A painting of A Red Ibis Standing in a Leafy Stream was the sleeper of the day at Adam’s Country House Collections at Townley Hall on October 15. The 19th-century painting by an unknown artist far exceeded its upper estimate of €800, and sold for €11,000.
Other paintings also performed outside their estimates. A Portrait of Queen Mary attributed to Sir Godfrey Kneller (1646 – 1723) (est €8,000 to €12,000) fetched €22,000.
Kneller was a German-born portrait artist who moved to England around 1676 and became a court and society painter. In 1688, he was appointed principal painter to King William and Queen Mary.
Another Old Master, Portrait of Sir Francis Wyndham, First Baronet of Trent by John Michael Wright (1617-1694) (est €20,000 to €30,000) sold for €73,000. See adams.ie.
Noonans
A threepence from Dungannon in Co Tyrone dating from 1736 and decorated with a stag (est £400 to £500 / €480 to €600) fetched £1,900 / €2,290 at a sale of British Trade Tokens, Tickets and Passes at Noonans Mayfair, London, on October 8, 2024.
The token was issued by a Thomas Rea, presumably a merchant in Dungannon, and no other example had recently been seen at auction. The token has gone to a private collection in Northern Ireland. See noonans.co.uk.
Matthews Auction Rooms
There are two 1oz gold ingots amid 734 lots of jewellery, gold, silver and watches at Matthews Auction Rooms next sale on Tuesday, October 29. The lots come from executor clearances, solicitors, pawnbrokers and private clients. See matthewsauctionrooms.com.