A Successful End to our March Auctions

On top of our successful Fine & Contemporary Pictures auction on Tuesday, we have had great results from our Rare & Collectable Whisky, Wine and Port auction, Fine Jewellery, Watches and Coins auction, Furniture and Works of Art auction and Silver, Ceramics & Glass, Vintage Clocks and Watches auction which has rounded up a fantastic March auction list. 

This MACALLAN 50 Year Old Anniversary Malt imported to the U.S. by Berman Imports L.A. CA went under the hammer in our Rare & Collectable Whisky, Wine and Port auction on Wednesday 28th and sold for £1000 above its lowest estimate, reaching a hammer price of £6000. 

Lot 805 (Rare & Collectable Whisky, Wine & Port)

Whilst in our Fine Jewellery, Watches and Coins auction, this rare item from Cartier's 'Love' range fetched an outstanding hammer price £1100.

Lot 1005 ( Fine Jewellery, Watches and Coins)

This beautiful Victorian Silver Mounted Cameo Glass Perfume Bottle sold for an amazing £1350 in our  Silver, Ceramics & Glass, Vintage Clocks & Watches, £1150 above it's lowest estimation. 

Lot 1456  (Silver, Ceramics & Glass, Vintage Clocks & Watches)

We hope that you enjoyed the auctions we had in March and look forward to seeing you for the many more exciting auctions we have coming in April. 

To keep up to date with what is going on visit our Website, Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter. 

Busy Week for McTears...

Next week is set to be a busy week for McTears and to finish March we have various auctions throughout the week with a range of exciting and unique pieces to be auctioned.

Our Fine and Contemporary Pictures auction on Tuesday 27th March will feature a variety of fine painting by predominantly Scottish artists of the last 200 years but it will also include a selection of contemporary pictures. The Carlops Village, watercolour on paper, painted by Sir William George Gillies is a fine example of the types of paintings that will be auctioned. Born in 1898 in Haddington, East Lothian, William began his artistic career at the Edinburgh College of Art in 1916. After graduating he went on to teach for 40 years at ECA and in 1922 founded an exhibition society, '1922'. 'Carlops Village' is a great portrayal of his style and use of more traditional painting with the linear composition and subtle colour palette.
 

Lot 15
Estimate: £2000 - £4000

 Our Furniture & Works of Art auction on Thursday 29th March will also feature fine and unique pieces of furniture and works of art from the 18th-20th centuries. With the 100th anniversary of Titanic's fateful voyage approaching, McTears is delighted to offer a stunning model of ship in this auction. To date, the Titanic's tragic story still remains in the public eye and heart and this intricate model is sure to attract much attention.  

Lot 1975
Estimate: £700 - £900

On Wednesday the 28th of March we also have a Rare & Collectable Whisky, Wine and Port auction at 10.30am and a Fine Jewellery, Watches and Coins auction at 6pm. On Thursday 29th March we also have a Silver, Ceramics & Glass, Vintage Clocks & Watches auction at 10.30am.

For more information visit our Website, Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter.

Return of Dennis the Menace and Desperate Dan...

Dennis the Menace and Desperate Dan to feature in Glasgow's Art Auction later this month.

For years, Dennis the Menace and Desperate Dan have battled for the affections of British children. Soon the comic book icons will be competing in the sale room as they go under the hammer at McTear's Fine & Contemporary Paintings Sale on 27th March. 

When both the Beano and Dandy promotional panels were discovered in an old DC Thomson warehouse in Dundee seven years ago, their importance was not realised. However, with an expert valuation of £2,000, these original pieces are sure to be popular.

The Beano and The Dandy Promotional Panels

The Beano and The Dandy are comics that have been favoured and loved for decades. 

We thought we would have a look at where the iconic Dennis the Menace character came from. Hank Ketchum - creator of Dennis the menace - started his animation career in 1938 at the Walter Lanz Studio in Hollywood. To pursue his career further, Hank and his family moved to New York where his cartoons sold successfully. Due to his son misbehaving, he was referred as 'The Menace' by his wife and in 1950 Dennis the Menace was born. The name produced a great response and in 1965 it was at the top of most leadership polls with hundreds of copies in many countries.

