Auction alert: 3-day antiques, collectables, paintings, prints and sporting & country pursuits

Vintage Aldo Londi Bitossi horse

Claydon Auctioneers will be holding their 3-day antiques, collectables, paintings, prints and sporting & country pursuits auction early next month. It takes place in Buckingham on 6th & 7th October 2021 from 9am and 8th October 2021 from 10am. An astonishing 2,743 lots will be going under the hammer.

In addition to the hammer price, there will be a buyer’s premium charge of 19.5% + VAT, (23.4% inclusive of VAT). As is the case with all the auctions we feature in this series, bidding online is an option if you can’t be in the room for whatever reason. Claydon explain:

Online bidding has transformed traditional auctions, allowing bidders to participate from anywhere in the world from the palm of their hand. We are therefore very pleased to offer various options for online bidding. You can bid through our own website, as well as via a number of popular online bidding platforms which include The Saleroom, EasyLive Auction, Invaluable / AuctionZip and Live Auctioneers.

Don’t forget that bidding online brings further fees. EasyLive Auction is our preferred site as you can pay a flat fee of £3.00 when registering to bid on each sale, instead of a percentage of the grand total of your winning bids.

You wouldn’t know it from the 12 items that we’ve selected to share however, there are a lot of sporting & country pursuits-related items. For example, there’s a large quantity of ‘dead stock’ country (hunting, shooting, fishing) attire and vintage advertising ephemera such as pro-hunt wall posters. We’ve chosen to concentrate on the homewares side of things.

My favourite item has to be the vintage American range cooker (the very last image below). I can just imagine it in a mid-century modern decorated kitchen (with bright Formica worktops) alongside one of those over-sized fridge freezers.

Lot 68: An Italian model of a stylised horse
With a turquoise glaze, in Oriental manner, by Aldo Londi (1911-2003). Approx. 16¼” high x 16¼” long
Estimate: £80 – £120

Vintage Scandinavian plate

Lot 127: Scandinavian plate
Decorated with animal illustrations, to include fox, pig, hedgehog, squirrel, rabbit, etc. Marked under Arabia, Made in Finland, 8-63. Approx. 7¾” diameter
Estimate: £10 – £20

Pair of vintage Whitefriars vases

Lot 278: Geoffrey Baxter for Whitefriars
A tangerine glass ‘ coffin ‘ vase 5¼” high together with a m aubergine glass ‘ finger ‘ vase 5½” high (2)
Estimate: £30 – £50

Orange vintage Murano cased glass vase

Lot 309: A 1960s/ 70s retro Murano large orange glass vase
In the manner of Carlo Moretti. Approx 16″ high
Estimate: £50 – £80

Antique letterpress tray and blocks

Lot 1194: A vintage letterpress tray / drawer
With a quantity of assorted carved wooden letter, number and symbol printing blocks, of varying fonts and sizes. Drawer approx. 14¼” x 32¾”
Estimate: £30 – £50

Anatomy head

Lot 1266: A 20thC educational model of half a human head
Showing the anatomy within, with removable brain. Approx. 8½” high
Estimate: £60 – £80

4 vintage suitcases

Lot 1341A: Four 20thC suitcases
Comprising 2 shoe cases by Victor Luggage, 1 vanity case, and 1 suitcase by Harwen Trunk of Hong Kong, the largest 28½” wide (4)
Estimate: £50 – £80

Antique chess pieces

Lot 1488: A set of 19thC turned and carved bone chess pieces
The largest approx. 4″ high
Estimate: £150 – £200

Vintage Mary Quant poncho

Lot 1553: A Mary Quant multi coloured PVC poncho
Estimate: £20 – £30

Antique bead-work handbag

Lot 1571: An Art Deco Austrian / Viennese bead work bag / purse
With multicoloured geometric and striped patterns. Believed to have been designed by Hilda Wagner Ascher, Wiener Werkstatte. Approx. 8¼” long x 5½” wide
Estimate: £50 – £100

Antique leather travelling trunk

Lot 2099: A late 19th / early 20thC leather travelling trunk
With two carry handles. Approx. 14″ x 32″ x 21″
Estimate: £50 – £80

Turquoise vintage American range cooker

Lot 2236: Vintage retro, mid-century: a1950s American GE (General Electric) 1J408N range cooker / stove
In turquoise / aqua blue livery, 49 tall, 27 deep 40 wide
Estimate: £200 – £300

Designer Desire: Ulla Procopé

Montage of Ulla Procopé ceramic shapes and patterns for Arabia of Finland | H is for Home

Ulla Procopé (1921-1968) was a Finnish mid-century modern ceramic designer and decorator.

In 1948, Procopé graduated from the School of Arts and Crafts (later known as the Aalto School of Arts) in Helsinki and began working for Arabia immediately after graduating. She began in the factory’s hand-painting department under Olga Osol, after which she moved, two years later, to the model & decoration department.

She designed both the shape and pattern for the Liekki (1957-1978), Valencia (1960-2002), Anemone, Ruska (1960-1999) and Meri series. She designed the shapes of much of the Arabia output including the Pomona series of lidded preserve jars whose decoration was designed by Raija Uosikkinen.

She spent her entire career at Arabia, working there until 1967, the year before her untimely death in Tenerife.

Her Arabia designs are readily available on eBay and Etsy.

Portrait of Ulla Procopécredit

Additional image credits:

1stDibs | Barnebys | Bukowskis | What’s Blogging My View

New vintage this month!

Arabia pottery salt pot with blue heart decoration. Sirpa pattern designed by Raija Uosikkinen | H is for Home

It’s been quite a while since we added fresh stock to our online shop. We’ve been busy with various summer trips to the Lakes, Hereford, London and Brighton. Also, the antiques centre where we hold lots of stock closed out of the blue recently… long story! So, that all needed sorting out too, which was quite an upheaval.

Having re-grouped, we’re back on top of things – and have added over a dozen new vintage items across various departments this week. That’s currently more than 400 pieces of vintage loveliness for your perusal!

You can click on each image to be taken to its product page on our shop website.

Vintage mid-century modern brass charioteer figure | H is for Home Pretty lidded pottery casserole dish with daisy decoration. Produced by Egersund of Norway in the 1950s/60s. | H is for Home
Vintage Elio Martinelli 660 lamp / Flex Calotta designed in the late 1960s/early 70s | H is for Home Vintage Hjerte Stage Monsterbe Paro cast iron taper holder with original box | H is for Home

And, if your after something in particular that you can’t see, please get in touch…you never know what’s lurking in our storeroom!

Scandinavian pottery picks

Trio of Scandinavian pottery items: Egersund, Rorstrand and Gustavsberg | H is for Home

Having not found any for a while, we’ve picked up some very nice pieces of vintage Scandinavian pottery recently. And hailing from Scandinavia isn’t all they have in common. Gorgeous, colourful patterns also link them!

Small vintage Egersund lidded casserole pot with daisy decoration | H is for Home

Up first, we have the pretty yellow daisies on a lidded dish produced by Egersund of Norway.

Vintage Arabia Sirpa salt pot with blue heart and flower decoration | H is for Home

Then we have blue hearts and flowers of the Sirpa pattern designed by Raija Uosikkinen on this lovely salt pot by Arabia of Finland.

Vintage Gustavsberg bowl - Bersa pattern designed by Stig Lindberg | H is for Home

And finally, one of our favourite designs – the repeating, stylised green leaves of this Bersa bowl produced by Gustavsberg of Sweden – designed by the wonderful Stig Lindberg, of course.

So, three different countries of manufacture however, a distinct collective look. And if you really like them, check out our webshop – at least two of these pieces will be appearing for sale very soon.