NEXT Thursday sees another big sale of Irish works in London, this time at Sotheby's, where there will be not just pictures on offer but also furniture, ceramics, glassware and silver.

Of the furniture, totalling just 45 lots, probably the highest price will be made by a pair of mahogany card tables dating from the mid-18th century, their cabriole legs headed by lion masks, which also appear in the centre of the side friezes. Reputedly owned earlier this century by American newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst, the two tables carry an estimate of £32,000-£35,000.

Other notable pieces of Irish furniture include a fine circular mahogany dining table, dating from circa 1800 (£18,000-£22,000), a mahogany wine cooler, made around 1830 by Dublin cabinet makers, Williams and Gibton (£15,000-£20,000) and a substantial mahogany side table from around the same period. This piece was formerly in the collection of Lord Bellew at Jcnkinstown, Co Kilkenny.

Among the silver, there are a number of 18th century freedom boxes, a George II epergne made by William Williamson of Dublin in 1748 (£9,000-£12,000) and a rare, very early 18th century, chalice from Galway (£4,000-£5,000). The best of the glass is a blue tinted sweet meat glass considered as "possibly Irish" and dating from the end of the 18th century; it is expected to make £1,000-£2,000.

Sotheby's can more confident of the origins of the large collection of Belleek (198 lots) Top price in this section is likely to be achieved by a first period "Chinese Tea Ware" tea kettle and cover on a stand. It has an estimate of £4,000-£6,000.

The Sotheby's selection of paintings has already been mentioned on this page. Best sellers in this category are certain to be the two large Yeats canvases, Leaving the Raft and A Farewell to Mayo, the second of which was bought by Laurence Olivier for Vivien Leigh in 1942. It carries an estimate of £150,000-£200,000, while the other picture is valued at £200,000-£300,000.

At last year's Sotheby's Irish sale, a world record of £271,000 was set for a picture by Walter Osborne and there are a number of paintings by the same artist included in next week's auction, not least a canvas called Temptation, which depicts two young boys standing in front of an apple tree. Its estimate is £100,000-£150,000.

Another Osborne painting - A Boy and His Dog - used to be in the collection of his contemporary Nathaniel Hone and is expected to make £40,000-£60,000. Also very fine is the cubist Woman With A White Bonnet by Mary Swanzy. Believed to be a self portrait, it has an estimate of £25,000-£35,000.