There are 209236 lots that match your search criteria. Subscribe now to get instant access to the full price guide service.
Click here to subscribeCurrency Commission, Bank of Ireland, specimen £100, 5 September 1978 (fictitious date), serial number 00ZK 000000, Brennan and Gargan signatures, red SPECIMEN overprint, three cancellation holes, some light handling but about uncirculated to uncirculated and extremely rare, the only way to own this otherwise fully redeemed type PMI CBI 6, Pick 13s £5,000-£6,000
Bank of Fashion, for Self & Co. (Mr A. Pyke), at 120 High Street, Shrewsbury, a skit note promising ‘to Cut any Lady or Gentleman's Hair and make Ornamental Hair in a most superior manner’ or forfeit £100, 26 April 1926, serial number 120, signature of A. Pyke, slightly trimmed, good fine and rare Outing unlisted £150-£200 --- Saleroom Notice The date on this note is 1826, rather than 1926
The National Bank Limited, specimen £5, 1 May 1964, serial number A00000, Maguire signature, red SPECIMEN overprint and De La Rue seals, one cancellation hole, mounting remnants at right, otherwise about uncirculated to uncirculated and a very rare specimen for an issue that was never released PMI NA 87, Pick not listed £300-£400
A Confusing but Clearly Political Skit Note, for Self, Ridiculous & Folly, promising to pay £5 to Sir Charles Spencer or Bearer on the return of Common Sense, 1 April 1796, serial number 9162, signature of Simon Skirtless, with a vignette of Antony Alltop, Boot-maker, walking past a milestone with XXXIX (39) on it, saying the words ‘I Am The Go’, laid down on paper, otherwise very nice condition, good fine and rare Outing unlisted £200-£260 --- It is not possible to say for sure but Sir Charles Spencer may refer to Lord Charles Spencer, the MP for Oxfordshire, but it is unclear what the vignette is attempting to portray, or why.
Currency Commission, Irish Free State, £50, 10 September 1928, serial number Y/01 009430, Brennan and McElligott signatures, hand signed by Éamon de Valera, famed Irish statesman and multiple term head of government, central fold, minor handling, original good extremely fine and a remarkable note with an astonishing signature, extremely rare PMI LTN 6, Pick 6 £10,000-£12,000
Currency Commission, Irish Free State, specimen 10 Shillings, 13 May 2006 (10 September 1928), serial number A/01 000000, Brennan and McElligott signatures, black specimen overprint and three cancellation holes, light handling, about uncirculated to uncirculated and a rare Waterlow specimen from this first Lady Lavery issue PMI LTN 1, Pick 1As £600-£800
Northern Bank, specimen for £50, 29 April 2004, serial number DA000000, Price signature, bank name in italics as per the following issue, but colour as per preceding issue, red SPECIMEN overprint and De La Rue seals, one cancellation hole, uncirculated and very rare PMI NR 126, Pick not listed £400-£500
Palestine Currency Board, £10, 30 September 1929, serial number A317618, vignette of the Crusaders Tower at Ramleh, signatures of P.H. Ezechiel, J. Caulcutt, R.V. Vernon, very lightly pressed, paper still retaining good quality, good very fine, a superb and clean example of this rare note TBB B104b, Pick 9b £4,000-£6,000
Little Sheffield Bank, for Presto, Adagio, Moderato & Concertante, 5 Halfpence, 1797, no signature or serial number, fine and very rare Outing unlisted £150-£200 --- This is one of the few ‘skit notes’ that appears to be almost entirely devoid of meaning. It could be a joke which we no longer have the context to understand, or it could be some kind of printing test or sample. In any case, it is one of the earliest ‘skit notes’ known.
