When something is so rare, any notion of condition or other aspects can not be completely forgotten, but can be forgiven when the most unusual pieces enter the market.
One such piece came in from a private sale of fine clocks, timepieces and part workings, from the east coast of Lincolnshire forming over several hundred items and what was a white glove section of the sale in that every piece in the consignment sold.
The star of the show was lot 1003 on March 25th, A Black Forest cuckoo clock; the case itself was beautifully carved and of perfect proportion. It as exquisitely decorated and contained some workings even if they did need some attention couple with this a hallowed blinking action, in that when the hour strikes in theory the cuckoo comes out and the decorative back plate in this case two monkeys with blinking eyes and you can see that this is a high class novelty: difficult to make around 150 years ago, when this was first conceived and an extremely rare survivor now.
The condition was not so good: the workings were rusted and ceased, sections of the case were lacking, mouldings were not present in places, it was tired but this was excused by the quality of the decoration. Also, you rarely see these, you read about them and hope you may find one behind three inches of glass in a museum, it was a truly amazing find and one of the best things seen in a while.
It came in with several hundred other pieces which sold beautifully and this highlights the importance of allowing the market to decide matters. When you consign with an RICS accredited company like Golding Young, you are putting your trust with a group who truly care, we have the ability to achieve great awareness and prices through good cataloguing, personal enthusiasm, world class photography and an online and local network of buyers that all combine to achieve wonderful results.
This clock went to Germany, it was bid by buyers across Europe and Britain, other pieces were bid up by the American trade and by collectors in the Far East, you can guarantee huge coverage with all items here with financial success too.
And what of the clock, a restorer’s dream, dusty and forgotten, but now towelled down and in the limelight? A pleasing £1100 was achieved, a brilliant result and just imagine if it were in perfect condition?
Never be afraid of damage, of course we want perfection, but always show us things, never dispose of things until we have had a look and remember, we are always here to help and advise at our salerooms in Lincoln, Grantham and Bourne.
