1) How to spot faked or forged antique silver hallmarks
Delegates attending the latest Goldsmiths’ Company London Assay Office seminar were warned to be alert to the many types of deceptive silver on the market.
Guests at the one-day event at Goldsmiths’ Hall in the City of London on April 12, titled Marks of Deception: Tackling fakes & forgeries in antique British silver.
2) Comic featuring Superman debut soars to record sum
Priced 10 cents when it appeared in 1938, a copy of Action Comics No 1 which introduced Superman has become the world’s most valuable comic book.
The Action Comics No 1 sold for a world-record $6m including premium, a hammer price of $5m (£3.95m), at Heritage Auctions (photo: HA.com).
3) Art dealer rediscovers 16th century portrait miniature by Lavinia Fontana in Texas
A ‘lost’ late 16th century portrait miniature by Italian painter Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) has been rediscovered by an art dealer.
A c.late 16th century oil on copper portrait of a young noblewoman by Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614), offered for a six-figure sum by Period Portraits.
4) Dealer sells portrait by female artist to Getty Museum
With international institutions keen to rebalance their collections to include more works by female artists, the J Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles announced this week that it has bought an early portrait by Sophie Frémiet (1797-1867).
Portrait of a Woman by Sophie Frémiet has been acquired by the Getty Museum.
5) Godwin connection lifts table to 13 times top estimate
The distinctive Anglo-Japanese tables designed by the architect GW Godwin in the later part of the 19th century are known as Smallhythe tables, after the example found in Smallhythe Place in Kent which was the home of the actress Ellen Terry.
Anglo-Japanese mahogany table in the manner of EW Godwin in his sought-after Smallhythe design, £13,000 at Duke’s.
This list is based on pageviews for individual news stories over the period April 11-17, 2024.
