DISS AUCTION ROOMS - GAZETTE - EARLY SUMMER 2014 - ISSUE 39

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Wednesday 9 July 2014TW Gaze, Diss Auction Rooms7.00pm - 9.00pm

An opportunity to enjoy drinks outisde at theauction preview of the Special Antiques Auction

Guests tickets £10with concessionsfor members of the Diss Business Form,see website for details www.dbf.org.uk

Sponsored by Spire Solicitors

EVENING OF TREASURESSUMMER DRINKS & SPECIAL AUCTION PREVIEW

Land & Property Auctionat The Diss Auction RoomsThursday 3 July

ART & SOULTreasured Paintings of Southwold

15th June ~ 16th July

Buckenham GalleriesSouthwold

Supportedby TW Gaze

The Kraka

approaches…..Modern Design - Saleroom 1Saturday 14 June 2014 Contact James Bassam

But don’t worry, it’snot some long lostmonster from DissMere but rather thename given to aspecial piece of glasscoming up in the nextModern Design saleon Saturday 14 June.

It is one of thehighlights of a privatecollection ofScandinavian glass inthe sale and datingfrom 1955, comesfrom the Swedishfactory of Orrefors.Designed by themaster glass makerSven Palmqvist heoriginally developedthe ‘Kraka’ techniquein 1944 by using awire mesh over theblank piece and thenetched creating a‘fishing net’appearance whichtraps air bubbleswhen the clear casinglayer is applied. It was named afterthe Nordic legend of‘Kraka’ who was

summoned to appearbefore the Viking rulerRagnar Lodbrokneither clothed orunclothed. Herdilemma was solved bywearing a fishing net.

Our piece shown hereis fully signed byPalmqvist andnumbered 349. Usingrecords available thisdates the piece to1955. The techniquewas only used byPalmqvist and all arehandmade apart fromfour shapes whichwere mass produced. Palmqvist himselftrained under the twogreat glass engravers ofthe 1930’s, EdwardHald and Simon Gatebefore going on tostudy design inStockholm. His latertraining in sculpture atthe Swedish AcademyArt School led him todevelop his owndesigns in glass whenhe was employed bythe Orrefors factory in

1936. Firstly he

produced wonderfully

engraved pieces to

rival his earlier

masters but it was his

ground breaking

techniques ‘Graal’

‘Kraka’ and the very

popular ‘Ravenna’

ranges that made his

name synonymous with

high quality glass

making and have been

copied by many

other makers

since.

From the

1950’s heconcentratedon moredomesticwaresand againhadsuccesseswith the‘Colora’and ‘Fuga’ranges, thelatterwinning himthe Grand Prixat the MilanTrienale of 1957.

So, if you decide tohave a ‘Kraka’ at thiswonderful vase what isthe auction estimate?Well I have guided it at£350-450 and expect itto be a popular piecein the sale.

James Bassam

100 years since the beginning of the First World War, ironically named “TheWar to End All Wars”; 70 years since D-Day, the beginning of the end of theSecond World War. 2014 is the anniversary of two historic events whichchanged the world forever.

WWI was the transitional war: horses galloped into battle facing the ironcladtanks, aircraft (10 years into their existence) flew over the heads of petrifiedforces, difficult to shoot from the sky. Advances in technology clashed withtraditional and basic principles of war, many unchanged for years, and countlesslives were lost as the countries involved struggled to modernise.

The forthcoming Militaria sale featuresan example of a weapon then becomingobsolete- The 1908 pattern cavalrytrooper’s sword. In the early 19th

Century it was determined that thecavalry had a need for a sword to besuited to both thrusting and cutting, sofrom 1821 the cavalry sword wasdesigned to be curved and acompromise of the two uses.Unfortunately despite being adaptable,it wasn’t effective in either respect andthis lack of effectiveness triggered thedevelopment of a non-compromisecavalry specialised design in 1908, thenew trooper’s sword. Optimised forthrusting, the new model was designedwith a sharp ‘spear’ point, with a long

The Militaria Auction

The Militaria auction onSaturday 28 June represents

centuries of warfare,with a focus on WWI & II.