Currency Commission, Hibernian Bank, £1, 5 August 1939, serial number 24HA 000337, Brennan and Hodges signatures, one pair of staple holes, single light central fold, a wonderful original good extremely fine with strong printing and colour, and a low number for this prefix, rare in this grade PMI CHB 5, Pick 14b £400-£500
Currency Commission, Irish Free State, partial die proof printed in green for 10 Shillings, ND (1928), Brennan and McElligott signatures, backed on thick card, otherwise as produced, very rare and a lovely looking item with the usual exceptional Waterlow printing quality PMI LTN 1s, Pick 1A £800-£1,000 An image of this remarkable item is featured in the Acknowledgements section of Paper Money of Ireland, first edition
Banca d’Italia, specimen 1000 Lire, ND (1930), serial number A00 0000, no signatures, perforated ANNULLATO, tear in right margin held together with tape, significant glue residue along left and right margin which has caused to paper to go translucent, otherwise about uncirculated and very rare TBB B417s, Pick 56s, Gavello 465 £400-£600
Trent Fall Bank, for Rich’d Boiler, Tho’s Nossle & Co., 5 Halfpence in cash or steam, 1 August 1817, serial number 8540, signatures of Tim’y Smoke and Benj’n Margrave, with a lovely vignette of a small paddle steamer, entitled ‘Albion’ at top left, fine and rare Outing 4088a £200-£260 --- Benjamin Margrave (b.1742) lived in Gainsborough and appears to have been involved in several businesses there. For example, there are records of him selling a public house named the Boars Head in 1806. He died in 1818 (a year after this note was produced), after an illness of ten years which left him bedbound. Trent Falls is the name given to the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Trent, close to Hull in Yorkshire. The Albion was one of at least three steam packets (others being named Cobourg and British Queen), in which Benjamin Margrave held shares. These ships traded between Hull and Gainsborough, which helps explain the title and theme of this note. The purpose of this note isn't quite clear, but it seems likely that it is simply to advertise the services of his Steam Packet.
Robert Wallace Martin for the Martin Brothers, a rare stoneware jug, 1881, glazed in shades of ochre and brown and modelled as a grotesque bird-like creature with a fierce, toothy grimace, the spiny neck rising from an ovoid body and connecting to a loop handle, incised marks to underside21cm highProvenance: Acquired by the present owner from a private American collection Condition report: Inspected under UV light, a large section of professional restoration to the body, no other apparent damages or repairs.
Tirzah Garwood (British 1908-1951) Train Journeysigned 'Tirzah Garwood' (lower right); numbered 9/30wood engraving19 x 14cmProvenance:With Abbott & Holder, LondonExhibited:Saffron Walden, The Fry Gallery, Long Live Great Bardfield & Love to You All! The Life and Work of Tirzah Garwood (Ravilious), 8 April - 24 June 2012Literature:Frances Spalding, Dictionary of British Art Volume VI - 20th century Painters and Sculptors, Antiques Collectors' Club Ltd., Suffolk, p.195 (ill.b&w) Footnote: Often described as a mother and wife, Tirzah Garwood sometimes appears to only exist when discussed in relation to her husband, the esteemed painter, designer and illustrator, Eric Ravilious. Though her work has spent decades growing cold under the long shadow cast by the work of her husband, in more recent years, it has been gaining the recognition and admiration it deserves. Born Eileen Lucy Garwood, to a wealthy family in Gillingham, Kent, in 1908, Tirzah was raised in Eastbourne, where she attended the local art school before training at Eastbourne School of Art. It was at Eastbourne College that Garwood met Ravilious, then her wood-engraving tutor and whom she described, somewhat uncharitably, as ‘not quite a gentleman’ and ‘tall and thin, with a head that jutted out at the back’. Though Garwood’s parents did not attempt to conceal their disapproval of the working-class Ravilious, by July 1930, the pair had wed, marking the end of Garwood’s incipient career in wood engraving. Though Garwood would continue in her artistic endeavours during the marriage, experimenting with delicate designs upon marbled paper, she was mostly content to fulfil her domestic and maternal responsibilities. After the tragic and untimely death of Ravilious in 1942, Garwood ventured into oil painting, creating a series of simultaneously naïve, and yet arduously detailed, works. Sadly, Garwood, like Ravilious, died prematurely, in 1951, before she was able to establish her career as a painter. The present lot is not only rare as it is one of the few engravings produced by Garwood before her marriage, but also, as it is uncharacteristically signed and numbered by the artist. Like her Great Bardfield contemporaries, the wood engravings of Tirzah Garwood possess a potency and power that is belied by the simplicity of form.Condition report: Not examined out of the frame. Perhaps some very minor and uniform toning of the paper, otherwise appears in very good, clean condition.
