for the latest events, acquisitions and antiques trade up-dates.

Reading the Daily Telegraph's recent revelations of UK members of parliament's claimed purchases at the taxpayers’ expense, many people may have wondered why none claimed for buying antiques. This is because the Green Book states that MPs cannot use their Additional Costs Allowance to buy “furnishings or fittings which are antique, luxury or premium grade”. However, in May 2007, this did not stop, Sir Gerald Kaufman, one of the Labour party's longest serving MPs, submitting a claim for £1,851 to cover the purchase of a rug from the Showplace Antiques Centre on West 25th Street, New York. Sir Gerald has offered to repay the amount claimed for the rug which was described as "a secondhand rug replacing a 24 year-old carpet." Another transgressor was Ed Vaizey, a key ally of David Cameron, who claimed for the £300 cost of an “upholstered library chair” that he bought from an antiques shop in Chiswick, west London, a few miles from his designated main home in London. Last night Mr Vaizey said he had repaid the cost the antique chair which he had bought with taxpayers’ money in 2006 - 7. He said: “I accept that the £300 armchair was an antique item and therefore that claim should not have been made …”

Police have revealed, following a three year investigation, that they believe the stolen Henry Moore sculpture “Reclining Figure” has almost certainly been melted down and sold for scrap metal for no more than £1,500 and most likely shipped abroad to feed China’s growing demand for industrial expansion. The figure was stolen from the estate of the Henry Moore Foundation in Much Hadham, Hertfordshire in December, 2005. It took thieves ten minutes to remove it using a stolen crane-equipped flatbed truck. Charles Hill, a former head of Scotland Yard's art and antiques squad and now a private detective, said that he had been told by a notorious art thief, whose family carried out a string of robberies at stately homes in 2005 and 2006, that a well-known group of travellers was behind the theft. Ian Leith, deputy chairman of The Public Monuments and Sculpture Association of Britain, estimates thefts of public sculptures have gone up 500 per cent over the past three years. Police and art experts believe that although some are taken for scrap, others are targeted by black market collectors. Leith believes there is clearly an illegal art collector market, with thefts occurring on average once a month.

The Google search engine has reported a sharp rise in searches for expensive goods and designer items suggesting that the public think the worst of the recession might be over. Reported figures show that searches for “Mercedes Benz” increased by one third, and Gucci designer brand increased by eight per cent. Conversely searches for bargain items showed large falls. A mini boom in the average asking price of a house in England and Wales, which increased by nearly two and half per cent in the four weeks to 9 May, 2009, further fuels hope that the worst of the recession is over and may augur well for the major fairs in London this June including Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair and Olympia International Art and Antiques Fair.

The National Association of Goldsmiths, (NAG), has joined with insurance company T H March to form SaferGems, an initiative with the aim of providing the jewellery and associated trades, antique and fine art industries with support and intelligence to address serious crimes issues within the trade which is increasingly being targeted by specialist gangs and ruthless amateurs. SaferGems will aim to help by compiling a confidential national, geographical database of incidents, crimes and suspects. Once information is recorded and collated, alerts will be sent to members on a local, regional or national basis. The alerts will contain details of criminal methods of operation and where possible describe criminals and suspects. Retailers will therefore have unique insight and positive intelligence into active criminal threats that could affect them at any time. Further information on the scheme is available from: Michael Hoare at the NAG, Tel: 020 7613 4445 or Michael Ferraro at T.H. March, Tel: 020 7405 0009

The National Antiques Week, 23 – 30 November, 2009, will have a special theme this year which will be “ANTIQUES ARE GREEN”. Antiquesnews has been a firm supporter of the campaign for a number of years and is keen to develop awareness of this obvious advantage to buying antiques and the logo for “Antiques are Green” is displayed the bottom of every page. The logo is available to download from New England Antiques Journal or via PUBLICATIONS in TRADE INDEX. For more information see the National Antiques Week page.

Event organisers are reminded to submit dates for January, February and March 2010 for the new rolling Fairs Calendar.

Prominent fairs in recent weeks have in the main served their exhibitors well during the challenging trading times. The Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair held in the Marquee in Battersea Park, London, from 21 – 26 April, 2009, although not as busy as the event in January, did see some good business. In particular regular exhibitors, specialist mirror dealers, On Reflection of Somerset had an excellent fair, their best ever Battersea. Another Somerset dealer, Tristram Latimer Sayer of Primal in Castle Cary, was delighted to sell a particularly heavy marble top iron base table which needed the help of four strong men to carry to the stand, for a figure in excess of £6000. Dorset dealers Nadin and Macintosh enjoyed a good fair with their selection of upholstery and country house furniture selling well to a variety of London trade and private buyers. Both new and repeat exhibitor bookings have been brisk for the next Battersea Fair from 29 September to 4 October 2009 which is likely to be a complete sell out. New owner David Juran said “Unusual and interesting furniture always remains in demand. Exhibitors maintained their usual high standards of stock selection and presentation, which can make all the difference to sales success.” See The Decorative Antiques and Textile Fair web site via Trade Index.

The inaugural Hellaby Hall Luxury Antiques Weekend held from 24 – 26 April, 2009, organised by Ingrid Nilson of The Antique Dealers Fair Limited, proved to be a success for the exhibitors with the bonus of coverage by BBC TV Look North filming the opening of the Fair with the broadcast appearing during the lunch time and 6 o’clock news bulletins. Bronzes were a success and loyal exhibitors Garret & Hurst Sculpture were rewarded with good sales including two 19th century bronzes to an existing client - ‘The Tired Hunter’ c.1875, by John Willis-Good (1854-1879) for £12,000 and ‘Cow and Calf’, c 1840, by Pierre-Jules Mene (1810-1879) for £7,550. ‘We continue to meet more new people at Ingrid Nilson’s fairs than at any other – they have become a
wonderful platform to pick up new clients’, says Margaret Cowley of Garret & Hurst Sculpture. See The Antique Dealers’ Fair Limited web site via Trade Index.

Antiques for Everyone held at the NEC in Birmingham from 16 – 19 April, 2009, saw some good sales across a wide range of specialties – ceramics in particular seemed to fare well with Catherine Hunt, Chinese blue and white specialist from Cheltenham declaring the fair her most successful ever in twenty years of exhibiting. An Australian dealer Alan Landis was third in the queue on opening day and spent five successful hours buying ceramics for his home market. In the furniture section Midwinter Antiques from Shropshire, period furniture dealers were delighted to sell a breakfront bookcase for £15,000. An important bronze was sold by Donald Callaghan for £22,000. The next Antiques for Everyone Fair takes place from 25 – 26 July 2009.

One of the more thought provoking television programmes about the antiques trade in the UK was the first of BBC2-TV's series, "Keep it in the Family", which invites the children of owners to consider taking over their parent's business in spite of following established alternative careers. Gary Don's salerooms in Leeds was founded by the current auctioneer's Irish-born grandfather who started as a dealer in the city's market in 1929. The programme looked at the prospect of Gary Don's 28 year-old son, Jamie, leaving his successful career as a music video director in London to take over the saleroom in the north of England. It made entertaining and instructive television emphasising that knowledge of the antiques trade can only be gained by hands-on experience. In the event, Jamie decided not to exchange the camera for the gavel, but the trial-run inspired his younger sister to join the firm and keep it in the family for the fourth generation.

Frieze Art Fair which will be held from 15 - 18 October 2009 in Regents Park, London, has lost forty exhibitors from 2008. A large sector of the group are from the US where ten of the twenty three from last year will not returning. The spaces have quickly been filled for this prestigious international event and directors, Amanda Sharp and Matthew Shotover have announced a fresh and exciting addition for 2009 which will be the first presentation of Frame, a new section within the fair dedicated to solo artist presentations. Frame will show young galleries from around the world that have been in existence for less than six years.

Don't forget to read Trade Roundabout each week for news of where dealers are moving to and from, events and updates from shops and centres and fairs and interesting acquisitions or sales. Antiquesnews welcomes copy for this column - contact the editor on Antiques News

We regret to announce the death of Ron Pethick who was well known in the trade through his work with Antiques Hunting web site.

Fair organisers please note that dates are now required for 2010 for the new rolling Fairs Calendar. Please contact Antiques News as soon as possible.

Sotheby's is cutting its stock market dividend by two-thirds to 20 cents per share and shedding a further 5% of its staff worldwide. These 65 job losses follow a 15% cut-back earlier in the year. The international auction house now employs 1311 staff reduced from 1638.

The long established Antiques & Collectors Fair at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston adjacent to Edinburgh Airport has been acquired by B2B Events. Two dates have been announced for 12th-13th September and 14th-15th November 2009. The new organisers plan an extensive advertising campaign throughout Scotland and reintroduction of the courtesy bus shuttle from the city centre amongst numerous innovations to encourage buyers and sellers to one of the largest events of its kind north of the border.

The latest feature is now live on Features - Furniture. See Richard Gardner's article including some stunning pieces for sale. All past feature copy will now be available to view via Features Archive - click on the link on main menu on left hand side of the page.

The latest innovations at Antiquesnews - on line since 1998 - are now live including images as part of Trade Roundabout page - the Editor welcomes items for Trade Roundabout - acquisitions, exhibitions or events or last minute changes to event dates - Email Antiques News

National Antiques Week page is now fully updated with ideas, dates and information on the theme "Antiques are Green". Don't forget you can download the logo to add to your web site from New England Antiques Journal

An original oil painting by L.S.Lowry with a price ticket of £325,000 will be among the many fabulous treasures going on sale at The 45th Annual Buxton Antiques Fair at The Pavilion Gardens, St John’s Road, Buxton, Derbyshire from Thursday 14th – Sunday 17th May 2009. The painting is a busy street scene with typical Lowry figures, signed and dated 1953 and will be on the stand of Neptune Fine Art from Derbyshire. Fine art will be well represented at the event by other exhibitors including Ashleigh House, Baron Fine Art, Paul Mayhew, Steve Marsling, The Period Face, Maurice Dear and Jo Bennett, together showing everything from early 18th century English watercolours to oils by Manchester’s current favourite, Geoffrey Key. This is the first Buxton Fair under the organisation of Cooper Events of Somerset and a full vetting committee headed by Nicholas Shaw, the well-known silver dealer from Petworth, Sussex will ensure that exhibits are offered in a condition ready for people’s homes and private collections. Sue Ede of Cooper Fairs said “This ensures that buyers can make their purchases with confidence and is the mark of a good quality fair.”

The battle to save part of Chelsea’s eclectic heritage seems to have finally been lost, another blow against the small shopkeeper and the character of so many of Britain’s high streets. The future of 34 of Chelsea’s independent businesses trading from Antiquarius, is now, sadly, in jeopardy. Despite great sympathy for resident antiques dealers shown by the Councillors at the planning meeting held by Kensington & Chelsea Council, on 21 April, 2009, the planning application by the landlord, London Associated Properties (LAP) to redevelop the Grade II listed site into a new outlet for the American fashion chain Anthropologie, was approved. Antiquarius, on the Kings Road, is the oldest antiques centre in London and has been attracting visitors to Chelsea from all over the world for some 40 years. Sarah Percy-Davis, Chief Executive of LAPADA, The Association of Art & Antiques Dealers said: “We have been doing all we can to support our members and the other dealers in Antiquarius since this problem began … I do hope that LAP will at least take some moral responsibility for the affected dealers as the councillors strongly encouraged at the planning meeting. For example, to help them find new space where they can re-locate collectively or to give them plenty of time before they have to move out.”

President Obama and the First Lady’s choice of Los Angeles based Michael Smith to redesign the private quarters of the White House has been viewed with excitement by US antiques dealers and has garnered some major interest, as searches on the Internet for information on Smith and his plans for a makeover of the White House have skyrocketed recently. One high-end antique dealer said, “I think this might be the start of something beautiful...” Smith was apprenticed to the famed Californian dealer Gep Durenberger and studied extensively at the Victoria & Albert Museum. His style has often been referred to as a sort of European classic - mixed with some new world flavour. Other antique dealers seemed to mirror the sentiment, adding that the Obamas could possibly add some real stimulus to the antique market, simply by having chosen a designer who thinks antiques are “cool” again

Another high profile American antiques buyer, pop singer Michael Jackson, due to perform a sellout UK tour in July and August 2009, has cancelled the forthcoming sale of 1,400 items from his Neverland Ranch in California that were due to go under the auctioneer's hammer in April 2009. A five-catalogue auction of items owned by "The King of Pop" has been cancelled. Items that were to be offered in the sale included antiques, works of art, and decorative accessories. According to About.com's Lisa Hallett Taylor, who was present on the first day of the auction preview, "Apparently, the singer had a 'change of heart' about parting with his vast and eclectic collection. Jackson, his representatives and Los Angeles based Julien's Auctions halted the sale and came to an amicable agreement to return the collection to Jackson." With the cancellation of the auction being official, the sale was transformed into an extended exhibition which ended on 25 April 2009: Image shows the pop star shopping for antiques in Los Angeles during the week of the exhibition.

Celia Bailey, publisher of Apollo, the international magazine for collectors based in London, is leaving and it is reported she will not be replaced. Chaiman Andrew Neil and editor Michael Hall continue to spearhead this well-regarded fine art antiques monthly magazine.

We regret to announce the death of Kay Gimpel, aged 95, the last survivor in her generation of the Gimpel family of art dealers, with family connections going back to Joseph Duveen and the Wildensteins. The business was renamed Gimepl Fils in 1945 and continues in London into the fourth generation under the direction of Kay's elder son, Rene

The RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) Arts and Antiques Survey published 20 April 2009 for the first quarter of 2009 saw a dramatic change in fortune for the arts and antiques market as buyers re-entered the market looking for alternative investment opportunities, . In preceding quarters, those looking to save money or make investments had been content to invest in traditional saving avenues. Despite a depressed housing market, the sale of furniture has seen a turnaround with 12 percent more Chartered Surveyors reporting a rise than a fall in all lot prices compared to 40 percent reporting a fall than a rise in Q4 2008. For the first time in the history of this survey, Chartered Surveyors are reporting a rise in the oil and watercolours market with a net balance of 10 percent more surveyors reporting a rise than a fall compared to -47 percent reporting a fall than a rise last quarter. In contrast contemporary art is still in negative territory with 38 percent more Chartered Surveyors reporting a fall than a rise. The jewellery and silver sectors continue to remain resilient; with, respectively in these areas, 50 and 36 percent more Chartered Surveyors reporting a rise than a fall. Buyers are continuing to invest in jewellery and silver as gold and silver prices continue to rise and stocks and shares fall. This demonstrates a return to more traditional arts and antiques markets. RICS spokesperson, Jeremy Lamond said: “The start of the year has seen a renewed interest in traditional fine arts and antiques … Buyers are also looking to the lower end of the market with lots under £5000 continuing to perform exceptionally well.

