Criminally High Prices at Auction

Picasso once famously described painting as an ‘offensive and defensive weapon against the enemy’. A weapon indeed, but perhaps not the sort one might expect to be found in the hands of a convicted killer. Nevertheless, some might be surprised to hear that infamy and artistry have a long history of collaboration, and the industry even has a name; Murderabilia. Whether it be personal artefacts owned by criminals, or artwork created by them, the market for mobsters, gangsters and serial killers is thriving, with pieces selling for substantial sums at auction. 

One such work by Ronnie Kray, the younger of the now notorious Kray twins, considered by many to be the foremost perpetrators of organised crime in the East End of London by the 1960s, is now up for grabs in our next Fine Art and Antiques auction in March. Entitled ‘Charlie on Tractor’ it depicts Ronnie and Reggie’s older brother in a rural idyl, with Ronnie’s trademark white cottage painted in the distance - his notion of an ideal home. The style is naive, childlike even, a technique adopted by both brothers in their art, something which they embarked upon after their imprisonment for murder in 1969. 

Ronnie Kray acrylic on canvas, dated 1971, Parkhurst Prison
Titled to the reverse 'Charlie on Tractor' beside Ronnie's prison number 

The brothers are not alone in their pursuit, Michael Gordon Peterson, better known as Charles Bronson, and more recently Charles Salvador (in reverence to Salvador Dali) is also a keen artist. His darkly humorous paintings, drawings and poetry being both exhibited and sold during his tenure in prison. Used occasionally as part of psychotherapy, in some instances art can be deployed as a means of self-expression and communication, and as a result may be viewed upon as an insight into the criminal mind; studying what their subconscious prompted them to paint or draw. Although one must be mindful of over-indulging in cod psychology, as tempting as it seems. 

A drawing by Charles Salvador (Bronson) sold in 2014 

The criminal artist is certainly not a new phenomenon, Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) the Italian revolutionary painter was constantly in trouble for his aggressive ways on the mean streets of early 17th Century Rome, where sword fights were common practice. Inevitably he killed a man in a duel on a piazza and fled, and his subsequent works seem haunted by the shadows they populate. Richard Dadd, the 19th Century popular painter of fairy-folk produced many of his masterpieces whilst in hospital, receiving treatment for what the Victorian’s dubbed an ‘unsound mind’, now schizophrenia, following the murder of his own father in 1843. Today graffiti artists create masterpieces, their nature in pure defiance of the law, with Banksy making a career from stencilling places that he shouldn’t. A small part of his allure is driven by his anonymity, and his ability to evade capture and conviction, his real name rumoured to be ‘Robin Banks’ (ahem). He is the cloaked political artist of the day, or hi-viz should we say, given Banksy’s penchant for ‘hiding in plain sight’. 

Caravaggio David with the Head of Goliath, 1607 
Kunsthistorisches Museum Gemäldegalerie, Vienna

E.H Gombrich summed it up in the opening chapter of his seminal book The Story of Art, declaring ‘There is no such thing as art. There are only artists’. This is certainly the case when placing a value on art at auction, where you may hear the term ‘form’ banded about. This simply refers to the artist’s oeuvre, or body of work if you prefer, and the impact the artist has made on the world. That’s why my paint splashes don’t have quite the same gravitas as those produced by Jackson Pollock. 

At the end of the day the market is the ultimate arbiter, and in this case it has well and truly spoken.  Specialist websites for such material have sprang up in recent years, and in 2009 eight paintings by the Kray brothers sold for an astonishing £12,200 at auction. ‘Charlie on Tractor’ carries a more modest pre-sale estimate of £200-400 in our March 14th auction. 

GN

Banksy. Works by the artist can now fetch £20,000-40,000 at auction  

Bargain Hunt at Laidlaw

Closing Date for Entries

Friday 21st November is the closing date for entries to our forthcoming Christmas auction of Antiques, Collectors' Items & Fine Furnishings. 

This sale will take place on Saturday 13th December from 10 am. Viewing is Friday 9-5 with a champagne reception from 5-7pm. 

Keep posted for further updates as they happen. 

Lots of Appeal

In this month more than any other our thoughts are invariably drawn to remembrance, with paper poppies being pinned to all. It is a unique year, one in which we have reflected upon both the Centenary of the Great War, and so too 70 years since the D-Day landings. Last week I travelled like many others to see the ‘Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red’ installation at the Tower of London, created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins. Awe inspiring and sorrowful, the sheer scale of the work was a visual feat, reminding us plainly of the magnitude, cause and effect of War, both on the fallen and those they left behind.