With a diverse mix ofartefacts, there’s something

to suit every interest.

Please contactEd Taxil-Webber

for details.

Chequered grip of pistol form for a strong grasp

Large pommelfor balancing the sword to the guard

33’’

leng

th for

max

imum

rea

ch,

with

the

sw

ord

arm

ful

ly e

xten

ded

mat

chin

g th

at o

f a

lanc

e or

the

bay

onet

Spear pointdesigned for

thrusting

Steel bowlguard for

handprotection

tapered blade and large steel bowl guard for hand protection. This model wasused extensively in WWI and despite being widely considered a fantastic design;the days of cavalry in modern warfare were coming to an end. This resulted init being the last service sword issued to the cavalry of the British Army.

A 1908 patterncavalry trooper’s sword£300-400

By Prudence Hopkins

50th Anniversary CelebrationsBring Humpty out of His Shell

Following the successful sale last month of a Humpty Dumpty toy from the popular BBC televisionprogramme “Play School” a similar figure has emerged to be offered for auction at TW Gaze in Diss,Norfolk.

“Play School” was broadcast every weekday morning from 1964 to 1988 for pre-school children andwhilst it was hosted by a regular team of humans, the memorable stars of the successful show were thetoys, Big Ted, Little Ted, Jemima the rag doll and Hamble, a plastic doll; but the favourite and mostdistinguished of all was Humpty, a plush version of the nursery rhyme character Humpty Dumpty.

Now 50 years on from its inception, celebrations of Play School’s significant anniversary are turning aspot light onto characters steeped in nostalgia for those who grew up watching the daily programme. Inturn this interest has spawned some successful sales at auction, including the Humpty quoted as “one ofonly three original Humptys made” which realised £6,250 in a toy auction in May.

In reality the actual number of original Humptys seems unknown, with estimatesranging from 3 to 20, some of which are quoted as being securedin BBC vaults! However, whatever the truth, it is agreed therewere only a limited number made.If you crave ownership of your very own cuddly good egg,the opportunity to bid will be on Friday 20 June at DissAuction Rooms when a Humpty Dumpty from a NorthSuffolk vendor will be looking for a new home. Thisone was obtained by the vendor at the end of therun of programmes from the then-manager of thephoto/reprographic department of the BBC as agift for his three year old daughter.

Pre-auction estimate is £4,000 – 6,000.

Please contact Robert Kinsellaon 01379 650 306 for furtherinformation or see

www.twgaze.co.ukfor details.

Humpty& The Famous Five

A visit to any of TW Gaze’s Rural& Domestic Bygones auctionswill demonstrate how fondlyColmans is thought of.Illustrated here by this sample ofresults from the 24 May auction.

Calling all birdsTraditionally made from wood and of whistle type, there aremany interesting variations in bird calls. Mainly used by birdwatchers, the shooting fraternity also employs them particularlyfor wildfowl. And not only birds – ingenious calls also exist forfoxes, rabbits, dogs and other animals.

While wooden ones are most common, probably originallyhand made by poachers, nowadays we find them in tin, bakelite,plastic and rubber. The latter are either of bellows type orpneumatic. The variation in design is extensive as the body ofthe call is designed to produce the distinctive sound. Realisticimitations of the calls of wild birds are not always just a case ofblowing. Most of them require some skilful manipulation andfingering of hole or holes. Much practice may be required,preferably out of human earshot.

Not just Mustard!There are many otherproducts that proudly carriedthe Colman’s name

NextRural & Domestic Bygones Auction

Saturday 9 August

A cased set of 32 German wooden carved bird, fox and rabbitcalls by Hubertus, sold for £400 at the Rural & Domestic Bygonesauction on 24 May 2014.