The flagship London event for LAPADA members, the LAPADA Art and Antiques Fair will host around ninety exhibitors at its new and glamorous venue in Berkeley Square in London's Mayfair from 24 - 27 September, 2009 with a Preview on Wednesday 23. A purpose built marquee will be adorned with a dominating external frieze designed to captivate passing visitors to this prestigious event. Chief Executive of LAPADA, Sarah Percy-Davis said "Berkeley Square presents a fantastic opportunity... and has invigorated the enthusiasm of our exhibitors who have eagerly taken on this move."

Television companies are as keen as ever to produce new antiques shows and the BBC has confirmed two for 2009. Paul Martin, already well known to viewers from “Flog It!” has been travelling around the UK meeting dealers in their shops for his new prime time BBC2 show “Trust Me – I’m a Dealer”. He will be given the task of buying and selling antiques in order to raise money for worthy causes and will be exhibiting some of the furniture and paintings he has bought for the show at the TVADA – Thames Valley Antique Dealers’ Association, Spring Antiques & Art Fair at Albury Park Mansion, near Dorking, Surrey from 8 – 10 May, 2009 where he will appear on Saturday 9 May and anyone who purchases an item from his stand will be invited to participate in the TV programme. The other show to be screened in the autumn by the BBC and hosted by Jonty Hearnden of “Cash in the Attic” will be “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is” which has a similar theme of dealing to raise money for charity.

Some robust sales were reported by dealers at the BADA Antiques & Fine Art Fair which was held from 25 - 31 March, 2009 in the luxury pavilion in Duke of York Square, London SW3. Attendance figures were up by 18% and more than two hundred people were waiting in the entrance hall when the Fair opened on the first day.Notable picture sales by John Spink Fine Watercolours included "Llanthony Abbey" by JMW Turner, for a price in the region of £75,000 and "Lake Windermere" by William Turner of Oxford for about £30,000. Jeremy Taylor of Taylor Gallery of London said "I have had my best BADA Fair ever" after selling several China Trade paintings to buyers from America and Hong Kong and several works by Edward Seago, including "Summer Day, Waxham". Amherst Antiques from Edenbridge, Kent who produced a special catalogue of Tunbridge Ware were delighted when almost half sold within the first two days. Early oak dealer, Andrew Singleton of Suffolk House of Yoxford, Suffolk reported a good fair and although down on sales from previous years was happy to sell on every day with eighteen pieces selling and more likely to sell post fair. Mark West, glass dealer, reported selling two and half times more stock on the opening day than the previous year. See Mark West Glass and Suffolk House Antiques web sites via Trade Index.

Two dealers from Antiquarius, London's old established antiques centre, are relocating further along King's Road, Chelsea, to Bourbon-Hanby Arcade, opposite Chelsea Old Town Hall on the corner of Sydney Street. Emmanuel Kra t/a Saint Esprit deals in antique and fine jewellery, cufflinks and objets d'art. Serena Ferguson of Ferguson Fine Art specialises in sporting collectables, equestrian antiques, paintings and metalware. For further details see Bourbon-Hanby Arcade's entire website in our Trade Index.

Busy brothers, Sean and Simon Clarke of Christopher Clarke Antiques, Stowe on the Wold, are taking part in their second joint exhibition with Burford based Manfred Schotten Antiques. The exhibition is to be called The Great Escape has a topical theme which promises to "entertain and distract you from everyday life" and runs from 18 April to 3 May, 2009. The exhibition promises to be both fun and informative and will show a wide range of subjects from exploration to travel in style; from the foot down on the accelerator to the slow, measured engagement of a game of chess and will also raise money for a local charity with 5% of all sales given to Kate's Home Nursing who provide hospice at home nursing care for those in the last stage of illness. For more information about the exhibition see Christopher Clarke Antiques web site via Trade Index.

This year "Antiques & Collectors Trader" celebrates ten years as UK's unique monthly antiques trade newspaper. Essex-based publishers Tom and Wendy Silcock pride themselves in their 18,000 circulation. Copies are distributed free nationwide with additional postal subscribers at home and abroad. "Many things have changed over the past ten years," says Tom. "We seem to have gone from one receession to another. Surprisingly our subscription numbers keep on growing and are coming in from all over the country, as well as overseas, this tells its own story. Our product is Green with newspapers being the easiest product for us all to recycle. 2009 will be a challenging time time for us all and we will continue to work hard promoting our customers' businesses in a positive way. We look forward to the next ten years. "Antiques & Collectors Trader" advertises in this online newspaper For further details telephone/fax 01702 207400.

As recently reported in Trade Roundabout Paul Tanswell closed Obelisk Antiques in Warminster, Wiltshire, to concentrate on his interior design contracts but he has recently been tempted back into a showroom when the opportunity arose to take part in Artemis Gallery, the new venture for former manager of Avon Antiques in Bradford on Avon, Philip Brandenburg, which opened at the beginning of April, 2009. Philip took over the lease of Avon Antiques on Market Street when Andrew Jenkins moved to new premises down the hill in this pretty riverside town in Wiltshire. Completing the trio showing at the Artemis Gallery will be Iain Henderson Russell of HRW Antiques, London SW6. Philip’s taste is for Empire furniture which he plans to blend with the French decorative pieces from Paul and the 18th and 19th century English and Continental furniture from the extensive range on show at HRW Antiques in London.

See Trade Roundabout for full information about Somerset based fairs organiser Paul Stewart's new antiques and collectors’ fair with up to 250 stands to be held from 8 – 9 August, 2009 at the Cricket St Thomas Wildlife Park.

After 20 years organising fairs in Exhibition Hall 1 and outdoors at The Great Yorkshire Showground, Harrogate, Grosvenor Exhibitions has not renewed their contract with the venue for 2009. All of Grosvenor Exhibition's events have been cancelled.

At numerous grassroots antiques and collectors fairs and markets around the country gold can still be found with dusty price tags well below the current price of scrap gold. Dealers would do well to check the weight of gold items of stock alongside the current spot price of the precious metal. Recently at one fair it was estimated over £5000 worth of under priced gold chains and jewellery that the dealer, unaware of the current scrap value, admitted he had bought years ago.

BBC Antiques Roadshow expert Paul Atterbury is hopeful of selling his unusual two-bedroomed Dorset coast bolthole which he has owned since 1987 and has been on the market for over a year. Lots of people viewed the quirky property but there was never an acceptable bid on it. Made up of a converted railway carriage built in 1903 and a couple of former beach huts, it also has an outdoor swimming pool. The original asking price was £600,000 which Paul recently reduced to £425,000 and attracted four buyers one of whom has made an offer according to selling agent Martin Bowen-Ashwin.

Adding to the attractions during the most important week of the year for antiques collectors and dealers in London's King's Road, Chelsea, antique jewellery specialist and television personality Ian Towning offers free advice at Bourbon-Hanby Arcade, Sydney Street, opposite Chelsea Old Town Hall during Wednesday to Sunday 25-29 March 2009 from 11am to 5pm.
Elsewhere in King's Road, Chelsea at this time the New Chelsea Antiques Fair is being held at Chelsea Old Town Hall and the British Antique Dealers' Fair at The Duke of York Square.
Ian Towning, currently appearing on ITV's "Dickinson's Real Deal" says, "I am looking forward to offering this complimentary service to everyone from established collectors to newcomers to the antiques world. An increasing number of people are contacting me for advice. Antique jewellery is attracting more attention than ever as many people are discovering it is a very worthwhile, tangible investment that appreciates whilst it is being appreciated."
For further details see Bourbon-Hanby's entire website in our Trade Index on the right hand side of this page under Antiques Centres

The next WEADA, West of England Antique Dealers' Association Antiques, Fine Art and Interiors Fair has been confirmed and will take place from 9 - 11 October, 2009 at the elegant Minterne House in Dorset. Commenting on behalf of the Association, Martin Dearden of Pennard House Antiques, Shepton Mallet, said: ‘I was excited to find a house with so much charm and character that is not permanently open to the public and that will be ideal for our Fair’ Cooper Events will again organise the Fair on behalf of the 60 members of this relatively new but very proactive Association which continues to develop and consolidate following a successful first fair at Taunton in October 2008, and the Chairman has announced twelve new members for 2009/10. The latest full colour Guide to Buying Antiques is now available from the Association office on 01749 860686 or from member shops.

Organiser Daniel Cotton reports the spring Little Chelsea Antiques Fair at the Old Town Hall, Kings Road, Chelsea, London exceeded the large attendance of this long standing event in the 1980s. There were over 400 visitors in the first hour of the first day. Patrick Macintosh of Courtyard Antiques Sherborne calculated that he sold 1 in 4 pieces of the furniture he took to the Fair and was very pleased. He reported that the queue on Monday afternoon stretched along the King's Road and the crowd was made up of both trade and public. Prices of stock at this event that retains its "village hall" atmosphere, are from £10 to £10,000. Brisk business at the event and bookings for the next fair 5-6 October 2009 encouraged Daniel to increase the events from two to three with a new summer show next year. Dates for March, June and October 2010 will be announced shortly. Watch this space! In the meantime, all enquiries, telephone 020 7258 1159.

Well-known retired East Anglian antiques dealer, writing as Faith Lawrence, has penned a fascinating autobiography that includes her early discovery of the Trade in Brighton on the south coast where during the 1930s her mother had a shop. William & Mary Antiques in Preston Street had a wide range of buyers including London dealers, overseas buyers from America and France as well as local collectors, not least Her Majesty Queen Mary's ladly-in-waiting - but never the Queen!
In the 1930's Faith started trading in Portobello Road market at the same time as moving in and out of high society and London's theatreland before moving onwards and upwards in the Trade. Anecdotes and reminiscences abound. Now she seeks a publisher.
Any offer to consider publication of Faith's autobiography will be passed on.
Email Antiques News

Jack Yaffe recently celebrated his 100th birthday, seventy-five years after opening his family bric-a-brac shop in Prestwich, Manchester. He is still in the business and behind the counter attributing his success to a single simple successful maxim, "I buy right and sell right". Long may he continue.

Mark Dodgson, Secretary General of the BADA, has issued a warning to the trade about a current alleged scam which is a variant on a common con trick reported by a BADA member who had received an offer to purchase two items for sale on his web site priced at £10,000 from an address in Dubai from a Steven Brown. The member gave his bank details to the proposed buyer so that a transfer could be arranged. A sum of £45,000 duly appeared in his bank account which was paid in via a cheque sent in the post, making the trail harder to follow. The suspicious member asked his bank to trace the source of the funds and was told that the cheque originated from closed bank account. The member expected that the next step would be a request to ship the goods in addition to the balance of the "overpayment". Luckily he was alert to a possible fraud by this stage and no damage was done, but Mark Dodgson has asked the trade to be aware of this current alleged scam.

In 1974 an IRA bomb badly damaged Bath’s Regency Corridor together with the four classical style niche figures, which had resided there since their journey to Bath along the Avon and Kennet Canal from Museum Street, London, early in the 19th century, safely wrapped in straw.
Restored and reinstated they remained in place until the end of the 20th century when the local authority gave a building company the job of restoring The Corridor. The builders lost no time in consigning the four female figures to a skip, destroying two and badly damaging the others.
Local antiques dealer Grierson Gower noticed the figures were missing from the gallery in The Corridor and spent more than a year tracing them and was delighted to buy the remaining two which he learned were in storage, from the agent of the privately owned Corridor Management Committee. One of the figures was beyond repair but Grierson managed to restore the remaining figure and offered it to the Bath Preservation Trust so that the lady could be repatriated to The Corridor but the Trust declined saying the figure was “of no artistic merit”. Grierson was tempted to show her at the forthcoming Bath Decorative and Antiques Fair in March, 2009 at the Pavilion, a stone’s throw from her original home in the Corridor, but a local philanthropist had other ideas and the figure is to remain in Bath. The chairman of the Bath Preservation Trust, Edward Bayntun-Coward, who is the forth generation owner of the world renowned bookbinders in the city, George Bayntun, approached Grierson and bought the figure for an undisclosed sum. He said “I could not bear to see the figure leave Bath and decided I would buy her myself and loan her to the people of Bath for exhibitions.” A number of period gilded glass shop front signs from Hatts the famous Georgian wig makers who traded in the Corridor since the heyday of the city in 18th century were not so lucky as those were thrown in the skip and destroyed.

Proactive Petworth dealer Richard Gardner has published his first glossy catalogue for 2009 together with the abridged on line version. Sumptuously produced, the contents include a selection of fine furniture, paintings and objects. Known for his collection of boxes and caddies, Richard Gardner does not disappoint with the selection with some superb examples of Mauchline ware and tortoiseshell tea caddies. Some very fine bronzes appear in the collection, including this imposing and rare bronze study of a seated tiger standing 16 1/2 inches high and signed and stamped with Peyrol foundry mark, c 1880. For a copy of the catalogue contact Richard Gardner via his web site on Trade Index.

The United Arab Emirates government is determined to make Dubai a key world destination on the art and antiques map. London organisers Brian and Anne Haughton organised "Art Antiques Design", (18-22 February 2009,their second annual excursion to Dubai, with over 30 local and international exhibitors but not many reported sales. To return at all was an achievement in view of other organisers attempts in recent years to create a new venue for western dealers in the UAE.