Hank Ketchum 1920-2001 (Source: http://www.peoplequiz.com/biographies-33679-Hank_Ketcham.html)

Today, the comics provide collectors with a sense of nostalgia with the icons taking them back to their childhoods. They caught the eyes of specialists at the BBC's Antiques Roadshow and both promotional panels were featured on the 26th February show in St Andrews. Like the BBC, we have no doubt that both pieces will be extremely popular and are excited to have the unique panels in our Fine & Contemporary Paintings sale. 

The McTear's Fine & Contemporary Paintings sale will take place in McTears on Tuesday 27th March at 6.00pm.

For more information on upcoming auctions visit our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter. 

May 2012 Decorative Arts and Design auction

On Tuesday the 3rd of May McTear's will be holding a Decorative Arts and Design auction.  It will include many works of arts dating back to the 1960s including ceramics, glass, metalwork, jewellery, furniture and fashion. 

Featured in the auction will be a selection of pieces by the prominent artist Margaret Gilmour who is well known for her distinctive Glasgow Style brass designs. Here is a sneak preview of one of Margaret's pieces that will go on sale at McTear’s dedicated Decorative Arts auction.

Estimate: £1000 - £1500

Keep updated by following us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook or visit our website for the many other auctions that will be upcoming in the following months.

McTear's attracts International Silver ...

Silver continues to attract much attention at auction. However, due to its relatively soft and pliable characteristics, fine jewelry created from pure silver can be easily damaged. As a result, it is commonly alloyed with other metals, usually copper, to produce a stronger precious metal. 

At our Silver, Ceramics & Glass, Asian works of Art auction earlier this week we sold various silver pieces from around the world. Two fine examples from this sale are lots 1511 and 1527:

Lot 1527 Indian Silver Bowl

Lot 1511 Indian Silver Inlaid Spittoon 

Also featured in the auction were pieces from the UK and America. American hallmarks differ from British hallmarks considerably. We can compare lot 1450, a silver cigarette box which bears the Birmingham hallmark of an anchor which sold for £120, with lot 1462, a pair of American Sterling silver candelabra which sold for £400:

Lot 1450 Silver Cigarette Box 

Lot 1462 Sterling Silver Candelabra

Again, we hope you enjoyed the Auctions in February and we look forward to seeing you in our upcoming auctions in March.

A Great End to our February Auctions!

On top of our highly successful Rare and Collectable Whisky auction on Wednesday, we've had more great sales in our Silver, Ceramics and Glass, Asian Works of Art and our Furniture and Clocks auction which has rounded up a great February auction list.

This beautiful 19th century Dutch silver tea canister with matching sugar bowl sold for £250 more than its highest estimate, reaching a hammer price of £750.

While this 19th century French gilt brass Kingwood Serpentine Vitrine sold for £1,900, after being given an estimate of between £800 and £1,200.

We hope you enjoyed our February auctions and we're looking forward to seeing you in March

McTear's February Whisky Auction Raises Over £90k!

Whisky lovers from across the globe converged on McTear's today to snap up a selection of some of the world’s rarest examples of the amber nectar.

Our February sale of rare and collectable whisky raised over £90,000 from 500 lots, with classic examples of the Macallan, Highland Park and Laphroaig attracting huge interest and big prices.

A rare 1951 Macallan was sold for £2,800 while a bottle of Laphroaig Vintage Reserve was the subject of intense bidding, eventually selling for £1,100. Highland Park also performed well with a bottle of the distillery’s Pot Still Pure Malt fetching £780, while a bottle of 1963 40 year old Bunnahabhain was snapped up for £430.

Our sale also featured a number of rare bottles of Irish whiskey. A limited edition 34 year old bottle of Coleraine was bought for £1,200 and a collection of five Cadenhead miniatures was sold for a whopping £900.

MD Brian Clements said “It was a great sale with some fantastic bottles going under the hammer, over the past few years the McTear’s whisky auctions have built up an international following with the regular sales featuring some of the finest whiskies on the planet.”

Lot 664: Laphroaig Vintage Reserve