ANTIQUES EXPERT
Today, 6 December, is St Nicholas Day. For many of us, the patron saint of pawnbrokers and thieves is better known as Santa Claus – or Father Christmas – and his image will be all over seasonal cards and gifts this and every Christmas.
My love of the great saint isn’t just because he (or his helpers) delivered stockings every year. There’s something so jolly about him and I love the bright red-and-white colours that we associate with him ever since the Coca-Cola commercials of the 1930s.
Interestingly, early Christmas cards didn’t feature the gift bearer and weren’t particularly Christmassy at all. I have a Victorian New Year card featuring Father Time, who looks very much like the modern Father Christmas, but the original cards didn’t always represent the season or any religious aspect at all.
Instead, you could see willowy art nouveau maidens combing their long tresses by a river on a summery day; comic policemen chasing naughty boys, truncheons held aloft, or – most disturbingly – dying birds freezing outside windows of houses with glowing fires. A few featured robins cheerily singing and there were also Biblical scenes and churches in the snow.
Unlike today, the cards were one-sided – you didn’t open them to read the message within. They were also very small, some just one or two inches high and wide. The first official Christmas cards date from 1843 and were produced by Sir Henry Cole, who was involved in the introduction of the Penny Post, which helped make card-sending widespread. The first card didn’t depict a religious scene but featured a family celebrating Christmas and giving to the poor.
Postmen were known as robins because of their red uniforms and this led to robins featuring on Christmas cards, often by a postbox or delivering the mail itself. Some vintage cards can be picked up very cheaply – around £2 to £4 for standard Victorian and Edwardian ones. The cards that command the most money are those signed by famous people or which feature them on the front. Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales sent out Christmas cards with themselves and Princes William and Harry pictured on the front. These can be found at auction or from specialist sellers for £300 to £5,000 and are signed by Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales. Cards from them after their separation are also very collectable.
Q I have quite a few Beatrix Potter books, of which two are first editions; The Tale Of Pigling Bland is in good condition and The Tale Of Jemima Puddle-Duck is in very poor condition. Where could I get these valued with a view to selling? I have a few other first editions also: Emma by Jane Austen; Virginia Woolf’s Jacob’s Room; The Book Of The Flower Fairies and several Alison Uttleys.
TC, Avon
A You have a lovely selection of children’s books, plus some very good ones for adults. You definitely need a specialist auction house or one with a good books section. I don’t recommend going direct to a dealer as they will value the goods with their own interests in mind.
If your Emma is a genuine 1815, three-volume first edition (not a first edition of that particular version/ publisher), we are talking tens of thousands of pounds. You might want to speak to Sotheby’s in London (020-7293 5000). There was also a presentation edition of Emma, limited to just 12 copies, which were given to the Royal Family, Austen’s own family and her friends. One is due at auction at Sotheby’s on 12 December with an estimate of £200,000 and is the only copy from the presentation set still thought to be in existence.
Also, Bonhams holds valuation days on Friday by appointment at Queen Square House, Charlotte Street, Bath (01225-788988). You might also want to try Bloomsbury Auctions, 24 Maddox Street, London W1 (020-7495 9494), a very good books and manuscripts specialist. If you wish to visit the Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions Baynton Road salerooms in Bristol (0117-953 1603), which is more of a general auction house, there are free valuation days on the second Friday of the month.
How to Deal in Antiques by Fiona Shoop is published by How to Books, £16.99. It is now also available as an eBook. Her latest book How To Write And Publish Non-fiction, is published by Golden Guides Press, priced £16.99.
I’ve had some letters about auction houses in general (not about selling through them) and wanted to address that here. It’s important to understand that they want your sales in return for their expertise, so don’t ask for valuations (except on valuation days), eg, for insurance or probate purposes, unless you make that clear to them in advance.
Likewise, they won’t authenticate goods in writing unless they expect to sell them. Just be aware of these limitations before you contact an auction house, and expect to pay if you want their professional services but don’t wish them to sell your goods. There are specialised firms who will value your items professionally for probate, for example, if you just need a valuation and don’t want to sell anything. Some auction houses will be happy to value your belongings in case you want to sell them later (or as soon as you hear how much they’re worth).
Just let them know your expectations and you can always mention that you might wish to use them in future. Just to add, it is not acceptable to ask an antiques dealer at a fair or centre to value your goods for you unless you know them well and they’re happy to help when not busy. You could always ask if someone would be willing to value your goods for you (without producing them first) but expect a polite rebuff , as the dealers are there to sell.
It is bad form to just thrust something under their nose and demand a valuation, especially if it’s during a busy fair. This has happened to me quite a few times and I normally ask them to return when it’s quieter.
Most dealers will ask people to go away, however, because while they are spending their time giving you free help, they risk losing sales.
Next month: Susie Cooper The fi rst in a short series on famous female potters. Do you have any of Susie’s dinner or tea services, or maybe some of her very desirable art ware? Find out more about her in January’s column.