Newark Antiques Warehouse will hold an exhibition illustrating the Golden Age of Liberty furniture and design from 9am on Monday 2nd March 2009, which will illustrate the range and diversity of the Liberty style, including examples from the workshops of Leonard Wyburd and William Birch and designs by influential figures E. W. Godwin and W. J. Neatby. The exhibition is part of an ongoing series of exhibitions as the Warehouse which recently changed its opening times to coincide with the nearby Newark Antiques Fair held six times a year. See Newark Antiques Warehouse via Trade Index.

Good business was reported by many of the 52 exhibitors at this year's 20/21 International Art Fair at the Royal College of Art, London. A number of dealers reported better results than 2008. Traditional works were more in demand than contemporary art.
The relaxed atmosphere, wide variety of art on view and the manageable size of the show drew compliments from visitors for organisers Gay Hutson and Angela Wynn who return to the same venue for the 20/21 British Art Fair, 16-20 September 2009. See 20/21 British and International Art Fair web sites via Trade Index.

Buxton Antiques Fair, one of the UK's oldest established annual antiques shows, has been taken over by Somerset-based provincial fairs organiser, Cooper Fairs. The fair will continue to be held at the town's Pavilion Gardens each May.
Says Sue Ede, owner of Cooper Fairs: "The Buxton Fair joins our roster of high-profile and well respected events
that provide dealers and collectors with good quality fairs held in well known status venues."

The grandstand at Newmarket racecourse was full to capacity with potential buyers at the winter Newmarket Antiques & Collectors Fair. This was organiser Nelson Events first fair of the year at this venue. All exhibitor space was sold out, with ten per cent more stalls than previously. Their next fair at Newmarket will be on Sunday 31 May 2009. For more information see Nelson Fairs web site via Trade Index.

We regret to announce the death of nuclear physicist and fine art dealer Vic Conti (67) after a sudden illness on 14 February 2009, peacefully at home. Since taking early retirement from British Petroleum 20 years ago, Vic shared his enthusiasm for Art Deco with his partner Aldo Taramasco establishing an international business, Bizarre, with a decorative arts gallery in Marylebone Church Street, London, living and working in a 1930s timewarp.

The first LAPADA Conference for members was held on Monday 23 February 2009 in The Orangery at Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire. More than eighty members attended the £28 per delegate event which proved very useful and enjoyable with a two hour agenda including lectures on web marketing and working with interior designers following lunch. LAPADA member Patrick Macintosh of Sherborne, Dorset, told this newspaper that he had found the day extremely enjoyable and instructive and he looked forward to attending future conferences.

In September 2007, maverick West End art dealer Peter Nahum hired international business consultants, BCMS Corporate, to offer for sale, complete with stock as a going concern, The Leicester Galleries which he acquired in 1986. It subsequently gained a reputation as one of the UK's great galleries. Eighteen months later the gallery was still unsold. The "final sale of the remaining traditional stock of pictures" goes under the hammer at Dreweatt's Newbury salerooms on 24 February 2009. Peter continues to trade and pursue other interests from the gallery until the Spring at least, but its website listing of Future Exhibitions simply says "None!".

Recent bad weather highlighted the advantage of accurate weather forecasting. The BBC weather news on the internet proved invaluable for many buyers and sellers attending major grassroots antiques and collectors fairs in the East Midlands. In particular exhibitors travelling to Newark at the beginning of February said that the arrival of snow storms was predicted to the very hour - 4am! Clicking onto BBC Weather is recommended before making long journeys to future events throughout the UK

Held at the County Grandstand, Chester Racecourse from 12 - 15 February, 2009, the Chester Antiques & Fine Art Show, organised by Penman Fairs, featured more than fifty dealers from across the country. It is widely regarded as the premier event for antiques collectors in the north west and certainly lived up to its reputation with fine paintings proving exceptionally popular with collectors who were buying fine art across the board, from the popular 18th and 19th century paintings belonging to Phoenix Fine Art from Cheshire and Brunswick Gallery from Lancashire, to the later 19th and 20th century works from Rowles Fine Art from Welshpool (who sold a pair of watercolours by Sir Kyffin Williams among other works) and Ryland Fine Art from East Yorkshire, who sold to both collectors and interior decorators. Contemporary works were also very popular with specialists Jo Bennett from Manchester and Neville Contemporary Art from Surrey selling well. In other areas, Garth Vincent, specialising in period arms and armour, enjoyed a successful fair, so too Garret & Hurst from Sussex, specialising in bronzes. The next Penman Fair will be the Chelsea Fine Art and Antiques Fair from 25 - 29 March 2009. For more information see Penman Fairs' web site via our Trade Index.

Michael Holt began his trading life in Bermondsey Market in the late 1950s when rent was ten shillings in old money – equivalent today to 50p. Sharing a stand with two other dealers really kept the costs down! Michael began to specialise in antique fireplace furniture and accessories in the early 1980s, selling mainly to American clients whom he still travels to meet regularly. The latest career move for Michael is his new web site where he looks forward to welcoming clients new and old to his new online shop. See Michael Holt Andirons via FIREPLACE ACCESSORIES on TRADE INDEX

Dudley Council has announced that it will close Broadfield House Glass Museum from March 2010 citing economic contraints. The Council has stated its intention to relocate the collection to the Red House Cone site. The museum which is situated in the historic Stourbridge Glass Quarter, is the only dedicated glass museum in the UK carrying an important collection of international repute. Much of the collection is locally made dating from the 17th century. The Glass Association and Friends of Broadfield House are campaigning to stop this move and an on-line petition is available for supporters to sign at Go Petition

We are delighted to announce that from the end of February 2009, Antiquesnews will display images in the Headline news section. This development is part of the ongoing innovations at Antiquesnews.

See Trade Roundabout for news of how to avoid the roadworks into Petworth, West Sussex and news of a new web site for specialist Welsh furniture dealers Havard and Havard of Vale of Glamorgan.

On 4 February 2009 the Daily Telegraph reported “An international trader who specialised in antique books stole £323,000 worth of rare tomes from one of the most powerful financiers in the world. David Slade, 59, was hired by Sir Evelyn de Rothschild to catalogue his vast collection of rare books .…… A former president of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association, (ABA), and a dealer since the age of seventeen, crippled by £30,000 credit card debts as his business crumbled he then sold the books at auction”....... He was jailed for twenty-eight months after pleading guilty at Aylesbury Crown Court.” A spokesman for the ABA said that despite the circumstances the crime was “deplorable”.

Following a break in two years ago, Moreton in Marsh antiques centre, Windsor House Antiques has lost about £30,000 worth of silver, carriage clocks and jewellery stolen from cabinets during a ram raid which took place shortly after midnight on Thursday January 22, 2009. The centre’s closed circuit television cameras filmed an olive/green-coloured vehicle, possibly a Jeep or 4x4, being reversed into the High Street building’s front door shortly after midnight. Two offenders were recorded entering the shop where 35 antique dealers trade. Jane Finegan who manages the centre for its proprietors, Tony and Edwina Sutton said "We were trying very hard to make the shop look attractive and doing everything we can to keep it open and have been doing very well through this recession, I now feel very disillusioned". Staff worked all through the morning to clear the debris left by the intruders and the shop was open for business by midday. North Cotswolds police appealed for witnesses.

Doubled rent to £1,200,000, like-for-like sales down 40%, the promise of more of the same to come and a lack-lustre share price has hit top London dealer Mallett. Out goes chief executive Lanto Synge replaced by Giles Hutchinson-Smith formerly a director of Meta, Mallett's contemporary design business. In the restructuring of this company, one of the very few antiques dealers listed on the UK stock market, high hopes appear to be pinned on the contemporary side of the business and, as recently reported, no more hot lunches cooked on the premises for the directors.

The ACC (Antique Collectors' Club) Antique Furniture Index moved downwards by one percent to 2942 (1968=100) in 2008, mainly due to falls in the Victorian, Regency and Country indices. Compared with almost all other economic and investment performances in late 2008 it may have been lacklustre but it was far from devastating news. Oak and walnut price indices rose by one percent and the mahogany ones more or less stood their ground. The Index figure was a disappointment in view of last year's consolidation and hope for recovery but compares with the RICS in autumn suggesting a fall of two percent in prices. It is at the lower end of quality that prices are continuing to fall. The ACC Index is derived from a variety of typical pieces of furniture and charted in the ACC book, "British Antique Furniture". The collation and assessment of the prices of antiques by the ACC was a pioneering activity and this Index is the only one with a 40-year track record and has been calculated annually since 1968, when it stood at 100.

Following a campaign backed by art world celebrities including David Hockney and Lucient Freud, to save two masterpieces by Titian,"Diana and Actaeon" and "Diana and Callisto", it has been announced that £50 million has been raised partly by public donations and trusts and funds, including £12.5 million pledged by the Scottish executive, to save "Diana and Actaeon". The painting, formerly owned by the Duke of Sutherland, will be shared by the National Gallery and the National Galleries of Scotland where it has been on display for more than two hundred years. It is feared that the other painting may be lost to a private buyer if funding is not found.

It has been announced that the Tate and the National Gallery of Scotland will be among the eighteen galleries to become beneficiaries of the 20th c art collection of the late Anthony d'Offay, son of an antique dealer, valued at £125 million, for the bargain price of £26.5 million with the Treasury waiving the £14.5 million tax bill on the purchase. Mr d'Offay's dream was that there should be "rooms" allowing young people in particular to study one artist at a time. The collection includes Andy Warhol, Damien Hurst and Robert Mapplethorpe.

Feeling confident after the success of the Luxury Antique Weekends concept in the North of England, Organiser Ingrid Nilson has added another fixture to this tried and tested formula of the small exclusive fair positioned alongside a 4-Star quality hotel. The first Luxury Antiques Weekend at Kilhey Court, Standish in Lancashire was launched to great approval from 23 - 25 January 2009 and despite January's newspapers being full of gloom about unemployment, recession and the economy there were few signs of the recession at the stylish lakeside venue. Visitors flocked from Cumbria, Wales, Manchester, Cheshire, Yorkshire and right across Lancashire, amongst whom was David Moores, former chairman of Liverpool Football Club. One couple from Kendal, who went away happy with their purchase, remarked that the fair was "a feast for the eyes and a feast for the soul."

The first of four fairs this year at Alexandra Palace, Wood Green, north London attracted over 3000 visitors - an excellent attendance in view of the weather and the economic climate - both very chilly. However inside the hall buyers warmed to the stock of dealers from throughout the country.
Business was being done under one of the biggest roofs in London. Nelson Events' next Alexandra Palace Antiques, Collectables, Art Deco and 20th Century Fair will be held on Sunday 3 May 2009. Around 600 stands are anticipated. Trade admited from 8am, private buyers from 9.30am to 4,30pm As usual there is easy parking and a free shuttle bus from Wood Green station. See the Alexandra Palace fair's entire website via our Trade Index.

David Dickinson, the celebrity antiques dealer famed for his "cheap as chips" catchphrase, is currently fronting a television advertising campaign for another bargain being launched by fast food chain McDonald's which has launched a Savers Menu, with a range of items, such as a double cheeseburger or medium portion of fries, available for just 99p.

President Obama has made an impressive start to the task ahead of him this week, including the appointment of California based interior designer Michael Smith who has been given the job of redecorating the President's new residence with the budget of $100,000. Mr Smith, who is inspired by the look of English country houses and mixes that feel with a clean and neat modern American edge, likes mixing antiques with ethnic textiles, and expensive accessories with items from high street shops. The installation has begun with a tiger maple four poster bed, c 1820, from New England family owned antiques business Leonard’s.

The future bodes well for established fine art dealers following reports by The Times art correspondent, Ben Hoyle on recent Impressionist, modern and contemporary art sales at the major London auction houses. Under the headline, "High returns for high art are swept away as harsh reality hits the bidding at salerooms", Ben Hoyle writes" "For most of last year the top end of the art market seemed to be defying economic gravity. The stock market plunge in September changed everything." He quotes a leading London dealer of long standing as saying the auction houses had become primarily "experts in looking after widows and hustling rather than art". Established fine art dealers, in particular exhibitors at the forthcoming 20/21 International Art Fair at the Royal College of Art next to the Royal Albert Hall Kensington, London, 19-22 February 2009, now have an opportunity to restore some confidence in the market.

2009 is a vintage year for the Bath Decorative and Antiques Fair held from 5 – 7 March at the Pavilion in Bath. The last of the British antiques fairs to hold a designated Trade Only Day,the Fair is now in its 20th year. This year sees BBC television antiques celebrity Paul Martin open the Fair at the Charity Preview Evening on Thursday 5 March. For information about exhibitors see Antiquesnews Fairs and Exhibitions Feature on the left hand side of this page or Bath Decorative and Antiques Fair web site via Trade Index.

Alternative investments are a growing trend. Most antiques offer the added ingredient of practicality, but you can't lick stamps if you are a collector. Michael Hall, chief executive of Stanley Gibbons says stamp collecting is a completely different animal. It is "a bug, which becomes an all consuming passion. Stamp collectors are trying to achieve something; they are buying to complete a collection. That protects the market in difficult times

Following the recent advice that Christie's international magazine is "on hold", we hear that Clarion Events colourful glossy "The Olympian" is unlikely to be published again. After eight issues Barrington Publications has ceased publication of "Design Arts" born out of the long respected pocket-sized antiques bi-monthly "The Collector". It is hoped "Design Arts" will be incorporated in Barrington's old established monthly "Galleries". The Birmingham-based "Antiques Magazine" previously known as "Antiques Bulletin" ceased publication last year.

The Winter Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair held from Tuesday 20 January to Sunday 25 January, 2009 in the Marquee in Battersea Park, London enjoyed some very good activity throughout the week with as many visitors on Saturday as the first day. New owner David Juran summed up the his first Fair as owner saying “surprising but reassuring.” Although the Fair took place during American Presidential election week the exhibitors enjoyed very good sales to some well known US trade buyers, including Annette Putnam who sold a large refectory table to a prominent North Carolina trader. Australian trade were also in evidence. Reports from exhibitors across a number of disciplines were resoundingly positive – Martin Murray who deals in country furniture and folk art said “It was the best opening day of any fair I have had – ever!” Fiona McDonald of Munster Road, Fulham who deals in 20th century design said she was very relieved to meet so many visitors who wanted to buy. Jan Keyne of Town and Country Antiques from Bournemouth told the organisers she had had “a rip roaring couple of days” having virtually sold out by the middle of the week. Patrick Macintosh of Sherborne, Dorset, had a similar experience selling eighteen pieces on the first day. For information on dates and exhibitors at the Spring Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair see Trade Index on the right hand side of this page.