A rare 19th century Danish Herbarium arranged in three volumes containing 383pp of preserved botanical specimens, each labelled and dated c1860-70. Two albums with index (330 x 280mm). Worn leather spines and cloth boards bumped (3) Provenance: Thought to have been collected by Dr Berthelsen Vilhelm Savdak van der As. b 22/7/1850 and thence by descent
A very rare Minton majolica match box and cover, dated 1864In the form of a crusader's tomb, the cover moulded in high relief with the recumbent knight, his shield at his side and his crossed feet resting on the head of a coiled dragon or wyvern, picked out in bright glazes, the rim inscribed in gothic script 'The knights are dust and their good swords are rust their souls are with the saints we trust', the interior with turquoise glaze and the underside textured to act as the match strike, 10cm long, impressed MINTON mark and date code (2)Footnotes:This probably corresponds with shape number 705 in the Minton Shape book, listed as 'Match box with reclining male figure', where it is noted that the shape was produced in majolica. The inscription on the cover is taken from Sir Walter Scott's 1820 classic 'Ivanhoe', in which he quotes Samuel Taylor Coleridge's then unpublished poem 'The Knight's Tomb'.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A very rare engraved gilt brass miniature strut timepieceRetailed by M.F.Dent, numbered to the strut 29. Probably by Thomas Cole. The rectangular case with rounded shoulders and fixed carrying loop on a shaped support, over engraved sides to concave-sided feet, set to the rear with a sprung strut numbered 29. The 1.5 inch silvered Roman dial with typical Cole blued-steel trefoil hands, surrounded by a pierced and engraved mask framing the signature M.F. DENT, 33 COCKSPUR ST. Wound, set and regulated through apertures in the solid rear cover, with nickel-finished watch type movement with cylinder escapement. 8cms (3ins) high.Footnotes:M.F.Dent worked from 33 Cockspur Street between 1853 and 1858 and is known to have been a retailer of Thomas Cole's work, see Hawkins, J.B. (1975) Thomas Cole & Victorian Clockmaking. Sydney: Macarthur Press.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A rare South Staffordshire enamel erotic snuff box, circa 1770Of oval form, the lid depicting a finely dressed gentleman holding two birds and proclaiming 'One bird in the Bush is worth two in the Hand..', a lady's legs and petticoat poking out from the bush below, a rather phallic tree stump to the left of the gentleman, the sides of the box painted with pink and green floral garlands, 7.3cm wideFootnotes:The corruption of the well-known proverb 'a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush' alongside the suggestive tree stump would have provided some scandalous amusement for the 18th century snuff taker.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A rare and important London enamel calendar plaque by Anthony Tregent, dated 1759Of upright rectangular form, printed in fine detail with a calendar entitled 'A NEW YEAR'S GIFT, for 1759', with notes for the year, mention of various saints' days and symbols denoting each new moon, half moon and full moon, over-stamped in red to the bottom right 'ONE PENNY DUTY', marked 'by Anth. Tregent in Denmark Street', the gilt metal frame with a loop for suspension, 12.8cm high including hanging loopFootnotes:ProvenanceLady Mullens Collection, Christie's sale, 18 March 1987, lot 407A snuff box by Anthony Tregent, printed with the same calendar for 1759 is illustrated and discussed by Eric Benton, The London Enamellers, ECC Trans, Vol.8, Pt.2, (1972) plate 109c. See the following announcement placed in 'The Daily Advertiser' on 23 and 29 December 1758;'ANTHONY TREGENT, enameller, at the Dial in Denmark-Street, St Giles's, Inventor of the Enamel New Year's Gift (so much admir'd and in request last year) humbly begs leave to acquaint the Nobility and Gentry that he has just finish'd a new one for 1759, being a curious Performance in Enamel accurately denoting, after the Manner of a Kalendar, the Days of the Month, and other Occurrences in the Yer...a genteel and useful Present for the New Year'. It would appear that in 1758 various other enamellers had attempted to copy Tregent's idea and put out what he saw as substandard imitations of his design and so 'to