AT SHEPPARD’S three-day “Legacy of the Big House” auction, the top-selling picture was, appropriately, an Edwardian-era painting of peacocks on the lawn of a big house. The Whisper, a watercolour by Mildred Anne Butler, the artist who lived at Kilmurry House, Co Kilkenny, made €10,400 (€6,000-€8,000).
A French, 91-piece sterling silver canteen of cutlery made €4,400 (€4,000-€6,000); a pair of top hats sold for €200 (€50-€80) and a pair of 18th century Irish walnut side chairs made €7,400 (€8,000-€12,000).
Smaller Art Deco lots of interest included a set of silver cockerel cocktail sticks, €105 (€80-€1,000; a dressing table set, €160 (€150-€250); two pairs of porcelain and bronze ladies of fashion figurines, €540 and €560 (€500-€800 a pair); and a mahogany-cased Edwardian roulette game, €200 (€100-€150).
On Thursday, the final day of the sale featured the now traditional selection of Asian lots. A late Ming Dynasty cloisonné enamel charger, with the mark of the Emperor Wanli (1573-1619), sold for €70,000 (€30,000-€50,000). The buyer was an internet bidder in Beijing.
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