Clevedon Salerooms held their Winter Specialist Sale on Thursday 7th December. With over 740 lots on offer, competitive bidding throughout the day saw auctioneers rewarded with some very strong prices across all sections but it was amongst Pictures that some of the day’s best performing lots were to be found.
One of the day’s biggest surprises came in the form of a painting by Clevedon artist Doris Hatt. Consigned from a local private collection, ‘The Green Beach, Clevedon’ is one of the artist’s most iconic images of her home town. Long overlooked in the art market, Hatt’s work is now receiving the attention it deserves and prices have risen significantly in the last couple of years. Hopes were certainly high but no one could have predicted the final remarkable result of £8,000 – almost double the previous record for a work by Hatt.
That impressive result was certainly not the highest price of the day. That accolade was shared between two outstanding paintings. ‘The Last General Absolution of the Munsters at Rue du Bois’, by First World War artist Fortunino Matania, is widely considered one of the most iconic images of World War One. In the years following the conflict, prints of the painting hung on the walls of many homes throughout Ireland as a memorial to the Irishmen who fought and died in it. The original painting is believed to have been destroyed in the Second World War and, by repute, this was a copy of the famous study commissioned from the artist shortly after the end of the war. The most “watched” item online ahead of the sale, expectations were certainly high but they were quickly met and then well and truly exceeded as telephone and online bidders from the Emerald Isle fought a spirited battle which finally saw it triple its top estimate, selling for £21,000. Then later in the sale that figure was achieved again with a painting by Nicholas Chevalier of Lake Manapouri, New Zealand, dated 1882, again the focus of a tug of war between two determined bidders, it will be returning to the Land of the Long White Cloud.
The sale commenced with part of the principal contents of Gatcombe Court which opened the sale, highlights of which included a rare 17th century stumpwork embroidery panel which sold for £5,200 and a 19th century mahogany Estate-made bookcase on cabinet, which bucked all trends in the ‘brown furniture’ market to sell for £2,400.
Bringing some seasonal sparkle amongst the jewellery, a single stone brilliant cut diamond ring sold for £5,000, a three-stone diamond ring and an Edwardian diamond bracelet both sold for £3,400. In the watches section a gentleman's Oyster Perpetual Submariner stainless steel wristwatch sold for £8,200, whilst a lady's Oyster Perpetual Datejust 18ct gold wristwatch sold for £4,800, and an Omega 'Ed White' Speedmaster sold for £4,000. Amongst a strong showing in the Ceramics section, a large collection of Royal Worcester fruit decorated porcelain sold for a combined total of £10,490. Finally, that perennial problem of what to buy the Star Wars fan in your life? How about an original Star Wars cinema poster from 1977. In excellent condition despite its years, the force was still with it and it sold well over estimate for £2,400.
The Winter Specialist sale was the culmination of what has turned out to be a vintage year for Clevedon Salerooms, with the success of the sale of the contents of Barrow Court, together with successful Quarterly sales and record-breaking Interiors sales. After a well-earned break for the festive season, the saleroom re-open on January 2nd and viewing for the first sale of 2024 tales place on the 10th in perfect time for the Interiors sale commencing at 10.30am on Thursday January 11th.