prevent the like Imposition on the Publick, and Prejudice to him, Notice is hereby given, that the Originals invented and done by him are enter'd at the Stamp Office, the Duty paid, and the Offices Mark, together with the Name and Place of Abode, appear thereon.' Duty was payable on newsprint in England from 1757 during the 7 years war and in this case the stamp was also used to differentiate Tregent's 'originals' from those made by imposters, as he saw them. A snuff box in the Metropolitan Museum, New York, (accession no. 03.26.3) lacking the signature or duty stamp would appear to be one of the latter, according to Tregent.The present lot is unusual for the fact that the entire calendar is printed on one large plaque, rather than printed in sections and mounted into a snuff box. Perhaps it fulfilled a particular commission from a wealthy client who wished to have this displayed at a desk or in a carriage.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A collection of ten small spy glasses, French and English, 19th century,one signed DOLLOND LONDON, including a rare glass scent bottle spyglass, three charm bracelet spyglasses, two with sky blue enamel tubes, the largest 1 1/2in (4cm) diameterthe smallest 3/4in (2cm) diameter (10)For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A RARE SILVER MOUNTED SPY-GLASS NÉCESSAIRE, English, mid-18th century,probably made by Thomas Ribright, fishskin cover with silver mounts and sliding cover to the eyepiece and objective, the lid sliding off to reveal the necessaire engraved on the mount BY YE KINGS ROYAL PATENT, fitted with tortoiseshell mounted knife, tweezers, ear scoop, pencil, scissors and ivory note leaf, 4in (10cm) long Footnotes:The optician Thomas Ribright patented a perspective glass and instruments in 1749. A gold mounted spy-glass and necessaire signed by Ribright and with an identical patent inscription was sold by Christie's as Lot 6, 22 May 2001, for £15,275.Please note that from 19 January 2022, items containing ivory cannot be imported into the EU. The import of ivory into the USA and China is already prohibited.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: Y ФY Subject to CITES regulations when exporting items outside of the EU, see clause 13.Ф This lot contains or is made of ivory and cannot be imported into the USA or any country within the EU.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
MINIATURE BOOKS - DAVID BRYCEA fine and extensive collection of miniature books, mostly published by David Bryce & Son of Glasgow, including: --[Qur'an] The 'Mite Koran', photolithographic reduction, printed in Arabic, with facsimile attestation at end, patterned endpapers, red morocco gilt, 27 x 19 mm. [Bondy p.111-2], [c.1900]--'Smallest English Classic in the World': Thomas Gray, An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, green roan, 17 x 13mm. [Bondy p.113-4], 1911--The Smallest English Dictionary in the World, later purple goatskin with multiple gilt fleur-de-lys all over design, 29 x 23mm. [Bondy p.107, 'this miracle of of miniature book production... easily readable']--[Qur'an], facsimile of an illuminated manuscript, in Maghribi script, decorative gilt limp leather, 23 x 18mm., [Cairo, c.1930], the last 2 contained in a model wooden school desk--[Chained Bibles] 'Smallest Bible in the World', The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments, 2 copies, illustrations, dark and light brown blind-stamped roan respectively, with magnifier in pocket inside front cover, 42 x 30mm., both chained to a model wooden lectern (the first with with printed label on lectern, tear to joint, the second with defective title-page, covers loose and lacking backstrip, chain detached from lectern), [Bondy p.109], [1911]; with another copy of the very small New Testament (see no. 10 below), chained to a small silver-plated model lectern--'The Smallest Bible in the World': The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments, illustrations, red gilt-tooled roan, with magnifier in pocket at front (this cover detached), 42 x 30mm., 1896--'Burns Family Bible': The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments, illustrations, blind-stamped limp calf and original tartan-covered hinged wooden case, with printed label 'Smallest Bible in the World with Burns' Family Register in the Poet's