Tiffany Pritchard, organiser of the 6th National Fine Art and Antiques Fair, presented with the support of LAPADA at the NEC, Birmingham, from 14 – 18 January 2009, has reported that business proved much better than expected for many exhibitors. She said ‘I feel we’ve made a good start to the new year, in fact much better than anyone predicted. I’m delighted the fair has worked well for so many.” Works of art and bronzes sold well across the fair and some of the formal furniture dealers were delighted. Most successful of all were Melody’s Antiques from Chester, who cleared half of their large stand of furniture, selling an oak dresser, a set of chairs, a coffer and other pieces.
“Visitors are seriously spending their money on art and antiques in preference to the usual investments” were the words on exhibitors’ lips after a busy first day.

Following all the emotional outpourings at the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States of America and the hopes it has brought, the question everyone in America should be asking is not what can Obama do for us, but what can we do for Obama. Get the economy and business booming again is a priority. In this sphere the American antiques dealers who import from the UK and Europe are in a good position to help their nation and themselves. On the day of the inauguration the Pound sterling fell to its lowest level against the US dollar since mid-2001. If it falls one cent lower to below $1.3714 it will be at its lowest value since 1985. Last summer it was trading above $2 to the £. at this level of the exchange rate offers Americans coming to buy antiques and fine art in the UK unprecedented opportunities for almost a generation. And they can be certain of a warm welcome from the British antiques trade, many of whom are equally moved by President Obama's vision for his country and the world.
Editor's note: See Comments from an Atlanta dealer in Trade Roundabout.

The latest in our series of feature articles are now published – see the main menu on the left of every page.
DAY WITH A DEALER focuses on one of the most celebrated dealers in the world of decorative antiques, Spencer Swaffer, whose emporium in Arundel has been a major port of call for many serious decorators and trade buyers for more than thirty-eight years.
Willie Clegg and Harvey Ferry of the Country Seat write about the history of WHITEFRIARS GLASS and how they came to deal in this vibrant and stylish glass alongside their vast stock of architect designed furniture.
The feature on CLOCKS has been written by Paul Archard of Derek Roberts Antiques. Derek Roberts has written a number of books on horological subjects.
The DECORATIVE ANTIQUES feature has been written by Bath based dealer, Grierson Gower and covers the history and imminent demise of the hand painted pictorial pub sign.
The date for the next series of feature publications will be announced shortly and the series will include the ANTIQUES TRAIL covering West Sussex.

From 2009 a new event will enter the antiques trade calendar. NATIONAL ANTIQUES WEEK will replace National Antiques Day and the first week long event is now confirmed as Monday 23 - Sunday 29 November 2009. The BADA and the LAPADA group of cooperating associations, which includes CADA, KCSA, PADA, PAADA, TVADA and WEADA, have all agreed to work together to make this a successful event for the trade and an enjoyable one for the public.

Stallholders at Antiquarius, the famous Kings's Road, Chelsea antiques centre in London, say landlords, London & Asociated Properties told local residents at a meeting to which antiques traders were not invited, that they hope to see the entire premises open "before Christmas 2009" as an American fashion store, Anthropologie. Conversion work on the Grade II listed Victorian building is anticipated to start in the summer with one-month eviction notices expected to be served on traders shortly. Last year London & Associated Properties ejected all stallholders from The Mall antiques centre at Camden Passage, Islington, north London. The landlords hope to turn the historic building that has been part of London's original antiques village for many years into a department store. All the traders have now relocated as it is envisaged those in Chelsea will do.

Following the publication of the January/February 2009 issue of "Christie's Magazine", the bi-monthly glossy in-house journal published in London, has been "put on hold due to the present economic climate". Recent press speculation suggests that Christie's salerooms themselves may shortly go under the hammer having attracted the attention of two private-equity groups. This has been denied by French owner Francois Pinault's holding company Artemis who paid $1.2 billion US dollars for the auction house in the spring of 1998.

It is reported that as many as 200 out of 800 jobs will be lost at Christie's international auction salerooms in London in anticipation of sales falling by up to 30%. The South Kensington wine department has closed. Already 80 employees have been dismissed in its New York office. Christie's employs 2,100 people worldwide. Rival international salerooms, Sotheby's says it will save $7 million (£4.6 million) by reducing staff and other costs this year. Neither auction house was able to comment at the time of going to press.

The Kensington Antiques and Fine Art Fair, which returned to Kensington Town Hall, London W8, from Thursday 8 - Sunday 11 January, 2009, was very warmly received by exhibitors and the public, who all expressed their desire to see it succeed after an absence of three years. Lots of local Kensington visitors, London trade and overseas tourists, particularly Americans, were there and traditional painting specialists, Ashleigh House Antiques from Essex sold their five best 19th century oils all to clients under the age of forty, which was particularly gratifying trend at the Fair. Most successful proved the range of 20th century art and antiques. Andrew Muir from Birmingham with ceramics including a huge range of Clarice Cliff, Puritan Values from East Anglia with Arts & Crafts furniture, Renaissance with 20th century furniture and paintings all had a good fair. In the brown furniture section S.& S.Timms sold a fine mid-19th century linen press for £3,750 to a local collector. Wakelin & Linfield sold an impressive farmhouse table to an American on holiday in Scotland who made the journey south to visit the Fair. For information on the next Penman Fair in London, Chelsea Antiques Fair, 25-29 March, 2009, see Penman Fairs via Trade Index on the right hand side of the page.

We regret to announce the death from cancer of Victorian art specialist and author Christopher Wood aged 67. His last major public appearance, whilst apparently in remission from his illness, was at the Grosvenor House Art & Antiques Fair in London in June 2008. In 1976 Christopher Wood left Christie's auction house which he joined in 1963 and where he came its youngest ever director, and ran Parviz Amir Parviz's Alexander Gallery in London and Tehran. He opened his own gallery in Motcomb Street in 1979 which was bought out by Malletts of Bond Street nine years later. In 1995 he returned to the Trade as a private dealer and consultant whilst continuing to appear on BBC-TV's "Antiques Roadshow" and exhibit at Grosvenor House

A warm welcome will be on hand when the Shepton Mallet Antiques and Collectors’ Fair returns to the Royal Bath and West Showground in Somerset from 16 – 18 January 2009. Organisers DMG have installed new heating systems to the Edmund Rack and Mendip Buildings, ensuring that customers will now be able to benefit from a toasty trading experience in all buildings. For more details and opening times see DMG web site via Trade Index.

We regret to announce the death of Parisian antiques dealer Didier Aaron of Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, who died in Paris on 3 January, 2009. He was 85. A pillar of the world of French antiques dealers, Aaron was one of the last of the specialist dealers of so-called fff, for fine French furniture, who went into business immediately after World War II. He set up branches in New York, Los Angeles and London - unheard of in the 1980s - and was one of the first antiques dealer to ask a decorator to work under the same roof, which proved a lasting benefit to both professions

Continuing the fashionable trend for in house selling exhibitions, three LAPADA members, Ian Burton, J Whitelaw & Sons and Nigel Stacy-Marks, have plans to mount regular selling exhibitions at their showroom, ideally located adjacent to the world famous Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland. They will be extending an invitation to specialist retail dealers to participate in exhibitions throughout 2009. Their first exhibiting guest a number of years ago was silver specialist Ian Bourdon-Smith, who now holds annual shows at the shop. For further information contact Ian Burton (0)7785 114800

London's Lacy Gallery in Wesbourne Grove, two streets east of Portobello Road, hitherto best known for its 20th century paintings from St Petersburg will now be famous for the number 23 red double-decker bus from Paddington that crashed into its shopfront on Tuesday 5 January 2009. Ten people were reported with minor injuries, none from inside the gallery.

The two hundred year old Wedgwood pottery in Stoke on Trent which was acquired by the Irish Waterford Glass Company in 1986 for US$360 million, has called in the administrators with debts of £420 million. The company founded by Josiah Wedgwood was commissioned by the Empress Catherine of Russia in 1770 to make a creamware dinner service, each piece with different views of British scenery. The commission paved the way for the company to go on to become one of the most important of the Stoke on Trent potteries working at the time. The pressure on manufacturing costs facing competition from cheaper Asian labour and changes in fashion have contributed to demise of the company. Fellow Staffordshire manufacturer Royal Worcester called in the administrators in November, 2008. The Royal Worcester Museum remains open to the public.

Richard Gardner of Petworth, West Sussex has acquired a temporary second showroom adjacent to his existing extensive premises at Swan House. This enterprising dealer who regularly publishes glossy in house magazines for his extensive client base has over 150 paintings in stock, and an extra showroom offers clients the chance to see all the paintings together with a number of pieces of furniture not yet displayed. For more details Richard Gardner Antiques web site via Trade Index.

As part of on going innovations at Antiquesnews, the Fairs Calendar has been re-launched with a rolling content which will keep the listings up to date as the year progresses. Event organisers are invited to supply dates as soon as they are available for immediate publication including 2010 and are requested to check dates currently listed.

The promised ban on all sales of ivory by auction site eBay scheduled for 1 January, 2009 has now begun. This follows the limited ban in place since 2007, and will now cover all items except ivory piano keys and furniture with small amounts of ivory inlay made before 1900. eBay has responded to pressure from the International Fund for Animal Welfare – IFAW, following investigations which revealed that more than 7000 items of ivory were sold on line in a period of six weeks with sixty-three percent of the items sold via eBay. Conservationists estimate up to 20,000 elephants are slaughtered for their tusks every year despite the international trade ban on ivory products introduced in 1989.

Thomas Woodham-Smith, executive director of Mallett, the exclusive Bond St, London W1 antiques business, has confirmed that the company is seeking new premises in London's West End, saying that Bond Street has become a "fashion street" and that the current premises of Mallett would be worth a "massive payment" which would return capital to shareholders. The move would follow the move in 2006 from Mallett's original home for nearly fifty years at Bourdon House in Mayfair which sold for a reported £14.6 million. Further benefits to shareholders might be in store following a proposed credit crunch move to stop in house three course lunches for directors each day, currently prepared by the company cook.

DMG Antique Fairs have sold the West Palm Beach Antiques and Collectibles Show held eight times a year at the Americraft Expo Centre at the South Florida Fairgrounds to USA based show promoters Kay and Bill Putchstein and Yvonne and Jim Tucker. The name of the event will change to the West Palm Beach Antiques Festival and the fixtures for 2009 will remain in place. This is the latest development following the strategic review by the parent company DMG World Media, which saw the sale of America’s Palm Beach International Fine Art and Antiques Fair to its original founder David Lester, the sale of American title Antique Week and the management buyout of the Antiques Trade Gazette in 2008. DMG have said there will be no immediate sale of the UK portfolio of antiques fairs.

LAPADA is to launch a new arm of the Association in March 2009 which will be dedicated to the promotion and professional branding of contemporary and modern art dealers and dealers in 20th century design and contemporary works of art. LAPADA Modern will offer this sector of LAPADA membership bespoke marketing and promotional benefits whilst recognising that existing members may also benefit from cross promotion of this section of the art market. Members of LAPADA Modern will abide by the Association’s Code of Practice.

Soon to celebrate forty years in his rambling 16th century premises backing on to Arundel Castle in West Sussex, Spencer Swaffer hosts over 6,000 square feet of the best of everything that is decorative and eclectic displayed with a keen decorator’s eye. The charming shop has been open seven days a week for thirty-eight years and Spencer’s philosophy is that you cannot afford to miss an opportunity which means that wherever antiques are bought and sold, you can expect to see this hardworking dealer first in the queue. See Spencer Swaffer Antiques web site via Trade Index and read Day with a Dealer in the new series of Antiquesnews features to be published mid January 2009.

Lennox Cato owner of Edenbridge Galleries in Kent, has joined forces with LAPADA to extend the membership of his BADA member only collective. Currently five LAPADA members who are also BADA members, including LAPADA directors John Robertson of Bourne Gallery and Angus Adams of Chevertons in Edenbridge, exhibit at the Gallery. Lennox is keen to maintain a balanced display and is inviting applications from all disciplines other than furniture.

Antiquesnews welcomes French Fair organisers Nord’Antic who have announced five new dates for 2009 having acquired the Dunkerque Kursaal as their venue. A short trip through the Tunnel provides easy access to these regular events in France’s third largest harbour city which is a crossroads between France, England and Belgium. Nord’ Antic have organised very successful fairs based in a restored former machine tool factory in Maubeuge in France since 2001. For dates and more information see Nord Antic web site via Trade Index.

The Petworth Art and Antique Dealers’ Association, PAADA, has appointed John Bird as its new chairman following the resignation of their long serving former chairman, Richard Gardner. John Bird who trades from The Clubroom in Petworth High Street has announced a completely new committee and discussions are taking place for a possible new name for this long established Association which represents this beautiful Sussex town with more than thirty antique dealers within a half mile radius. The new committee are already working hard and have confirmed six new recruits to the membership. PAADA is one of the LAPADA group of co-operating associations.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, chose UK's landmark antiques market Portobello Road to announce that the £8-a-day traffic congestion charge in the western part of London introduced 19 months ago by the previous city administration will be scrapped. The area also includes the major antiques districts of Chelsea and Kensington. Although the scheme may have to continue until 2010 befoe new legislation can be completed, the Mayor hinted that an enforcement of payment holiday may be introduced in the meantime.

On the day Americans celebrated Thanksgiving (Thursday 27 November, 2008), the doors opened to The Autumn Antiques and Fine Art Fair at The Centaur, Cheltenham Racecourse in the Cotswolds. There was a feeling of thanksgiving among the exhibitors with buoyant sales for many including the furniture dealers. Mary Cruz WEADA member from Bath, had an excellent fair. Neptune Gallery from Derbyshire sold a Lowry painting for £35,000, and the fair continued to be busy throughout the the three days. National Antiques Day was arranged one month later this year to coincide with this prestigious Fair organised in association with LAPADA. For information on future events from The Antique Dealers Fairs Limited, see Trade Index.