My love of the great saint isn’t just because he (or his helpers) delivered stockings every year. There’s something so jolly about him and I love the bright red-and-white colours that we associate with him ever since the Coca-Cola commercials of the 1930s.
Interestingly, early Christmas cards didn’t feature the gift bearer and weren’t particularly Christmassy at all. I have a Victorian New Year card featuring Father Time, who looks very much like the modern Father Christmas, but the original cards didn’t always represent the season or any religious aspect at all.
Instead, you could see willowy art nouveau maidens combing their long tresses by a river on a summery day; comic policemen chasing naughty boys, truncheons held aloft, or – most disturbingly – dying birds freezing outside windows of houses with glowing fires. A few featured robins cheerily singing and there were also Biblical scenes and churches in the snow.
Unlike today, the cards were one-sided – you didn’t open them to read the message within. They were also very small, some just one or two inches high and wide. The first official Christmas cards date from 1843 and were produced by Sir Henry Cole, who was involved in the introduction of the Penny Post, which helped make card-sending widespread. The first card didn’t depict a religious scene but featured a family celebrating Christmas and giving to the poor.
Postmen were known as robins because of their red uniforms and this led to robins featuring on Christmas cards, often by a postbox or delivering the mail itself. Some vintage cards can be picked up very cheaply – around £2 to £4 for standard Victorian and Edwardian ones. The cards that command the most money are those signed by famous people or which feature them on the front. Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales sent out Christmas cards with themselves and Princes William and Harry pictured on the front. These can be found at auction or from specialist sellers for £300 to £5,000 and are signed by Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales. Cards from them after their separation are also very collectable.
THE BEST BEATRIX POTTER
Q I have quite a few Beatrix Potter books, of which two are first editions; The Tale Of Pigling Bland is in good condition and The Tale Of Jemima Puddle-Duck is in very poor condition. Where could I get these valued with a view to selling? I have a few other first editions also: Emma by Jane Austen; Virginia Woolf’s Jacob’s Room; The Book Of The Flower Fairies and several Alison Uttleys. TC, Avon
A You have a lovely selection of children’s books, plus some very good ones for adults. You definitely need a specialist auction house or one with a good books section. I don’t recommend going direct to a dealer as they will value the goods with their own interests in mind.
If your Emma is a genuine 1815, three-volume first edition (not a first edition of that particular version/ publisher), we are talking tens of thousands of pounds. You might want to speak to Sotheby’s in London (020-7293 5000). There was also a presentation edition of Emma, limited to just 12 copies, which were given to the Royal Family, Austen’s own family and her friends. One is due at auction at Sotheby’s on 12 December with an estimate of £200,000 and is the only copy from the presentation set still thought to be in existence.
Also, Bonhams holds valuation days on Friday by appointment at Queen Square House, Charlotte Street, Bath (01225-788988). You might also want to try Bloomsbury Auctions, 24 Maddox Street, London W1 (020-7495 9494), a very good books and manuscripts specialist. If you wish to visit the Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions Baynton Road salerooms in Bristol (0117-953 1603), which is more of a general auction house, there are free valuation days on the second Friday of the month.
How to Deal in Antiques by Fiona Shoop is published by How to Books, £16.99. It is now also available as an eBook. Her latest book How To Write And Publish Non-fiction, is published by Golden Guides Press, priced £16.99.
AUCTION HOUSES: UNDERSTANDING HOW THEY WORK
I’ve had some letters about auction houses in general (not about selling through them) and wanted to address that here. It’s important to understand that they want your sales in return for their expertise, so don’t ask for valuations (except on valuation days), eg, for insurance or probate purposes, unless you make that clear to them in advance.
Likewise, they won’t authenticate goods in writing unless they expect to sell them. Just be aware of these limitations before you contact an auction house, and expect to pay if you want their professional services but don’t wish them to sell your goods. There are specialised firms who will value your items professionally for probate, for example, if you just need a valuation and don’t want to sell anything. Some auction houses will be happy to value your belongings in case you want to sell them later (or as soon as you hear how much they’re worth).
Just let them know your expectations and you can always mention that you might wish to use them in future. Just to add, it is not acceptable to ask an antiques dealer at a fair or centre to value your goods for you unless you know them well and they’re happy to help when not busy. You could always ask if someone would be willing to value your goods for you (without producing them first) but expect a polite rebuff , as the dealers are there to sell.
It is bad form to just thrust something under their nose and demand a valuation, especially if it’s during a busy fair. This has happened to me quite a few times and I normally ask them to return when it’s quieter.
Most dealers will ask people to go away, however, because while they are spending their time giving you free help, they risk losing sales.
Next month: Susie Cooper The fi rst in a short series on famous female potters. Do you have any of Susie’s dinner or tea services, or maybe some of her very desirable art ware? Find out more about her in January’s column.