Handwriting', 45 x 30mm. [Bondy p.110]--'Illustrated Miniature Bible': The Holy Bible, Containing the Old and New Testaments, illustrations, dark purple roan, elaborately gilt with title on front cover, preserved in original metal locket with gilt-lettered red roan front panel and inset magnifier (case worn), 43 x 30mm. --Robert Burns, Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, reduced facsimile of the first edition, publisher's stiff printed wrappers, 29 x 20mm. [Bondy p.113], Kilmarnock, 1786 [but Glasgow, c.1900]--Golden Thoughts from Great Authors, 2 copies, dark red and dark blue limp calf, 29 x 20mm. [Bondy p.113]--[Midget Library], 12 vol. including The Smallest French and English Dictionary in the World by F.E.A. Gasc [cf. Bondy p.107]; Tiny Alphabet of Animals and Tiny Alphabet of Birds [cf. Bondy, p.72]; The New Testament [cf. Bondy p.111, 'staggeringly small', 20 x 16m.], 1925; Old English, Scotch and Irish Songs with Music [Bondy, p.113] and a Koran, all in red roan gilt (the Koran elaborately so), all housed in original single wooden stand with hinged metal and glass front (metal worn) --Tennyson, [Works], 4 vol., limp green roan, spines darkened, preserved in single open case with embossed metal surround, each 52 x 35mm. --'Finger Post Series for the Pocket': Ambulance Hints; Daily Food for Daily Life, 2 vol., both with double-page title and text, uniform maroon and dark green roan respectively, upper cover with gilt illustration of a signpost and gate, 77 x 25mm. --'The Finger Prayer Book': The Book of Common Prayer, limp blue roan, blue silk endpapers, slightly soiled and worn at spine end, housed in open metalwork carrying case with chain, 90 x 30mm., Oxford University Press and Henry Frowde, [c.1900]--Charles Dickens [Christmas Books], 'Oxford India paper Edition', 5 vol. including a Christmas Carol, limp red roan gilt, spines darkened, preserved in single open case with embossed metal surround, each 52 x 35mm., Henry Frowde, 1904-1906; another set, 5 vol., dark red limp roan, spines faded and rubbed, 50 x 37mm., Henry Frowde, 1904--Walter Scott, [Works], 6 vol., light blue pictorial cloth, spine gilt, housed in tartan-covered wooden box hinged at top and bottom, with inset portrait and illustration to front, 86 x 62mm., New York, F.A. Stokes [D. Bryce on spines]--The Illustrated Pocket Shakespeare, 8 vol., 2 sets, red and blue (larger format) cloth respectively, spines gilt; Burns's Poetical Works, Pearl Edition, 6 vol., blue pictorial cloth; 7 Midget Library volumes (including 3 copies each of the Smallest English Dictionary and Smallest French & English Dictionary, red roan, some spines worn or torn); Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, double-page text, decorative green roan, slightly worn; 4 'Thumb Series' volumes (Autograph, Confession, Gazetteer, Book of Bible, cloth); 8 volumes by Scott, cloth; Burns's Poems, tartan cloth; and 2 others, all contained in a glass-fronted bookcase with 3 shelves--Shakespeare, 'The Smallest and Daintiest Standard Set of Shakespeare in the World' (Bryce catalogue), 40 vol., limp roan in various colours, some with spines worn/defective or covers detached, in original sycamore revolving bookcase, c.51 x 34mm. [cf. Bondy p.114-5]Glasgow, David Bryce unless otherwise stated, dates where given; and c.70 other miniature books, mostly published by Bryce (see Condition Report), with one exception all in original publisher's bindingsFootnotes:THE SMALLEST BOOKS IN THE WORLD: AN EXCEPTIONAL COLLECTION OF MINIATURE VOLUMES, mostly produced by the Glasgow publisher David Bryce & Son, often in collaboration with Henry Frowde at the Oxford University Press. In a short space of time Bryce went from the position of a relatively unknown publisher to that of a vastly successful entrepreneur, using the latest printing technologies to produce 'more wee books than the total world production up to that time' (James Henderson, 'David Bryce & Son', The News-letter of the LXIV-mos, no. 11, 15 October 1928). As Bryce wrote in 1876, 'I descended to the miniature, mite and midget size, producing a little dictionary, the smallest in the world, in a locket accompanied by a magnifying glass. I had many a scoff and jeer as to the absurdity of the production, nevertheless it at once appealed... and its sales are now over 100,000.'Some of