After another successful year, Bourbon-Hanby Arcade, Chelsea, London started the festive season with a charity evening attended by around 200 invited guests. The party, hosted by Arcade owners Les Barrett and Ian Towning, included a raffle and auction of donated item from dealers and suppliers. "It was fantastic", Les says. "We raised £2300 for LEPRA, the charity that provides funds to treat children suffering from leprosy and aids in Africa and India."
Antique jewellery specialist, Ian Towning, currently appearing in ITV's "Dickinson's Real Deal" has a catchphrase on the show, "you want more?" There is no doubt Bourbon-Hanby on the corner of Sydney Street and King's Road opposite Chelsea Old Town Hall, provides more for collectors, decorators and Trade buyers, open daily 10am to 6pm (5pm Sundays). Closed Christmas Day to 4 January 2009 inclusive.
Click onto Bourbon-Hanby Arcade's entire website under Antiques Centre in Trade Index on the right of this page.

Antiquesnews welcomes specialist Welsh furniture dealers and LAPADA members Havard and Havard of Cowbridge, South Wales. Welsh speaking owners Christine and Philip Havard opened the shop in 1992 and were both brought up with Welsh furniture at home and have built their reputation on their knowledge and ability to advise on both period and modern interiors. As part of a regular series of exhibitions at the showroom, Welsh painter Andrew Douglas Forbes will be exhibiting his work in Thursday December 4 until Christmas 2008. He will be in the shop for the opening day. The shop will open until 8 pm on each Thursday until Christmas. Silver jewellery from local jeweller Chrissie Nash and contemporary Welsh textiles from Delyth Walsh will also be part of the in house exhibition. A glass of champagne completes the welcome! For further information see Havard and Havard web site via Furniture Dealers on Trade Index.

Antiquesnews welcomes Dartington Antiques, incorporating Gilboy's Restoration. Based near Totnes in Devon, the new arm of the business was recently officially opened by the Mayor of Totnes. With a little bit of help in the form of mentoring from the Prince's Trust fifteen years ago, restorer Simon Gilboy started an apprenticeship with the Dartington Trust in Devon. He went on to found Gilboy's Antiques Restoration. Illustrious clients included Kuwait University and The Houses of Parliament. Another long term client, a keen antique collector who saw the potential to develop the business, is now a partner in the new Dartington Antiques. For more information see Dartington Antiques and Gilboy's web site in Furniture Dealers and Restorers, via Trade Index.

When Gloucestershire antique dealer John Vosper died in September 2008, his family were unaware of the treasure trove stored in his attic in Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire. A favourite call for Princess Anne and Princess Margaret, Johnny as he was known to everyone, dealt in all areas of the antiques trade and was well known to the local trade and auction circuit. When local auctioneer Simon Chorley came to value his estate, he was amazed to find a trunk filled with silverware and a locked cast iron box which contained £33,000 in old fifty and twenty pound notes. He also found a vast array of more than 25,000 varied items from scrap iron to antiques and at least 10,000 postcards. The family business had been run by Johnny and his two bothers, Eric and Jim who died in the past eighteen months bringing an end to an era.

Following the loss of various valuable items of furniture and jewellery from a house in Blendworth, near Portsmouth, Hampshire, the owners have offered a substantial reward for information leading to the return of any of the pieces which include a two foot bronze cherub with gold gilt wings, a 19th century bonheur de jour ladies’ desk, a large French clock with side figurines and long pendulum, two crystal candlesticks and two heavy gothic style metal candlesticks. The haul included a large amount of valuable jewellery. Anyone with information should contact DC McGreevy or PC Emily Dummer at Waterlooville Police Station on 0845 045 45 45 or Crimestoppers charity line on 0800 555 111

WEADA, The West of England Antique Dealers’ Association has launched a new web site www.weada.co.uk The new site has been designed for the members by www.sellingantiques.co.uk who have produced an excellent on line selling platform for members who will be looking forward to increased sales and visibility from their own shop on the site. News and events will be updated regularly – watch out for the date and venue of the next members fair for 2009 to be announced shortly.

Haughton International Fairs have confirmed that the second edition of Art and Antiques Design Dubai will take place from 18 to 22 February, 2009 at the Madinat Arena, Jumeirah, Dubai. The organisers will be presenting two 'room settings' at the fair, showcasing respectively furnishing styles and taste pre-1900 and post-1900. These will be created from furnishings provided by a group of exhibitors and all items on view will be for sale. The list of international exhibitors includes Mathiaf Gallery, London, Potterton Books, Yorkshire and Whitford Fine Art, London.

"It's at times like these that looking to the past becomes very attractive" says Oliver Bennett, who profiled a new breed of customer , and how they are making the design of the past the look of the future, in the influential Sunday Times magazine "Style" published in London. "Nowhere is better to find it than in the nation's antiques shops and fairs. He quotes dealers Julian Bly, Holly Johnson and Edward Hurst to support his view concluding that "in times of recession people look back rather than ahead, to a time when we were safer. These antiques have lasted a long time, and its oddly reasssuring to know that they'll probably outlast you."

Long time exhibitor at The Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair, Battersea and Bath Decorative and Antiques Fair, Tristram Latimer Sayer formerly of Plinth, London, has moved to the charming Somerset market town of Castle Cary to open Primal. Tristram deals in period painted and decorative furniture and sculptural objects for interiors and exteriors. See the new Primal web site via Trade Index.

Arun Fairs, based in Sussex, who acquired Goodwood Antique and Collectors' Fair this year, held at the famous Goodwood Racecourse, have announced five dates for the event in 2009 in addition to their other outings at Rustington and Worthing in Sussex. The next Goodwood event is the Christmas Antique and Collectors' Fair on Sunday 30 November. For full information see Arun Fairs web site via Trade Index.

As a busy year draws to a close, the BADA celebrated its 90th anniversary year with a sparkling banquet presided over by Baroness Rawlings, President of the Association, at the Fishmongers' Hall in the City of London on Tuesday 4 November, 2008. The Rte Hon Lord Heseltine was guest of honour. He emphasised how much pleasure he and his wife had derived from antiques trade and summarised by saying "Buy the best you can afford, seek the best advice from the trade and leave inflation to do the rest".
There are a number of remaining exhibitions in member shops to celebrate the 90th year of the BADA, including John Beazor & Sons Ltd, 78 & 80 Regent Street, Cambridge with an exhibition titled Christmas at John Beazor "One of life's certainties in a changing world" on Sunday 23rd November, 10 am to 6 pm. These long-established dealers in 18th and early 19th century furniture, clocks and barometers include rare satinwood pieces in this special one-day exhibition.
Early in October, John Bly, former Chairman of the British Antique Dealers' Association (BADA) and current Chairman of the Friends of the BADA Trust was delighted to present the Rev Canon Professor Mike West, Chancellor of Lincoln Cathedral with a cheque for the restoration of a handsome set of 18th-century books by the antiquary Richard Gough entitled "Camden's Britannic".

Following an alert from a member in Belgium, LAPADA has warned the British antiques trade to be aware of a possible new scam along similar lines to European City Guide and FAIRGuide which caused problems for traders for the last ten years. The Utrecht registered company, EU Company Directory have sent out "Orders" with detailed but conflicting information and members receiving one of the packs should check www.stopecg.org which offers advice, or contact LAPADA direct.

A prominent antique premises in Bristol has contacted this newspaper to give a warning to the trade following a loss of more than £600. They reported that a well built man in his fifties, with a Canadian accent, made purchases and left a cheque with the understanding that he would call back to collect the goods when the cheque had cleared. A few days later, before the cheque cleared, he called to say he was in the area and asked if he collect the goods. The dealers in question agreed but later found that the cheque was referred by the bank. They managed to contact the man and he told them to represent the cheque. On this occasion it was returned by the bank. The Bristol dealers have since been unable to contact the man in question and enquiries have revealed that he has a number of County Court Judgements against him.

Despite the sad news that Royal Worcester and Spode Ltd has gone into administration, the Worcester Porcelain Museum is keen to announce that it is it is still alive and well and open for business. Royal Worcester was founded in 1751 and received the Royal Warrant in 1789 The company, which supplied china to the Queen and Houses of Parliament, has failed to find a rescue buyer. A spokesperson from the Worcester Porcelain Museum has confirmed that the museum is not linked with the Royal Worcester and Spode Company financially and said "The museum will continue to do the excellent work it does and to welcome visitors to its fantastic collection of Worcester Porcelain." See www.worcesterporcelainmuseum.org.uk for more information.

British antique exporters will be hoping to see more American trade buyers travelling to the UK in the wake of the feelgood factor following the election of the next President, Barack Obama, and the continued strengthening of the dollar which is trading at 1.58 to the pound on the first day after the historic election in the USA.

Exhibitors at the Antiques for Everyone Fair held at the NEC, Birmingham from 30 October – 2 November, 2008, reported the return of high spending American trade and private buyers looking for a wide range of items including period furniture, folk art, metalwork, boxes and kitchen antiques. Organisers Clarion Arts were delighted by the daily footfall of visitors which included younger faces especially welcomed by exhibitors looking for a new generation of buyers. A degree of optimism spread around the fair as exhibitors dared to hope that their worst fears of recession might be replaced by confidence in the future. Scarab Antiques dealers in antique and 20th century jewellery agreed that a lot of dealers had better fairs than they expected and they had exceeded their own very cautious target. Mark Goodger of Hampton Antiques who specialises in tea caddies and boxes reported his best NEC in six years, with three of his finest tortoiseshell boxes going out to one American dealer on the first day. He felt that the increase in American trade visitors was due to the strengthening of the dollar recent weeks. See Hampton Antiques web site via Trade Index

Venice used to be the chief inspiration for artists with images of St Mark’s Square and the Doge’s Palace ubiquitous, but as the number of depictions in the New English Art Club annual exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London shows, it’s now the humble surroundings of a suburban vegetable plot that have got artists’ creative juices going. In this years NEAC annual exhibition, which opens on National Antiques Day, 28 November 2008 and continues until 8 December, the national obsession with allotments has been carried onto canvas and there are numerous depictions of urban vegetable patches, for example Martin Davison’s Allotments by the Beverley Brook and Christopher Miers’ Winter Allotments.
The NEAC was started in 1886 by a group of young artists who wanted an exhibition forum for the new and exciting developments taking place in France where Impressionism was a burgeoning influence. Previous member include Sargent, Sickert, Spencer and Nash. For more information see Mall Galleries web site via Trade Index

Southwark Council has reduced the cost of stands at Bermondsey Market, by half from 1 November 2008 to 31 January 2009, to attract more traders to the Friday Bermondsey Market in London which has now returned to Bermondsey Square. Stands will now cost £25.

The exhibition of gothic furniture being staged by Newark Antiques Warehouse in Nottinghamshire, is now open and will run until 22 November, 2008.. The exhibition can be viewed on Newark Antiques Warehouse web site via Trade Index or for more information about the exhibition see Latest Features – Furniture via Home Page link.

Some of the furniture dealers bucked the trend by having their best ever sales at a fair at the recent Chester Fine Art and Antiques Fair organised by Caroline Penman held at the County Grandstand at Chester Racecourse from 23 – 26 October, 2008. Footfall at the Fair was within a few pairs of feet from the last Fair. Jewellery of all styles and paintings continued to sell well for the exhibitors, many of whom are regulars, including Shapiro, Jeffrey Neal, T Robert, Sue Killinger, Hebeco, Trivette and Nicholas Shaw. For a full list of exhibitors, see Penman Fairs web site via Trade Index.

The eagerly awaited first members’ fair for WEADA, the West of England Antique Dealers’ Association, which took place from 24 - 26 October, 2008 at Taunton School, proved to be a success for most of the 35 exhibitors with some important sales of paintings, engravings and clocks. Jewellery followed the current trend and sold well all weekend, and the ceramics dealers enjoyed a very good Fair. Furniture dealers reported some sales, though sales of large furniture was not as buoyant as other areas of the trade. WEADA spokesman Martin Dearden of Pennard House confirmed that a date and venue for the next members' fair in 2009 would be announced shortly and that the Association looked forward to working with Cooper Events again next time.

Two events take place in Pimlico, London SWI, at the same time from 5 - 15 November, 2008, as part of the BADA 90 Years of Excellence exhibitions. Anthony Outred’s “Knock Knock” is a special collection of antique brass door furniture to celebrate the opening of the new antique metalware department at the showroom at number 72 Pimlico Road, while at number 70 Julian Simon has mounted an exhibition titled “A Private Eye” featuring a personal collection of 20th century Modern Primitive paintings including work by Poucette, Montoya, Bombois and Murray.

British antique dealers wishing to revive their business with American buyers have good news today, 29 October 2008, with the exchange rate at $1.55 to the pound. The autumn season for American trade has been particularly quiet this year with very few buyers travelling across the pond. The general feeling among the UK trade is that the greatly improved exchange rate and the anticipated stability a new President might bring, gives hope for an improvement in trade for early 2009.

Online auction site eBay has banned the sale of all ivory products including most antiques from its pages beginning January 2009. The decision came just hours after a new report released by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), which showed internet sales of such goods is posing a significant risk to the survival of elephants and other endangered species. Limited exceptions such as pianos which contain a small amount of ivory relative to their total mass will continue to be traded. However the eBay has said such items must have been made before 1900. A statement on the eBay blog said “the sale of any ivory on our site continued to be a concern within the company and among stakeholders.” The IFAW report, titled "Killing With Keystrokes" followed a six-week investigation which found more than seventy percent of all endangered species’ products listed for sale on the Internet occur in the United States, nearly ten times the amount traded in the next two leading countries, the U.K. and China.

Regular trade buyers who have enjoyed informal credit arrangements with Christie's were told this week that they must settle accounts in full before collecting purchases. Christie's informed clients that this was a temporary measure forced upon them by their bank and that the new terms and conditions were available for inspection.

