April Auction Report

Date of auction: 12^th & 13^th April

Number of lots: 1017

Number of online bidders: 1,291 from 33 countries

Highest price achieved: Lot 332 – A mint and used world stamp collection - sold for £4985

Surprise result of the sale: Lot 1251 - A 1930’s Clifford Essex ‘Paragon’ four string tenor banjo – sold for £3890

Auctioneer’s favourite lot: Lot 1503 - A vintage diesel engine powered model pylon racing car in the style of a 1930 single seat racing car – sold for £2797 to a buyer in Australia

Harper Field's April auction featured specialist sections of toys, vinyl records, musical instruments and equipment, stamps, books, ephemera, paintings and pictures and furniture.

Toys are always a popular section, and this month was no exception. Excellent prices were achieved across the board, with stand-out prices in the traditional fields of diecast models (where two lots of Corgi Eddie Stobart vehicles realised just under £1000) and model railways, where a Hornby train set made a pleasing £380. Emerging sections also saw encouraging results, including vintage video gaming where a Nintendo NES console and games sold for £350, and battery-operated vintage tinplate toys where a Batmobile sold for £300.

The musical instruments section featured a very nice banjo, which went on to prove that auction is still the best possible way of achieving the best price for your item. When the buyer was offered £2,000 for the instrument it seemed like a significant sum, but fierce bidding on the telephones and online saw an eventual price of £3890, an excellent outcome for the seller!

The next auction will be on June 14^th & 15th at our brand-new saleroom, and will feature jewellery, silver, watches, coins, bijouterie and designer goods and textiles. If you’ve never thought of buying at auction, why not come along to our public viewing day on June 13^th from 10am to 6pm and see us in our new surroundings.

We are still accepting items for our July auction, which will once again include vinyl records, toys, stamps, books, ephemera, paintings and pictures and musical instruments and equipment, along with the twice yearly cameras and scientific instruments section.

If you are thinking of selling, please give us a call on 01453 873800 to book a valuation or just email and ask for advice from one of our specialists.