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Part 4 - The Auction Peggy's Report, Sep 2005

Returning to glorious Sotheby’s on 28th September, the auction was busy but not as crowded as expected. About 10 telephone bidders occupied a long desk at the side. There were about 30 serious bidders seated in the room.

The auctioneer did his job very well. Talking non-stop from 10.30am to after 3.00pm, he went through over 400 lots. Like Shirley, his clear voice never faltered. Two large screens were placed either side of the podium. They displayed photos of each lot, the current bid and the equivalent in other currencies.



Bidding was discrete, as befits such a classy joint. The tiniest movement could be interpreted as a bid. Whenever the final bid failed to exceed the seller’s reserve, the lot was declared “Not sold”.

Then - at last - a certain Dame’s property was announced and the atmosphere instantly became livelier. The bids were high, often exceeding the estimates. Lot 410, a mahogany chest with seven drawers estimated at £1,500-2,000 fetched a massive £8,000 in the room. More expensive than some of those gowns at Christie’s!

The only flop was lot 421, a drawing attributed to Queen Victoria, estimated at £2,000-3,000. It reached £1,700 and was declared “Not sold”. This was the only lot I didn’t like out of a gorgeous range.



As we had already confirmed, Shirley didn’t go. Hopefully she was busy in the recording studio.

We spoke to a smart gentleman who bought a good number of Shirley’s items. He explained that he was buying on behalf of a rich client planning to decorate their bedroom in the Bassey style.

A man with a Russian accent was another mega spender. He told me that Shirley is the “grrreatest zingerrr in the worrrld!” I didn’t argue.

Here’s a list of the winning bids:
 

Lot 407		Hermaphrodite		£3,000
Lot 408		Pair of candelabra		£2,600
Lot 409		Pair table lamps		£1,200
Lot 410		Chest of drawers		£8,000
Lot 411		Console table		£800
Lot 412		Leopard salon suite		£2,800
Lot 413		Vase		£1,800
Lot 414		Credenza		£1,800
Lot 415		Bureau desk		£5,000
Lot 416		Oil painting		£3,000
Lot 417		2 gouache drawings		£550
Lot 418		Chest of drawers		£3,800
Lot 419		Table		£5,500
Lot 420		Mirror		£4,000
Lot 421		Queen Victoria		Not sold
Lot 422		4 engravings		£1,500
Lot 423		Oil painting		£5,800
Lot 424		Mirror		£1,200

# What a day this has been #

Thanks to Peggy for providing the report and photos.

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