Private Equity Partners, Matrix,(MPEP) has backed the management buy-out of Metropress, the publisher of the Antiques Trade Gazette, from Daily Mail and General Trust, DMG. The management buy-out team of four consists of the managing director, editor-in-chief, sales director and finance director. DMG have also announced their intention to sell the USA published titles Antique Week and Antique West. In July, 2008, DMG sold back Palm Beach - America's International Fine Art & Antiques Fair to its original owners, the Lester family.

The Mall, former home to over 30 dealers and famous worldwide, now stands empty following the eviction of the last of the traders from the iconic building in Islington, North London. Local council spokesman James Kempton said “this is a very sad day for Islington and London”. The owners of the building, property developers London and Associated Properties, LAP, are thought to be trying to convert the two floors of the building into single units to sell to a multi national chain. LAP’s original application to obtain Listed Buildings consent to remove individual shop units was refused and will be appealed at a public inquiry due to be held 9-10 December, 2008 at The Crescent Suite, Highbury, 70 Ronald’s Road, London N5.

Following protracted negotiations taking nearly a year, LAPADA has announced that their flagship annual event, The LAPADA Art and Antiques Fair, will take place from 24 – 27 September, 2009 in a highly visible and spectacular purpose built marquee in Berkeley Square in the very heart of London’s Mayfair. Sarah Percy Davies, Chief Executive of LAPADA, said that the new venue had been received with great enthusiasm by the exhibitors who are “more than ready to take on the new move”. The venue can cater for up to 90 stands.

We regret to announce the death of Charles Knott on 1 October, 2008, formerly a trader at Bartlett Street Antiques Centre in Bath, and well known in the trade in Bristol.

The 2009 Fairs Calendar is being compiled and event organisers are reminded to send their dates for 2009 AS SOON AS POSSIBLE for inclusion in this popular section of Antiquesnews

Antiquesnews has now been re-launched after ten successful years on line, with a new logo and an elegant, easy to navigate layout. It is our aim to continue in the spirit of Antiques and Art Independent, now Antiquesnews, promoting the British antiques trade around the world to establish contacts between private and trade buyers and sellers. There are nine new regular sections: Antiques Centres, Antique Fairs and Exhibitions, Ceramics, Clocks, Decorative Antiques, Furniture and Glass. Other new features include Day with a Dealer which will provide a focus for well known characters of the antiques trade and Antiques Trail which will cover regions of the country with useful information for buyers and valuable publicity for sellers. The all important Fairs Calendar and Trade Roundabout will continue to be prominent sections of the newspaper with new Headlines on Wednesday of each week. We offer a warm welcome to readers new and existing to Antiquesnews – the online newspaper for the British antiques trade.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors’ Arts and Antiques Survey published 7 October 2008, shows that the super rich are continuing to snap up rare and contemporary high end pieces of art and antiques. The £50,000 plus sector remains reassuringly strong with 39 per cent more surveyors reporting a rise in lot prices than a fall. Jewellery and silver antiques continue to perform strongly with considerably more chartered surveyors reporting a rise than a fall in lot prices in the third quarter. RICS spokesman, Andrew Davies said: “Against a backdrop of turbulent financial markets, the higher end Art & Antiques market has continued to perform well. Investors are now becoming more selective in their purchases and this is likely to carry on as the super rich continue to use the industry as an alternative investment vehicle. The contemporary art sector has rocketed over the past few years, with a sudden correction now a strong possibility. Other 'traditional' areas of collecting, such as antique furniture, are slightly undervalued as people shy away from purchases during the housing market downturn. However, we do not expect this to last for long as savvy investors are never far from potential bargains."

In an attempt to curb the amount of alleged scams, estimated to be one every hour, according to official figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, Steve Edwards, eBay’s UK head of law enforcement, has announced that 2000 police officers are being trained in how to investigate suspected criminal activity on the website.

There are eleven good reasons to visit the Cotswolds this autumn. From 4 – 18th October, 2008, there will something for the curious, the collector and the connoisseur at this recognised regular feature on the antiques calendar. Spread across eight lovely Cotswolds towns, the exhibitions are entirely the inspiration of the participating dealer under the banner of CADA, The Cotswolds Art and Antique Dealers’ Association. Taking part as usual will be Christopher Clarke Antiques of Stowe on the Wold, with an exhibition called The Quartermaster General showing campaign furniture and travel items of 18th – 20th century. Ceramics specialist John Howard who trades from Woodstock, has called his exhibition The Cream of English Pottery, which will show 18th century English creamware, pearlware and saltglaze pottery. For more information see Christopher Clarke Antiques and Antique Pottery web sites via Trade Index.

A glamorous conwoman who defrauded a number of Paris auctioneers and antique shops, including Tajan and Massol, of £2million worth of antiques, jewellery and signed art has begun a six year jail sentence. Shahra Marsh bought goods from auctioneers and boutiques in London, Paris and Geneva using cheques which invariably bounced. Between 2001 and 2007, 52-year-old Marsh tricked a string of victims into believing she was part of Europe's jet set, Southwark Crown Court heard. She was sent to prison for six years after pleaded guilty to 38 counts of theft, fraud and concealing stolen goods which follows a year-long sentence for a similar scam in 2004.
Sentencing her at Southwark Crown Court, Judge Jane Wadsworth said: 'Despite that first sentence you carried on to commit a further series of frauds on auctioneers and jewellers.
'Police found more than £1million worth of goods in the east London lock-up, they also discovered a safe deposit box in Chancery Lane, central London, containing 104 pieces of jewellery worth more than £750,000.'

We regret to announce the death of Brian Proper, owner of Hideaway House Antiques in Los Angeles, on Tuesday 30 September, following a brief illness. Brian was well known to many British antique dealers and had visited the UK on frequent buying trips for the last twenty years or more.

"Diamonds are not only a girl's best friend. Everybody seems to want to put a sparkle in their savings as they lose faith in banks and stock markets," says Ian Towning, London-based jewellery dealer and television antiques show personality. "I have never had so many customers at my shop at Bourbon-Hanby Arcade, off King's Road, Chelsea, asking for diamonds. Antique jewellery is a tangible asset that appreciates whilst it is being appreciated. And there is a lot to appreciate about a current stock I have assembled to satisfy demand during these traumatic times in recent volatile global financial markets

One of the oldest forms of folk art in Britain, the skill of hand painting pub signs, which dates back to Roman times, is in serious decline. Conservationists are alerting brewery chains to the catastrophic loss of traditional skills and heritage involved. The growing corporate ownership of public houses, and the number of pub closures, has led to the standardisation of pub ephemera including pub signs. Only 30 independent pub chains and breweries in Britain are still ordering individually painted signs. Somerset based antique dealer Grierson Gower has traded in pub signs since the 1960s and frequently goes buying trips to pubs which have changed hands or closed down to be told that the original sign has been destroyed or “skipped”. Grierson Gower will be writing a feature article early in 2009 for Antiquesnews on the history of the pub sign in Great Britain..

Just published, the 75th edition of "World of Antiques & Art", a magazine of art, design and collecting history, published at Bondi Junction, Australia, explores The Renaissance through Portraiture by Elena Greer, The historic significance of an early Tasmanian silver cup" by John Hawkins and looks at Men's ceremonial dress at the Russian Imperial Court by Lesley Miller. These articles are among many authoritative contributions and features. Click onto the "World of Antiques & Art" masthead at the foot of our Home Page for more details and articles from previous issues of our associate publication.

Celebrating its 90th anniversary this year the British Antique Dealers' Association has published a guide to its members' selling exhibitions titled "90 Years of Excellence". Taking place in members' galleries and showrooms at various times and places throughout 2008, each is listed with full details of opening times and contact details. For a copy of the booklet telephone 020 7589 4128 (international +44 20 7589 4128).

The opening night of the Australian Antique & Art Dealers Antiques & Fine Arts Fair in Sydney was packed to the rafters. Worthwhile sales were made. The AAADA members ' stock on offer was comparable with that seen in June at Olympia in London according to a buyer at both major international fairs. You would never have known that there was a financial disaster happening that week outside those doors at the AAADA show.

Civic leaders in Somerset face embarrassment following revelations by scientists at Liverpool University who have used new technology to determine that they conclude are “99 per cent” certain that an amulet found in Shepton Mallet in 1990 is a fake and does not date from Roman times and is likely to be the work of an amateur silversmith dating to the 19th century or later. The artefact was believed to have marked the site of a 4th century Christian burial site which historians believed was the earliest site in Europe. Somerset council went on to name a local theatre and street after the amulet. Deputy leader of Shepton Mallet council said “It is as if the magic has been removed from Shepton Mallet”.

Damien Hirst has broken the world record for a sale dedicated to single artist after the two-day sale on 15-16 September 2008, commissioned by Sothebys London, raised £111 million. Hirst will not have to pay any commissions to his dealers, Jay Jopling of White Cube and the Gagosian Gallery, having made the historic move to bypass them and sell 287 pieces of new work direct at auction. Mr Hirst will be approximately £95.5 million pounds richer after paying Sotheby’s commission and making charitable donations of approximately £3.4 million.

Recently appointed new Director-General of the British Antique Dealer's Association, Mark Dodgson, "I have lots of ideas to put forward for the future of the BADA, but I am keeping them under my hat for now. There is a new generation of dealers amongst our growing memebership. One thing I can say though is that there is not going to be any change of emblem." The presentation of some innovations is expected in the new year.

National Antiques Day moves a month later than usual in the calendar this year to Friday 28 November 2008. Numerous annual events move with it. In particular, the British Antique Dealer's Association headquarters Open Day at 20, Rutland Gate, close by the Royal Albert Hall, in London. Visitors will be welcome to call in to learn more about the many activities of the UK's oldest established antiques trade Founded in 1918, 90th anniversary exhibitions are being held throughout the year around the country. Oxfordshire dealer Lucy Johnson's Early Furniture and 20th century art show coincides with National Antiques Day at The Stone Barn, Burford.

Onlinegalleries.com who provide an online selling platform for CINOA members and 30 trade associations including the BADA and LAPADA, have launched an online auction based system. The service is to be called Do a Deal. The public are invited to give details and photos of their treasures for inspection by the various association professionals. If an item catches the eye of a dealer, negotiations can begin. Onlinegalleries managing director Peter Cameron said. “I have heard the site called posh eBay or even Antiques Roadshow meets eBay, but it is a serious business and a great way to get new stock into the market. We have seen some items sell for more than £20,000.”

Former president of Asprey in New York and managing director of Mappin & Webb, Edward Green, has moved into the house clearance business, but a big step up from Steptoe & Son. The Edinburgh-based firm, Green and Frederick offers a nationwide service to advise on the disposal of contents of entire properties rather than taking the auction houses approach of cherry-picking the best items and leaving lesser pieces behind.

The Antique Wine Company in London has joined forces with the National Centre for Scientific Research in Bordeaux to develop a tool for unmasking counterfeit vintage wines. This involves French nuclear scientists zapping bottles with beams of charged ions generated by a particle accelerator. Directed at the glass this produces a spectrum of X-rays that compares suspect bottles with those from a known vintage.

Newcomers to Antiquesnews, Margaret Hopkins and Frank Dux's business Antique Glass has been thriving on Lansdown Hill in Bath for almost exactly twenty years. They have a constantly changing stock of antique English glassware from the 18th & early 19th centuries also a selection of Venetian/Murano glass. For more information see Trade Index for the Antique Glass website.

The independent monthly newspaper, Antique & Collectors Trader celebrates its 100th issue with the September 2008 edition. Established in 1999, the Trader circulates at UK's leading grassroots fairs and one day shows. Each issue features the latest news and monthly trade diary of events. For UK and overseas subscriptions click onto Antique Trader in our Trade Index or telephone 01702 207 400.

USA web site GoAntiques.com is to be acquired by Atlanta based WorthPoint.com which is an online antiques selling and valuation resource founded in 2007. GoAntiques hosts sites for more than 13,000 dealers worldwide including a large number of UK antique dealers.

A Sauchen, Aberdeenshire, antiques shop owner is turning to the past in the hope of solving an access row that threatens the future of his business. Tony Gauci reckons house builders are blocking a long-running public access route by erecting a fence next to his shop and says there has been a right of access for centuries outside the old shop but his claims have been dismissed by the Stewart Milne Group which has plans for two houses on the roadside plot next to his shop. Now he wants to hear from local people who remember when the premises housed the village post office and general store and who can help him prove that the site has long been in public use. Mr Gauci, who has run the shop for 16 years, said: “The wooden fence is threatening the viability of my business, and is a potential hazard to customers.

The tenth annual National Antiques Day as usual, aimed to introduce newcomers to the world of antiques and encourage the purchase of antiques from dealers. Individual dealers, fair organisers and trade associations throughout UK had the opportunity to participate. National Antiques Day was co-ordinated by this on-line newspaper.
The 11th annual National Antiques Day will be on Friday 28 November 2008. For more details click onto the page 2 icon on the left of this page or National Antiques Day on our Home Page.

Fiona Bruce who takes over from Michael Aspel as presenter of BBC Television Antiques Roadshow programme on Sunday 7 September 2008, has played down rumours that she earns £400,000 a year, stating that speculation about her salary is “vastly inflated”, adding that the salary of £18 million said to be paid to presenter Jonathon Ross for a three year deal “would be very nice but BBC Current Affairs salaries are stingy.” The appointment of Ms Bruce, who is 44, to take over from Michael Aspel 75, has reignited the row over ageism at the BBC. Ms Bruce has said she has no intention of changing the format of the popular series.

Tony and Cherie Blair declined a first refusal to buy the magnificent Jacob Epstein bronze bust of the late actor Sir John Gielgud at a price of £28,000, when it was offered to them by the organisers of the 20/21 British Art Fair which was held from 10 – 14 September, 2008 at the Royal College of Art. The Blairs have recently paid £5.5 million for Sir John’s former home, South Pavilion in Buckinghamshire

Amazon.com is to acquire the most important online marketplace for antiquarian books, AbeBooks which represents more than 13,000 booksellers worldwide and accounts for approximately 70 per cent of all antiquarian book sales on the internet. AbeBooks also owns 40 per cent of LibraryThing, a social networking site in the form of an online book club and cataloguing web site with over 30 million books currently on the site. The acquisition is expected to go ahead in the last quarter of 2008 subject to regulatory approvals.

