COLUMN: Impressive collection of Royal Crown Derby

The collection of over two hundred examples of these imaginative and distinctive pieces realised an impressive total of over £16,000.

Our expectations were exceeded in almost all cases with the most desirable lots inspiring enthusiastic bidding in the room, on-line and on the telephone.

Two of the original Sinclair’s ‘Derbyshire Wildlife’ series, the Buxton Badger and the Bakewell Duck, realised £460 and £300 respectively. I remember the increasing excitement as the pieces in this series were gradually released by Sinclairs and watched their secondary value soar. It is amazing when you think that the Bakewell duck cost a mere £50 when it appeared in Sinclair’s shop in 1990

Amongst the other star lots was a paperweight to commemorate the Fiftieth Anniversary of VE Day, ‘The Spirit of Peace’, reached a hammer price of £800.

A striking Prestige Black Swan, limited to only three hundred, passed its higher guide price to reach £560 and a selection of prints depicting some of the original paperweight designs surprised all reaching £130.

It goes to show that there remains a very strong market for these pieces, especially for the rare limited editions.