In light of the times it is perhaps not surprising that insurance firms and auction rooms alike are reporting soaring prices for war memorabilia. Because we have all been touched by these events, there exists in nearly every home a personal story, a small collection of medals, or a stash of ephemera at the back of the bureau drawer. Equally, the demand for such is strong, with collectors’ searching for those fresh-to-the market pieces, articles that explore new stories, or simply fill a cavity in the collection. 

The latter could be said about our most recent dedicated military auction, which took place in September, wherein we sold an important lifetime’s collection of Royal Engineers material, predominantly in the form of badges and insignia, amassing a result of over £25,000 on the day. Aviation enthusiasts were similarity treated to two rare ephemera groups in that same sale. Firstly a Great War Royal Flying Corps photographic archive, assembled by an RFC technician involved in the development of aerial machine gun interrupter mechanisms (a device that stops the destruction of your own propellors as you shoot the enemy) which sold for £520, and secondly (perhaps my favourite lot ever sold) an important document group pertaining to RAF fighter ace Squadron Leader James MacLachlan DFO, DFC and bars. I wrote about this group in a previous blog entry called ‘High Flying Adored’, and I could have written a novel. It comprised flying log books, manuscript diaries and personal items belonging to the fighter ace, while the following lot in the same sale also saw items belonging to his RAF fighter pilot brother Gordon. All in all this complete story captured the audience and stole the show, selling for £7,700. While further on in the same auction an RAF Pathfinder uniform group comprising sheepskin Irvin flying suit, and tunic, sold for £680. It had been consigned by the family of the original recipient after enjoying a second wind; serving as a motorbike jacket to later generations. 

Sq Ldr James MacLachlan

Another blog entry back in September (‘Marked Most Secret: Operation Locksmith’) and another lot in this sale, was a rare SOE gallantry group awarded to Sergeant Thomas Handley. A moving story to say the least, it found a good second home with a collector of such for £10,000. 

While no-one is surprised when a rare gallantry medal sells for thousands of pounds, clients are more commonly taken aback at the value of apparently mundane items such as khaki uniforms and bayonets. More often than not, this is because khaki was used to destruction or disposed of shortly thereafter. Indeed in this same sale a rather moth eaten khaki tunic of a First World War Manchester Regiment sergeant sold for £500. 

Sgt Thomas Handley

While it’s not particularly hard to identify military equipment or clothing, frequently it is a specialist who can single out a rarity of pattern, use or date. Only last week a client walked into our offices with a rusty bayonet and no expectations as to value, while Paul recognised it as an extremely rare example carried by the Cambridge University volunteer infantry during the era of the Napoleonic Wars. Despite its condition, and because of this additional information, it is expected to sell for up to £300. 

Surprisingly perhaps, it is an all too-common occurrence for inherited pieces of reasonable value to remain camouflaged in familiar surroundings. From that bowl grandma uses for potpourri, to the two 18th Century hunting swords consigned to our forthcoming December 13th sale. Downgraded to fire pokers for a number of years, they are now expected to sell in the region of £500. Other such finds have recently included an 18^th Century Scottish Highland Regiment basket-hilted sword, from a shed, which sold for £820, and a group of Second World War Japanese trophy swords brought back by a soldier for the Scottish Borders and passed on through the family which sold for up to £3800 each. 

It is medals however which continue to produce the most moving and inspiring of stories. Already consigned to our forthcoming Christmas sale in December is a Military Medal group to a First World War Royal Army Medical Corps private. The recipient Frank Basnett volunteered in November of 1914, and in the May of the following year he embarked aboard the ship ‘The Royal Edward’ for Gallipoli. Unfortunately en route the vessel was torpedoed and sunk with the loss of over 1100 men, Basnett being one survivor. His diary remains and in it is his own account of the disaster. Later, while serving in France, he was awarded the Military Medal for bravery as ‘he was employed as a runner on the front line, and with total disregard for his own life he carried messages from one post to another for hour after hour under heavy fire. He also volunteered to work as a stretcher bearer with no consideration for his own safety or fatigue.’

Another relative, another story and another poppy to cast a thought upon this month. 

First World War Military Medal Group

The Bellewaarde 1915 Memorial Appeal

Watch out for a windfall

Mobile phones, cameras and watches have one thing in common; we all own a succession of them throughout the course of a lifetime, and yet seldom dispose of the old ones. Furthermore, watches in particular are a very personal possession, and inherited examples often exercise a special sentimental hold on the descendants of their original owners. For this reason large numbers of long neglected watches are to be found in many a bureau drawer or jewellery box, passed down through generations.  

As an auctioneer I am commonly presented with such accumulations of timepieces. Often replaced because of a fault, possibly a cracked crystal or over-wound mainspring. Sometimes simply forsaken because of changes in fashion or technology; how many good mechanical watches were abandoned at the advent of the digital age? While some of these remnants to time long-since past are of but modest value, most are collectable to come extent, and others are valuable in the extreme. 