At the 2008 annual Antiques dealers v Auctioneers charity football match in London, the dealers team won 7-6 after a penalty shoot-out following a full time 2-2 draw. The winning goal was scored by Edenbridge antique furniture dealer Lennox Cato.

West Country dealer Jon Tredant who trades from Exeter Airport Antiques Complex has contacted this newspaper to offer a warning to other members of the trade after an unfortunate incident while he was away from his premises recently. A group of two well dressed middle-aged women and a man approached a colleague who was standing in for Jon to make a cash offer of £250 for what was described as pedestal marked at £340. Jon agreed to this price over the phone but found to his dismay on his return that the item taken away was in fact a walnut whatnot with a correct ticket price of £1250. Remaining in his shop was a pine pedestal with no ticket. He quickly realised that tickets had been switched. Some frantic detective work followed with the help of trade contacts and a confrontation was arranged with the police in attendance. Warnings of CCTV film footage as evidence for a possible arrest were given and an exchange was finally made of the £250 and the walnut whatnot. Jon believes that although this incident was more opportunist than organised it could easily happen to any unsuspecting trader.

We regret to announce the death of Lord Parmoor, aged 79 who for many years was a majority shareholder and later proprietor of Bernard Quaritch, the leading London firm of antiquarian booksellers. It was at his initiative that Quarich became the first major antiquarian book business to be computerised. Offering more than 250 search criteria, the web site was he said, “like a good dealer – but could not offer a client a gossip or lunch”.

Whilst Cornwall-based antiques dealers Martin and Annette Herdman were on a fortnight's holiday in Spain, their daughter Holly invited a few friends round from drinks. She was horrified when 30 gatecrashes demanded entrance. On being refused entry it is alleged the uninvited guests scratched parked cars, smashed windows and bottles outside in the street. The Herdman's have apologised to neighbours through the local newspaper and offered compensation.

A leading London antiques dealer with a branch in New York, Mallett's, has reported a first-half pre-tax loss of £297,000 against a last time profit of £1.45 million. One of the few antiques and art dealers quoted on the London Stock Exchange, directors state little change in trading conditions is expected during the rest of 2008.

Antiquesnews welcomes Trevor Waddington, OBE, of Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire. The business, established in 1995, specialises in conservation-restoration and stocks 17th - 19th century longcase clocks. For more information see www.clocks-antiques.co.uk via Trade Index

A group of antique dealers trading at the Henley Antiques Centre in Oxfordshire will be forced to leave their premises in September 2008 if a planned sale goes ahead to a Henley based property developer for a price thought to be £1.2 million. Doug Shepherd from the privately owned centre, said “it would be heart-wrenching” to leave the town after nine years. He said that he and the 50 dealers who sell from the premises had built the business up and “bucked the national trend” and business was booming. He said that this closure would be another blow for independent traders in Henley where only large retailers and chain stores could afford to pay the rents being demanded by landlords.

Five members of a gypsy family have been jailed for up to 11 years each for a series of raids on British stately homes between April 2005 and October 2006 including what is thought to be the biggest ever burglary of a private residence at Ramsbury House in Wiltshire where antiques to the value of £30 million were taken. It is estimated that the total haul of the raids by the Johnson family gang amounts to £80 million, with only a fraction of the stolen items being retrieved. Police located antiques worth about £12 million from the Ramsbury House raid, including a portrait of Cardinal Infante Ferdinand of Austria by Abraham van Diepenbeck, hidden in an underground bunker near Stratford on Avon. Detectives are to try to recoup some of the millions of pounds from the Johnson family and a confiscation hearing is due to take place in September 2008. The family had previously been the subject of a BBC television programme about gypsy life called "Summer with the Johnsons" in which they claimed the police had made them scapegoats for crime in the area where they lived.

National Trust property Lanhydrock House near Bodmin in Cornwall, was broken into on 10 August in the early hours of the morning and thousands of pounds worth of antique silver was stolen.

A metal detector enthusiast has found a 7th century gold cross in a field in Nottinghamshire. The 1,400 year old 18 carat gold Anglo Saxon cross, worth at least £25,000 and measuring over one inch long, set with red cabochon gemstones, was lying 12 inches below the ground on a newly ploughed field. The cross was made in England from melted down Merovingian French coins and has been declared treasure trove. It will be sold to a museum with the proceeds being shared between the finder and the landowner.

We regret to announce the death of artist and illustrator Pauline Baynes aged 85 who died on 1 August 2008. Pauline Baynes, who attended the Slade School of Art, illustrated work by Tolkein including Farmer Giles of Ham which the author declared “reduced his text to a commentary on her drawings”. Tolkein commissioned her to draw the map of Middle Earth which led to further commissions from C S Lewis to illustrate the Narnia books. Her other work included many Puffin book covers including those of Richard Adam’s Watership Down and for the 1961 version of The Hobbit. She felt that her finest work was for Grant Uden’s Dictionary of Chivalry for which she was awarded the Kate Greenaway medal in 1968.

Yorkshire Art Deco dealer Muir Hewitt has lost his collection built up over 25 years in a raid on his shop in the Redbrick Mill in Batley on July 26, 2008. Thieves apparently targeted Mr Hewitt’s shop as no other dealers in the complex were raided and it is thought that the intruders remained in the centre overnight after close of business and escaped via the fire escape with the stolen pieces in the early hours of the morning. Mr Hewitt estimated the collection of approximately 55 pieces of Clarice Cliff ceramics including the rare Coral Firs Yo Yo vase and the Summerhouse conical shaped Tea for Two set, plus three Renee Lalique bowls and an Etling bowl, two bronzes by Josef Lorenzi and a third bronze and ivory figure by Barthelmy, to be worth a retail value of £70,000.

Antiquesnews welcomes two new subscribers this week, both CADA members who are looking forward to hosting exhibitions for the Cotswolds Antique Dealers' Association 11th Anniversary of Autumn Selling Exhibitions from 4 - 18 October, 2008.
Christopher Clarke Antiques of Stowe on the Wold, Gloucestershire, will show campaign furniture and travel items of the 18th, 19th and early 20th century. The exhibition will be called “The Quartermaster General”
John Howard of Woodstock, Oxfordshire, will show a collection of 18th century English creamware, pearlware and saltglaze pottery, to be called “The Cream of English Pottery”. For more information see www.campaignfurniture.com and www.antiquepottery.co.uk via Trade Index.

Swan Stamps in Torquay, Devon, lost a collection of stamps worth £40,000 when armed intruders conned their way into the dealer's home saying they were police officers. The stamps included rare Penny Blacks, the world’s first adhesive postal stamps, which are more than 160 years old. Police confirmed that there were other more valuable stamps lost in the raid. Although the rarity of the stamps would make the collection difficult to sell on, another stamp dealer, Arthur Ryan, of Richmond, South-West London commented that the robbers would probably be able to sell the Penny Blacks abroad.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), has vetoed the proposed eBay Australia policy to enforce a PayPal or cash on delivery only policy on its site. The ACCC said the policy “will allow eBay to use its market power (to) lessen competition in the market in which PayPal operates.” Paymate, a rival online payment method used by eBay Australia before the acquisition of PayPal, said that the seller protection offered by PayPal is comparable to that offered by Paymate and users should be allowed to choose.

We regret to announce the death of Peter Coke of Sheringham, Norfolk, aged 95 years. An actor best known for his portrayal of Paul Temple in the popular radio detective series from 1954 to 1968, Peter Coke later became an antique dealer and shell work artist, notably shell valentines. There is now a gallery in Sheringahm devoted to his work. Enquiries to 01328 838838.

We regret to announce the death of Alexander, known as Sandy, Martin, of Marlborough, Wiltshire, aged 84. At one time a member of the vetting committee for Grosvenor House Fair and a specialist in Renaissance sculpture, he formerly worked in the Antiquities department at Spinks Auction House. A memorial service to be announced at a later date.

Readers are invited to supply copy for the TRADE ROUNDABOUT section of Antiquesnews. Changes of address, new dealers joining or leaving antique centres, any change in staff, promotional events or events related to your business. Antiquesnews editorial staff are always keen to hear from our readers overseas with suitable news or Roundabout copy. Please email the information to mail@antiquesnews.co.uk or telephone +44(0)1225 742240

London and Associated Properties have re-submitted their planning application to redevelop the King’s Road antiques centre, Antiquarius, following their appeal against the rejection of their plans for Listed Buildings Consent to the Council. Those interested in commenting on this appeal can do so via the Planning Inspectorate web site www.planningportal.gov.uk/pcs quoting case number APP/K5600/E/08/2078360.

A New York judge has ruled for eBay against Tiffany following a four year court action by the jeweller. The judge ruled that luxury goods manufacturers must police their own trademarks on the internet and not rely on auction houses to do it for them. This ruling comes following a series of European judgments against eBay in actions brought against the American owned on-line auction site by Louis Vuitton among others claiming damages resulting from the sale of fake items on the site. eBay earns nearly half of its £3.8 billion annual revenue in the United States

Giles Hutchinson Smith, a director of London W1 dealers Mallet, has been appointed Vice-Chairman of the British Antique Dealers’ Association at the Annual General Meeting on 10 July 2008. Mr Hutchinson Smith serves on the vetting committees at antiques fairs worldwide and has been with Mallett for 27 years. At the same meeting, Baroness Rawlings, President of the Association presented a Long Service Award to Roger Heath-Bullock of Heath-Bullocks, Godalming, Surrey, who has served on the BADA committee for over 40 years, both as Treasurer and Association Representative for the Southern region of the UK.

Unite, the trade union with over two million members in the United Kingdom has invested £50,000 on behalf of its hard working members in a sculpture by Anthony Gormley entitled “Feeling Material Again”. The work of art, a headless silhouette of a man, was deemed by a spokesman to be “a good investment in a credit crunch”.

Antique dealers and stallholders in London’s Portobello Market, which dates back to the Victorian era, are congratulating themselves following a successful outcome to a long battle with Kensington and Chelsea borough council which involved a QC, the Freedom of Information Act, a district auditor and an independent consultant’s report. The London borough has been forced to promise compensation of £750,000 to the traders when it was proved that it had charged them more than the smart shops and bars on Portobello Road to collect their rubbish for up to 18 years. The street sellers who are calling the affair Garbagegate, see the excess charges as more proof that the borough council favours wealthy corporate investors to the area over the existing market traders.

A planned joint departure has been announced of two long established antiques dealers at the top of the trade in London’s West End. Hotspur, founded in 1924 and Jeremy, founded in 1946, situated opposite each other in Lowndes Street, Belgravia, have stated that the current market conditions have not influenced their decisions. BADA members and brothers Michael and Jeremy Hill who own Jeremy have plans to retire from the business, while Robin Kern, current owner and third generation of Kerns to own Hotspur, has plans to remain in the trade in a consultancy role and to continue vetting at Maastricht and the Biennale. BADA members since 1932, Hotspur were founding members of Grosvenor House Antique Dealers’ Fair in 1934.

LAPADA, The Association of Art and Antiques Dealers has announced that The West of England Antique Dealers’ Association is to become the sixth member of the prestigious Group of Co-operating Associations. WEADA, with seventy-one members, has the largest geographical area of the Associations in the group which comprises Cotswolds, Kensington Church Street, Portobello Road, Petworth and The Thames Valley Antique Dealers’ Associations. WEADA was founded in March 2007 and includes many of the members of the former Bath and Bradford on Avon Antique Dealers’ Association. The Group hold meetings three times a year to discuss useful information relating to the trade, regional, national and international. For a free colour Guide or more information contact WEADA on +44(0)1749 860686 or email info@weada.co.uk or contact LAPADA via www.lapada.co.uk

Louis Vitton and Christian Dior were among a number of European luxury goods companies who have been awarded a total of 40 million Euros - approximately £31 million, in a ruling against eBay in a Paris courtroom, for allowing sales of fake copies of the famous brands via the website. The court ruled that the sales were "illicit". eBay intends to appeal. eBay's latest attempt to combat on-line fraud has met with complaints from sellers who say that eBay stands to make more money by enforcing a PayPal only method of payment for transactions. Sellers will still be able to accept cash on delivery but the eBay/PayPal conglomerate has now uncapped previous limits and offers full refunds to buyers using PayPal where sellers fail to deliver the goods.

At the last minute the original founder of Palm Beach – America’s International Fine Art and Antiques Fair, David Lester, who sold the business to DMG in 2001, has decided to buy it back at a figure much less than he sold it for because the original consortium deal to purchase it fell through at the last minute when the core group of 20 exhibitors pulled out of the equity share deal, in part for tax reasons but also because of doubts about the management abilities of the retained DMG team. The group of exhibitors including Richard Green, Cohen and Cohen and MacConnal-Mason Gallery, have made a three year commitment to the fair.

Artist Lucien Freud who holds the world record for a price paid for a work by a living artist when his 1995 painting Benefits Supervisor Sleeping sold for £17.2 million in 2008, has turned down a knighthood because his estranged brother Sir Clement Freud already has one. The brothers have not spoken for 50 years. Lucien Freud, whose family fled to Britain from Nazi Germany, presented his portrait of the Queen, worth millions of pounds to Her Majesty in 2001, in gratitude to the Royal Family saying he would have ended up “in the ovens” without the aid of the British Royal Family. He was awarded the Order of Merit in 1993.

A female assistant in Ashton House Antiques, Ashburton, Devon was the victim of an alleged violent stabbing attack while at work on 17 June, 2008. The woman’s teenage daughter was in the shop when a man entered and allegedly pushed her to the back of the shop and stabbed her three times. The woman underwent three hours of emergency surgery and is expected to make a full recovery. An antique dealer at The Shambles near to Ashton House Antiques reported ejecting a man who fitted the description of the alleged attacker earlier in the day. The police arrested Nikki Woodford, 33, who appeared before Torbay Magistrates on 20 June 2008 charged with carrying a weapon with intent and being in possession of an offensive weapon.

