News Archive
Spink highlights from 2003: An outstanding year
for Spink in a strong market for collectables
This year has seen some exceptional auctions at Spink, both in
London and abroad, with some extremely exciting collections and several
new auction records being set.
Coins
A great year for the Coin Department which has had some wonderful sales,
the most significant being the Slaney Collection of English Coins
sold in May. This almost mythical collection created much interest as
most of the items had been off the market for over 50 years and therefore
realised a great total of over £1m, the highest price achieved for
a single session sale of English coins sold in the UK. Many new world
record prices were set, some of which are listed below.
| 15 May, lot 136 |
Charles II 'Petition' Crown of 1663 |
£158,700 |
| 15 May, lot 20 |
Edward VI Crown 1551 |
£41,400 |
| 15 May, lot 60 |
Charles I Half Crown 1643 |
£40,250 |
Another notable sale was the Milan Sale of Genoese and Milanese
coins on 9-10 June which realised over €1.3m, with several
record prices achieved, including:
| 9-10 June, lot 425 |
Genoa 4-Lira 1641 |
€21,080 |
| 9-10 June, lot 433 |
Genoa 2-Reali 1666 |
€44,640 |
Banknotes
This has been a bumper year for banknotes during which we held a record
seven auctions. We kicked off the year by hosting a special charity
auction at the Bank of England; and went on to have more memorable
sales including a sale of Scottish Banknotes in Edinburgh
and A Collection of Treasury, Bank of England and Scottish Banknotes
sold in London. Notable prices included:
| 9 April, Lot 567 |
Palestine Currency Board (an auction record) |
£48,300 |
| 2 Oct, Lot 220 |
Bank of England, K O Peppiatt, £1000 |
£19,550 |
Medals
Two excellent sales this year have realised nearly £1.5m. Highlights
have included from the November sale, lot 607, the Victoria Cross
Group to T/Comn. D. M. W. Beak. D.S.O. M.C. Drake Bn. R.N.V.R;
which sold for a record breaking £178,250. The same auction saw
the awards to Major General Sir Denis Pack sell for £176,525,
an auction record for a Napoleonic Wars group of medals; and from the
May sale, lot 598 - the DSM Group of Seven to Petty Officer L.
Frank - sold for £59,800, which was also an auction record.
Stamps
This has been an extraordinary year for Stamps, with 17 sales covering
a broad range of areas and producing some amazing results. Notable sales
have included the “Grant” Collection and
the Marcus Samuel Collection of Great Britain. The latter
comprised a rare collection of Specimen stamps that made in excess of
double its low estimate.
In November this year the Stamp Department hosted Spink’s first
sale in Paris. The La Fayette Collection of errors of
France’s classic era sold for over €5.5m and smashed many world
records. Stamps from the William Fraser Estate sold well
throughout the year and included the Rarities sale which
saw many wonderful stamps come under the hammer. Some of the auction record
pieces included:
| 21-22 March, lot 32 |
Australia 1930 2d. Tête-Bêche pair |
£82,800 |
| 21-22 March, lot 910 |
Virgin Islands 1867 1/- “Missing Virgin” error |
£69,000 |
| 8 May, lot 35 |
British PO in Bangkok, 1885, 32c. on 2a pair |
£71,300 |
| 17 Nov, lot 50 |
France 1849/50 1fr vermilion Tête-Bêche block of four |
€907,000 |
| 17 Nov, lot 83 |
France 1849/50 1fr pale vermilion Tête-Bêche block of
four |
€511,000 |
Books
2003 has been a busy and successful year for the Books Department at Spink,
with the publication of some outstanding reference works, and many exciting
new projects in preparation for publication next year.
Please click here for further
details.
We look forward to another busy and successful year in 2004,
and wish a happy and prosperous new year to all our clients.
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