A very rare 18th century Dutch tilt tray top gate-leg table with painted decoration throughout.
In fabulous condition retaining its vibrant original floral paintwork with romantic scene.
Circa 1760
Width: 43" Depth: 32.5"  Height: 28.5"
£3,250

A charming silver stamp holder pendant to be worn on a chain.
A most romantic item this could be used to hold a photograph of a loved one or even a small momento of that special person.
Hallmarked: Birmingham 1903
Width: 1.25" Height: 1"
£45

A delightful Continental Art Nouveau period  pewter jewellery casket with a female face front and back and decoration typical of the period all round.
Somewhere safe to keep those romantic souvenirs?
Circa 1890
Width: 6" Height: 5" Depth: 4.5"
£650

A wonderful pair of Art Nouveau brass and iron fire dogs with inverted heart shaped tops over elongated hearts at the base, with pierced uprights and shaped iron legs. 
Circa 1890
Height: 19.25" Width: 8" Depth: 9" 
£2,250

An exquisite English Boulle picture or photograph frame of brass and red tortoiseshell, of exceptional quality the side inlaid with a single line of brass stringing.
Circa 1890
Width: 6” Height: 8.5" (Photograph size 5.5" x 3.5") 
£975

A most elegant set of eight high back dining chairs from the Arts & Crafts period. Made of golden oak the uprights terminating in a heart motif, the backs with three elongated lobed splats over drop in seats, on splay legs to the back and tapering square section front legs terminating in pad feet. Each chair retaining the label of Hampton & Sons, Pall Mall East, London.
Circa 1890
Height: 44” Width: 18"  Depth:21"
£3,850

An extremely rare early 19th century canary yellow Sunderland lustre cream jug with silver and red decoration including hop leaves.
Circa 1815
Height: 3.5" Width: 3.15" Height: 4"
£850
 

A lovely pair of 19th century turned ebony dice shakers with ribbed interiors.
Lucky in Love??
Circa 1870
Height: 3.75"  Diameter: 2"
£370

"The rose is red, the violet's blue,The honey's sweet, and so are you. Thou art my love and I am thine;
I drew thee to my Valentine".     Yes it's that time of year again when we send notes of our affection to the one we love, and thanks to Sir Rowland Hill's postal reforms and the invention of the Penny Black stamp in c. 1840, we can send them anonymously. Such was the popularity of sending a Valentine card in mid-February that over 400,000 were sent in 1842.  According to legend there are several Christian martyrs who deserve the credit for the name given to this annual celebration. The most likely would seem to be a priest who was martyred by the emperor Claudius Gothicus II for befriending his jailor's daughter and sending her a letter signed "from your Valentine". The actual middle of the month holiday dates back to the Roman celebration of the coming of Spring, pairing off men and women with fertility rights and other Roman goings on, called Lupercalia, which name was changed by Pope Gelasius at the end of the 5th century to St Valentine. But it was the development of the postal service worldwide that led to the frenzy of activity in all forms of card communication. From then the simple postcard became as immediate a message service as we count the internet today. Plain postcards had been introduced in 1870 and in 1894 the Royal Mail gave permission to British publishers to manufacture them as a commercial and advertising medium. In those days we had the luxury of up to seven postal deliveries each day so likening it to emails is not too much of a stretch. Today the postcard is another collectable. Those that follow are called 'deltiologists' and there are as many guides to price in this field as any other. For example look for any without a dividing line on the back. They will be before 1902, but beware.  Believe it or not there are fakes. On a brighter note let's finish the Valentine verse from the beginning:- "The lot was cast and then I drew, And Fortune said it shou'd be you." There's romance for you.

Star of stage and screen John Bly has produced another indespensable guide to Dating......... antiques!
Perfectly timed for Valentine's Day, it is surely the perfect gift for the romantic who has everything!!
Signed copies available exclusively from us, just £6.99 including postage.

John Bly's book Discovering Hallmarks on English Silver.
First published in 1968, this best-selling monograph has useful tips for budding collectors and the correct hallmarks from 1658 to 2006 

Height: 7"/18cm Width: 4.5"/11.5cm Depth: .25"/1cm.

Signed copies available exclusively from us, just £4.99!!

The perfect Christmas gift for the collector, beginner or connoisseur, and the person who nearly has everything!
John Bly's book on English Furniture, an essential guide and addition to any library.
This edition published 2010 based on Discovering English Furniture by John Bly first published in 1971.
Height: 10"/25.5cm Width: 7.5"/19cm Depth: .5"/1cm.
Signed copies available exclusively from us, just £14.99!!