First things first, let’s get one thing out of the way, and differentiate between gold and silver-cased watches. Regardless of variety or condition, the former will have a value, so for the purposes of this article assume we are discussing silver or non-precious metallic examples. Now let us divide the subject into those worn in the pocket, and those on the wrist. The origins of the former lie in the 15th Century, when they were first known as pocket-clocks, though these are rare, and most of us will only encounter those from the Georgian or Victorian eras. The former most commonly run on a verge type movement, using an escapement ancient in origin, indeed most old church tower clocks are of this type. These watches also commonly have two cases and are thus termed ‘pair-cased’. Not rare as such, the value starts at around £100, although early 18^th century examples can sell for £2,000-3,000. The verge was gradually replaced during the 19th Century by the more accurate lever escapement, a watch of slimmer proportions. 

Such Victorian examples are the most commonly encountered, and variations include smaller examples worn by women, known as fob watches, and hunters and half-hunters, both with hinged protective covers to their faces for more active pursuits. Unexceptional examples generally sell at between £30 and £80, although again, higher values can be achieved. Find one such with a repeater movement, indicating the time by means of chimes, or having a chronometer movement, or perhaps a Masonic or military example and you could be looking at closer to £1000. 

The First World War changed the way watches were worn, and how indeed the majority of us wear them to this day. It is generally accepted that it was demands from soldiers serving in the trenches for a more practical means of carriage that brought about the wristwatch. Small wristwatches dating to the early 20th Century are today commonly (and erroneously) referred to as trench watches, and regardless of quality or condition the market for such is strong, and prices high. Poor examples start at a few tens of pounds, though examples with prestigious movements such as Longines or with patent guards to protect the crystals can sell for closer to £300. The current vogue for military issue watches of all periods has driven prices of late. Values often appear out of proportion to the utilitarian appearance of these military issue pieces. Find a Second World War army or RAF issue watch by say the International Watch Company and you’ll likely have a timepiece worth £2,000-3,000 at auction. A military issue Rolex Submariner can fetch up to £50,000.

In our modern, brand-driven economy, names such as Rolex, Omega and Breitling are as familiar as Mercedes and Ferrari. More than anything else it is such names that add value to post-War wristwatches. As money in the bank is viewed as a wasting asset, many are choosing to enjoy their wealth and indeed wear it. Demand for elite watches is strong, and prices for such are on the rise. 

Perhaps now is the time to revisit Grandad’s old army wristwatch or Dad’s long-service presentation Rolex.

Going, Going, 'Gong'!

Besides old boxes of play-worn Dinky and other toys (a subject for another day perhaps), one thing to be found in most homes, lurking at the back of a bureau drawer or in the bottom of a jewellery box, is the odd military medal awarded to some distant ancestor. As Great Britain built it’s now long gone empire, or indeed fought for the liberty of its allies in two World Wars, it recognised the sacrifice of its soldiers by awarding medals, and most families won’t have to climb far into their respective family trees in order to find an ancestor who served King and country.

To the untrained eye one ‘gong’, a term coined by soldiers to refer to their medals, looks much like another. For this reason we auctioneers are commonly presented with inherited family medals which turn out to be Royal commemoratives or school attendance awards of relatively little collector value. However, find the right medal in that pile of old papers and it could prove to be rather valuable indeed. Just recently a client did just that, arriving at our saleroom with their late uncle’s Second World War group, or more specifically a SOE gallantry group with Military Medal, later selling for £12,100 at auction. 

So what does one look for to help identify and value those dusty old family medals? Well, the good news is; aside from campaign medals issued for the Second World War, the British generally struck the recipient’s details around the edge of the award. Get a magnifier, take a look and you will most likely identify the rank, name and unit of your ancestor. While the medals themselves are generally self explanatory, their design incorporating the monarch, date and campaign, or reasons for the award. All of these factors contribute to the medal’s value; those for obscure campaigns, or to ‘sought after units’ such as the SAS or Special Forces commanding greater values than those say to the ubiquitous artillery Gunner of the Great War. Take for example a pair of First World War medals, issued let’s say to an artilleryman. At auction they would cost around £20-30 to purchase due to the large number issued, reflecting the tens of thousands of soldiers fighting. 

Medals can further be categorised as either campaign or gallantry awards. The former were issued to all soldiers serving in a given war or campaign, while the latter were issued for specific acts of bravery and generally command the highest prices. The first officially issued campaign medal was done so retrospectively by Queen Victoria, to those still alive who had fought at Waterloo, prices for these start at around £2000. However the aforementioned campaign medals for World War Two, not individually named as an economy measure, and indeed a great source of hurt to those who received them, can be valued at around £10 per medal.

So there you have it. Take a closer look at those old military medals; they’ll tell a tale and also have the potential to be very valuable indeed.