the books in the collection are housed in original or specially made boxes, cases and other furniture - including two large glass-fronted bookcases which contain some of the largest and smallest volumes. The collection contains many of the books described in the chapter devoted to Bryce in Louis Bondy's Miniature Books, 1981, including the Qur'an, the English and French & English dictionaries, Gray's Elegy (the smallest Bryce book, 'exceedingly rare... at one time said not to exist'), three Bibles chained to model lecterns, the facsimile of Burns' Poems, and several of the sets such as the 'Ellen Terry Shakespeare'.The 'Mite Koran', in its distinctive red, blue or black leather bindings with a circular void in the gilt pattern, was a photolithographic reduction of two different Ottoman editions, and was printed on India paper specially produced for Bryce by Henry Frowde at the Oxford University Press. The two copies of the Qur'an included here are both the variant described by Nick McBurney as the '1871 Bryce', easily distinguished from the '1884 Bryce' (which was based on a different Istanbul edition) by the inclusion of the signatures and seals of ten Islamic scholars at the end. It is often noted that these Qur'ans were issued to Muslim soldiers fighting in World War I, but in fact they were printed on an industrial scale for export to the Arab world, where they were mostly carried as keepsakes rather than used for reading. 'Printed by the thous... This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: •• Zero rated for VAT, no VAT will be added to the Hammer Price or the Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A rare William IV silver fishing reelHenry Chawner, London 1831 Cylindrical spool form, the ends of the reel body intricately embossed with leaping fish, rippling water and reeds, the borders with a wave-like circular repeating motif, the pattern echoed in the curved silver reel handle with mother-of-pearl terminal mounted to the side, operating a smooth winding mechanism, a vertical shaped foot to the base with embossed scrolling decoration, used for mounting to a fishing rod, cased in a velvet-lined box, length with handle 7cm, diameter 4cm, weight total 3.1oz.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A rare carved ivory anatomical model of a pregnant lady, German, late 17th century,attributed to Stephan Zick (1639-1715) the reclining figure with articulated arms, a section of torso removeable to reveal lungs and intestines, the head resting on an ivory pillow with carved lace surround, on rectangular wooded base with textile cover, 9in x 2 3/4in x 2in (23cm x 7cm x 5cm) Footnotes:Stephan Zick (1639-1715) was born in Nuremberg into a family of ivory carvers and it is thought it was he who originated these miniature anatomical models. These very rare demonstrational models were supposedly used in lecturing to medical students. The Wellcome Collection, London has an ivory standing anatomical model of a pregnant woman in the classical style.A very similar model was sold by Christies, Lot 80, 14 October-4 November 2020.Please note that from 19 January 2022, items containing ivory cannot be imported into the EU. The import of ivory into the USA and China is already prohibited.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: Y ФY Subject to CITES regulations when exporting items outside of the EU, see clause 13.Ф This lot contains or is made of ivory and cannot be imported into the USA or any country within the EU.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
CRICKET, rare original press photographs, India to Australia 1947-48, Indian captain Lala Armanath alongside wicket-keeper Sen and reserve keeper J.K. Irani on the news of the birth of his fourth child, Lala Armanath reading Don Bradmans article on captaincy in the October issue of The Sporting Life, good head and shoulders date stamped December 1947, press stamps (3), all 6.5 x 4.5 EX, 3
CRICKET, rare original press photographs, Australia v India 1947-48, 6 x 4.5 Indian captain Lala Armanath meets Arthur Morris upon arrival in Sydney, 8 x 6 Bradman in batting pose in the nets at the W.A.C.A. both 6 x 4.5, Large (14 x 10) head & shoulders pose of Australian wicket-keeper Don Tallon wearing his 1947-48 Australian cap, repaired former central tear, press stamps (3) G to EX, 3
Loading...