£10 £65

£140

£42

£170

£42

£460

Colman’sColman’sColman’sColman’sColman’s2014 marks the bi-centenary of one of Norfolk’s defining names

Jeremiah Colman started his business in the humble surroundings of a paper mill just south ofNorwich. Soon these premises would be outgrown as Georgian Britain became seduced by Colman’sunique condiment. In 1862, keen to keep up with demand, they re-located to the Carrow Works,where mustard continues to be manufactured to this day. Expanded production on a site close to therailway and the river pushed the company on, and by the 1890’s it was recorded as being known fromPeru to far Cathay.

Fashions and tastes come and go, so what makes a name endure 200 years?

Colman’s had a forward-thinking attitude towards their workers’ welfare; the family werephilanthropists, who established schools and a pension scheme for the workers. They also developeda strong brand employing methods that are still being used. These marketing tools included establishingthe iconic red and yellow colours and around 1855 the introduction of the famous bull head logo.They also gave customers a chance to “get on board” with their products by producing specialpictorial tins every year from 1880-1939; something to look out for. And in the 1920’s they establishedThe Mustard Club. A virtual club instigated by bus posters asking “Has Father joined the MustardClub?”

In 1973 Colman’s opened Colman’s Mustard Shop in the Bridewell Alley in Norwich. Now situatedin the Royal Arcade, and rebranded as the Colman’s Mustard Shop & Museum it is owned by theNorwich Heritage Economic and Regeneration Trust (HEART).

On Saturday 7 June our Rural & Domestic Bygones team will be joining forces with HEART to holda special event called My Colman’s at the Norwich Guildhall. The event will run from 10am-1pm , andis free to attend with an open invitation to bring along your own Colman’s memorabilia for discussionand valuation. We look forward to seeing you there.

G A Z E T T EIssue 39/early summer ‘14

Diss Auction Rooms, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4LN01379 650 306 auctions@twgaze.co.uk www.twgaze.co.uk

The Special Antiquesauction held on May 23had a number of itemsthat took the sale bystorm but the piecesthat stood out and stolethe show was a rarecollection of Belleek. 

From the privatecollection of adistinguished family ofsuccessful merchantsand professionals fromDublin, Ireland with ahistory merchants andprofessionals, eachpiece was hand paintedwith the families crest,making it extra specialfor collectors.

Upon publication of thecatalogue the rarity ofsome of the pieces wasconfirmed with callsfrom the BelleckCollectors Society andnumerous otherhopeful buyers; it was

clearly going to be avery interestingsale.

The first lot ofBelleek up forauction was a 19th

Century crestedcomposite partdinner servicewith First Period marks,and after a few tenseminutes of bidding itsold above estimatefor £850 (d). Howeverthe best was still tocome.  An extremelyrare “Limoges”Stork patterncomposite part teaservice was next.Impressed with FirstPeriod mark and hand-painted with storks inlandscape scene with giltrim. The delightful 19th

Century service wascertainly appreciated.With a hushedsaleroom, the bids

flowed with theauctioneer takingbids from threephones, the roomand the Internet.The hammer finallyfell exceeding all

expectations at animpressive £4200 (a).

The collection alsocontained eight Belleekhand-painted platesdecorated with floralsprigs, each platedepicting a differentfloral display, gilt enamelrims, and a matchingcomport which soldfor £2600 (b)Six Belleek ‘’Thorn’’pattern plates, FirstPeriod sold for: £2200(e) and in another lotthree matchingcomports flew out thesaleroom for £1600.However, the whirlwinddidn’t stop there whenother rare pieces were

snapped up by buyersincluding a Belleek eggcruet of basket formselling for anamazing £230 anda matched pair ofBelleek Belgian hawkerfigures making topestimate of £380.00 (c)

Whilst First PeriodBelleek was the orderof the day, SecondPeriod was also popularamongst buyers. Acollection of teawaresand a  ‘’Hippiritus’’pattern epergne centrepiece each making overtheir estimates.The vendor with a smileat the end of the daysaid “it was all justpacked away in the loft,now it can be loved andappreciated byenthusiasts.”

Belleek (definitely) not BleakSpecial Sale Report by Prudence Hopkins

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