Antiques: Gramophones and bird baths among one-offs

Des O'Sullivan casts his eye over the unique must-have items coming up at summer auctions

Sat, 15 Jul, 2023 - 18:31

Des O’Sullivan

A bird bath held by a crouching art deco lady or a Victrola redolent of another bygone era? The choice is yours as endless summer materialises in different ways at upcoming sales by Aidan Foley at Kilcolgan, Co Galway, tomorrow and Monday (July 16 and 17) and by Victor Mee in Belturbet, Co Cavan, on Tuesday and Wednesday (July 18 and 19).

One-off items of a type you would not happen across every day feature alongside plenty of lots that will draw bargain hunters.

A mahogany bow-fronted sideboard at Aidan Foley's sale.

A bronze art deco water feature at Victor Mee.

A Georgian bow-fronted sideboard with an estimate of just €300-€500 comes up at Kilcolgan and an attractive composition wall sundial decorated with a lion mask at Victor Mee is estimated at just €60-€120.

With everything from a pair of brass Gothic-style candlesticks, two heavy metal swan jardinieres, a vintage Tiffany-style ceiling light and a pair of carved African figures at estimates ranging from €30 to €450 the sale at Kilcolgan caters to a wide variety of interests.

Aidan Foley promises a good selection of art headed by a small pencil sketch by Jack B. Yeats of Galway Races with an estimate of around €2,000.

There is art by painters from Graham Knuttel to Markey Robinson, Marie Carroll, Sean O'Sullivan and Ivan Sutton.

A Victrola gramophone at Aidan Foley's sale.

Art, rugs and collectibles like stamps have been in demand. Prices for furniture have been low at latter-day sales.

A 19th-century cast-iron fountain at Victor Mee.

He predicts confidently that there will be plenty of bargains this time for those in search of furniture. This is likely to be Aidan Foley's last sale before the summer break. He plans to resume with an auction in Dublin early in September followed by a sale at Sixmilebridge towards the end of that month.

Victor Mee's summer garden sale of 648 lots boasts a selection of unique and statement garden pieces. The most expensively estimated lots are bronzes of horses, foals, stags, seated lions along with an early 20th-century French moulded stone gazebo with a wrought-iron top and Corinthian columns. These are all in the €6,000 and €8,000 up range but the choice is wide.

There is, for example, a Lutyens three-seater teak garden bench with an estimate of €500-€800, a bronze model of a baby snail (€300-€500), copper wall lanterns (€250-€450), an art deco limestone planter (€300-€600) and a cast aluminium bird bath (€80-€160).

There are tables, chairs, planters, benches, wrought iron gates, acorn-topped finials, urns, iron railings, moulded sandstone avenue lamps with copper lights and a cut Italian wall fountain with a lion mask among a big selection on offer. Both sales are now on view and the catalogues are online.