At the BADA AGM on 10 July 2008 Elaine Dean retires after 25 years as Secretary-General of the British Antique Dealers' Association. Mark Dodgson, her current deputy who joined the association 18 years ago takes over as Secretary-General. Elaine will continue to work with the BADA in a part-time capacity as Fairs Liaison Director.

Collector turned trader, Kent-based 57 year-old Michael Elliott who dealt at leading grassroots antiques and collectors' fairs, has been convicted of dealing in endangered species and sentenced to a total of two years in prison, suspended for two years. From his home, police recovered 58 sperm whale teeth, 18 illegal elephant tusks and around 200 carved hippopotamus ivory figures valued at £50,000. He pleaded guilty to seven charges under the Control of Trade in Endangered Species Regulations and HM Customs offences. He disclaimed ownership of the ivory tusks and that charge was left on file. Elliott now faces prosecution in America where he is suspected of organising whale teeth and ivory smuggling from UK.

Antique jewellery specialist and colourful television personality Ian Towning who regularly appears on ITV's "Dickinson's Real Deal", fought off three 18-25 year-old armed robbers who smashed counters and showcases at his Bourbon-Hanby Arcade shop in Chelsea, London on 9 June 2008. Stock valued at around £100,000 was stolen. Two off-duty policemen driving past as the four-man gang fled the premises, gave chase across south London. Fellow police officers intercepted the robbers' car in Brixton. The driver was arrested. Three other men escaped.
"I was hit repeated on the head with a hammer and what I believe was a gun was pushed in my stomach. The raid was captured on our CCTV security cameras. It is not a pretty picture and not the sort of television I enjoy appearing on," said Ian, who was discharged from hospital the same day. He was back at Bourbon-Hanby Arcade the following morning.

We regret to announce the death of Michael Telfer Smollett on 30 May at his home in Marrakech. Mr Telfer Smollett dealer in Tribal Art and Moorish furniture, owned a shop in Portobello Road, London, for many years. A thanksgiving service to celebrate his life will be announced by the family at a date to be announced.

Following organiser Caroline Penman's offer of a free gift of Chelsea Antiques Fair to anyone who wanted to take it over, no one came forward! Unable to let it disappear, and following requests from former exhibitors who had asked her to return to the London scene with affordable, good quality fairs, she will re-launch the fair as a twice a year, five day event in 2009. Dates are March 25-29 (coinciding with the BADA Fair) and September 23 – 27, 2009.
Keeping up the pace, she also announces the return of former West London Fair, now to be called the Kensington Fine Art and Antiques Fair which will run from 8 -11 January 2009 bringing the total events for the Penman Fairs Calendar to 10 for 2009. For full details see Penman Fairs' website via our Trade Index

Almost 30 years ago to the day after the standfitters walked out prior to the opening in 1978 of the Grosvenor House Antiques Fair in sympathy with chambermaids on strike at the London hotel venue, entrepreneur, impresario and exhibition organiser, Evan Steadman died on 30 May 2008. UK's leading antiques fair established in 1934 did not resurface for four years. Then in 1983 Evan Steadman was appointed to revive it, which he did with great success for the next decade which many still regard as Grosvenor House Antiques Fair's most glorious years.

With the news that Senator Barak Obama is to be the Deomocratic nominee for the American Presidency, partners Lloyd Chapman and Channing Mercer at Joseph Konrad Inc in Atlanta have told this newspaper "We certainly cannot speak for all the US antique dealers but those of us who have survived the last few years are given a beacon of hope for better days to come by Senator Obama's nomination for President. Those who think the country has been run well under the Bush administration will pull the lever for McCain, sometimes called McBush or McSame in the American press. We personally look forward to change - a stable economy and better exchange rate which will allow us to return to buying from our trusted sources in England."
Comments are invited from other antique dealers in the USA.

The future of Palm Beach Fair is to be assured for the next five years under a deal where DMG and a consortium of 20 UK dealers, led by the London Art Dealer Richard Green, will share equity with dealers committing to the Fair over the next five years. The International Fine Art Dealers Association which includes representatives of Richard Green, Mallet, Noortman, Dickinson, Peter Finer and MacConnal-Mason Gallery have arranged for Florida-based David Lester to represent them as Executive Director. Mr Lester founded the Palm Beach Fair 12 years ago, eventually selling on to DMG.

We regret to announce the death of former Cotswolds antique dealer Roger Warner who has died at the age of 95. He ran his shop in High Street, Burford, Oxfordshire, for 50 years having opened it in 1936. He dealt in a wide range of antiques including country furniture, needlework, dolls’ houses, metal ware and medieval objects. He made regular appearances on Going for a Song, the BBC TV antiques programme in the 1960s. The Mayor of Burford instructed that the flag of the Tolsey Museum in Burford should be flown at half mast on the day after his death.

From 2 June, 2008, Christie’s will match the increased premiums recently announced by Sotheby’s.
Sotheby's announced increases in their Buyer's Premium from 1 June 2008. Buyers will now have to pay 25% + 17.5% VAT on the hammer price for all lots under £25,000. This is an increase on the previous level of £10,000. There are similar price hikes on higher priced lots. 20% + 17.5% VAT on the next £475,000, previously £240,000 and 12% + 17.5% on each pound over £500,000, up from £250,000. The buyers most affected by these increases are those at the middle price range of art and antiques.
At the same time Sotheby's Institute of Art announced two day courses at the summer Olympia International Fine Art & Antiques Fair "providing an opportunity to build participants' knowledge in arts and antiques though direct access to some of the best dealers and galleries in the world" for £350 a day. It is unlikely the course will emphasise the advantages of buying from a dealer rather than in the saleroom where the price can only go one way - up - plus the addition of the 25% + VAT buyers' premium.

The former Great Grooms Antiques Centre premises in Dorking, Surrey will see the arrival of the Talbot House Antiques Centre in July 2008. The centre is relocating from Ripley, Surrey, where the business was called Talbot Walk Antiques Centre, following the expiry of their existing lease which had been acquired by Merchant Inns PLC for redevelopment. Graham Jones, manager at Talbot Walk since it opened in 1999, said he regretted the marginalising of so many antiques centres forcing some to close down. He confirmed that while many of the existing dealers would move the 20 miles to the new location, the management of Talbot House Antique Centre “would welcome enquiries from London dealers who may, or who already have, become displaced, as well as dealers from the Surrey area.”

Following the departure at the end of May 2008 from Dorking, owner of Great Grooms Antiques Centre, James Podger, has exciting plans for the remaining centre in Hungerford. Mr Podger plans a transitional change which will see the centre, which currently hosts 100 dealers, consolidate to move upmarket. Events designed to attract a wider market of buyers for antiques and art with a ticket price in excess of £100,000 will be staged and advertised on the new Great Grooms web site to be launched at the end of July 2008.

The indispensable Guide to the Antique Shops of Britain has been published for the 35th time this month, May 2008. The publishers, The Antique Collectors’ Club, took six months out of the publishing schedule to consider producing an on-line version of the tome, used by both trade and private buyers. An on-line version of the Guide would accommodate updates of the constant changes occurring in the current volatile market. Although they do not discount an on-line version in the future, the hard copy will continue to be published. Antique dealers across the UK will be relieved to note that this 2008/2009 edition of the Guide which lists free of charge all antique shops in the country, has as many pages as the previous edition. For more information see Antique Collecting web site via Trade Index.

We regret to announce the death of Gervase Thorpe, 40, following a fall from a bridge while on holiday in Catania, Sicily. Mr Thorpe traded from the St Mawes area of Cornwall and was the eldest son of one of Britains leading judges, Sir Mathew Thorpe, a Lord Justice of Appeal,

Collectors across Europe unwittingly bought pots believing the work to be that of renowned potters Bernard Leach and Lucie Rie. In fact the pots were bogus works produced by a former public school art teacher from Dorset who had fooled top auctioneers across the UK. Jeremy Broadway, who has a masters degree in ceramics had made the fake antique pots in his shed and stamped them with his own version of the potters’ seals. Ben Williams, head of contemporary ceramics at Bonhams alerted other salerooms in the UK after discovering that three bowls for sale at £17,000, were fakes. Unfortunately a sale of 2 fake Leach vases and a Rie pot which sold for £8,900 at Bonhams, had been undetected. Mr Williams said “It is a bit embarrassing really. I could have ignored it but it was a mistake I made that needed to be sorted out.” Police spent months tracking down and recovering the fakes sold between 2003 - 2006.

Sold to an antiques dealer in 1848 before entering a private collection, an ornate oak display cabinet with gilt mouldings designed by the novelist, politician and art critic William Beckford, has been purchased by the Beckford Museum in Bath with the help of a £25,000 grant from the Art Fund, the UK’s leading independent art charity. A campaign was mounted to raise the rest of £64,000 total amount needed to return the piece to its original home at Beckford Tower, which William Beckford commissioned in 1825 to house his collection of art and rare books.

Antiquesnesws welcomes Villa Magala Hotel – set in a leafy street with plenty of parking but minutes from Bath city centre, Villa Magdala Hotel offers special arrangements for antique dealers in need of a retreat – see feature in Roundabout and Villa Magdala Hotel’s web site via Trade Index.

In a set of CDs to be released in May 2008, the infamous London gangster twin brothers, the Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie revealed in a formerly unreleased taped interview in 1989 with Robin McGibbon, how they toured rural England looking for antiques whenever they could get away from London. The tapes tell of their love of cycling down country lanes and touring antique shops and “snapping up bargains”. Ronnie, who died in prison in 1995, said “We bought clocks and ornaments and lots of other things.” He revealed that they never committed any crimes while enjoying their country antiques hunt on their bicycles.

A celebrated violinist, Philippe Quint was distraught when he left his Stradivarius violin, c 1723, worth £2 million in a taxi in New York in April 2008. To his great joy the honest cabbie Mohammed Khalil found the cherished instrument the following morning and reunited it with its owner who dropped to his knees and shed tears of joy.

A Christmas card sent by Anne Frank, the Jewish diarist, to her friend Sammie Ledermann in 1937, has been found in an antiques shop near Amsterdam. The card was found by a teacher who was gathering material on Anne Frank to mark Liberation Day, the May 5 anniversary of the end of German occupation, when he came across the card in a box of 10 greetings cards on a visit to the antiques shop owned by his father. Maatje Mostard, of the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam said it was the second such card the museum had seen and added "We know it's an original." Anne Frank’s diary is the most widely read book relating to the Holocaust.

An insurance company has offered a £10,000 reward for the return of an antique violin which was valued at £180,000 on the same day that it was left on a train by its owner. The Italian instrument was made by the master craftsman Matteo Groffriller in Venice in 1698 and had been in the safe keeping of the Napier family since shortly after World War II until the hapless Mr Napier got off the train and left it on the luggage rack.

eBay is pulling out of "live auctions," where members join in real-world auction-house bidding, in the latest in a series of moves to restructure its online auctions business, the company said on Tuesday.
The online auction leaders said it plans to shut down the eBay Live Auctions business as of December 31, 2008.
In a posting on one of the company's user discussion boards, a company executive said "maintaining and improving this platform falls outside our immediate focus, and will, therefore, be retired at the end of the year."
The move will affect several hundred eBay sellers who list their items directly using the Live Auctions format, said Jim Ambach, vice president in charge of eBay's Seller Experience.

According to the London "Evening Standard" , Martin Miller, co-founder of "Miller's Antiques Price Guides in 1980 and Miller's Academy, the lecture and social club he founded two years ago in the capital, hopes to move into larger premises to accommodate the quoted 750 membership. The present Academy premises is on offer at an asking price of £2.75 million.

A fine example of a once derided school of art, The Victorian Pre-Raphaelite painting "The Sleep of Arthur in Avalon" by Edward Burne-Jones, now on loan to the Tate Britain from a museum in Puerto Rico, could have been bought in the 1960s for £1000 when it was offered to the directors of the Gallery at that time who turned down the chance. The painting which measures 21 feet by 10ft is now worth many millions and considered to be the late great masterpiece of the artist who died in 1898.

The model for a painting bequeathed to the Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum by Gloucestershire antiques dealer Ron Somerfield, was surprised to hear 60 years later that the painting had become the favourite of visitors to the gallery. Local artist Frank Cadogan Cowper, one of the last of the Pre-Raphaelites, had approached the then 16 year old Boots Chemist counter assistant, Valerie Tarantolo, to sit for him. At the time she scorned the painting as not glamorous enough, and Cowper jokingly called it “The Ugly Duckling”. Valerie had wondered over the years what had happened to the painting until her sister saw it recently on the gallery web site. She said “Now I am older, I can see it with new eyes, when I was 16 I did not appreciate its beauty”.

We regret to announce the death of Mary Newcombe painter, on 29 March, 2008, aged 86. Trained by Clifford Ellis who founded the Bath Academy of Art based at Corsham Court, Wiltshire, Mary Newcombe was an artist of seriousness and charm. Her work was shown by the prestigious Crane Kalman Gallery in London and her work appeared at the Tate Gallery and The Arts Council of Wales.

We regret to announce the death of Marc Friedman of Trademarc, aged 43. A well known dealer in boxes from Portobello and Bermondsey Markets, he was also a presenter on the Channel Four television programme Natural Born Dealers. Mr Friedman died unexpectedly while on a trip to China in March. He leaves a wife Pip and three daughters, Chloe, Hannah and Lola.

Following on from an earlier report about the new Department of Trade approved tourism candelabra motif sign for antiques and art premises, a spokesperson from LAPADA has confirmed that members will be eligible to have the planning application fee charged by their local council reimbursed by LAPADA. Acquiring and attaching the sign can be a costly business and LAPADA would like to help members around the country to get these signs in place as soon as possible.

Founded in 1925, "Apollo", the international magazine for collectors, has taken a major step forward with an updated website on the internet. Easy and quick to navigate, it has a huge content including not only the entire editorial content of current issues but a searchable archive back to January 2006. Also it has a useful directory covering aspects of the collecting spectrum from publications to consultants and valuers. You can click onto the "Apollo" website via our trade index.





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