Each sale commences at 11am, we look forward to seeing you there

We are an established and respected Auction House specialising in Early Oak Furniture sales that include a rich variety of carvings, tapestries and paintings. We also hold Fine Furniture sales of mahogany and walnut furniture with bronzes, silver & clocks. With only five or six sales per year we are able to concentrate on high quality sales that attract buyers from all over the world.

We are situated in South Yorkshire and are able to collect across the UK and Europe and arrange delivery worldwide. We are a small firm with a dedicated team of enthusiastic, reliable and courteous people offering a unique service. Our services include valuations from single items to large private estates, collection and storage, in house photography, a packing & postal service, live bidding online through www.invaluable.com and www.the-saleroom.com. Professional advice is also available for investors and collectors. We are open for all enquiries Monday to Friday 9am ’til 5pm.

Meet the Team

The auctioneer Stephen, or Sid Wilkinson as he’s better known, has been in the antiques business for over 40 years and has a broad knowledge on a variety of topics. Over the years he has narrowed his field of specialism to the decorative arts and period oak antiques we now sell and have been doing so from our current premises for over 20 years.
Sid is a very jolly and characterful auctioneer who always has a smile and anecdote to share, from his varied and interesting history of dealing with members of the public during valuations and clearances. He’s had the honour of selling some truly exquisite pieces so we took the opportunity to ask him what his favourite items or sales were from the last few years.
“The piece, or should I say pieces which speak to me most are usually the ones that I can see the workmanship and quality in. The most recent pieces which I absolutely loved were the Robert “Mouseman” Thompson monk chairs we had (lots 298-303 in our Nov 2018 sale). They were the best quality from this early period I’ve ever seen, and so tactile. The group of chairs and accompanying tables made a great addition to the Oak sale and it was brilliant to see some early mouseman work with the variations on designs for each mouse.”
As well as an interest in antiques Sid has always had a passion for travel, photography and vintage cameras , which has grown with him since he was a child.
In addition to Sid we also have a number of other members of staff who handle the behind the scenes part of the business, including his wife Poppy and our Manager Matthew Gibson.

Poppy has also been involved in the antiques business for around 30 years, and has a great interest in textiles and period oak pieces as well as classical music. As well as dealing with general behind the scenes paperwork Poppy deals with the catalogue layout and visuals of the adverts as she’s brilliant at setting up a display.
Again we decided to ask what her favourite piece has been from the last couple of years, or most memorable item sold previously.
“I think the first thing that springs to mind is a beautiful Russian silver box we sold previously, but the one I love the most has to be a Carved figure of a King we sold in 2013 (lot 250 from the June 2013 sale to be precise). The carving was so well executed, the ringlets and beard so lifelike and the piece retained a large amount of its original polychrome colouring which was very rare. It was a pleasure to see and when the piece sold for £31 000 we knew the vendor would be happy too. The new owner was equally happy with the piece and we believe still has it in his collection to this day.

Finally we have Matthew, who is relatively new to the auction world, in the grand scheme of antiques and history having been with us full time for a mere 8 years. In addition to Poppy and Sid, Matt (as he is widely known) takes part in the photography, back office work on sales as well as going on external visits with Sid where required to meet customers and collect/deliver furniture and decorative items. A good eye for quality and a keen taste for interior design helped Matt learn quickly on the job and become a useful part of the small team. When not at work Matt can be found with building tools or a paintbrush in hand as he’s a keen developer and furniture re-purposer, as well as enjoying films and music.
When asked about his favourite piece from previous sales it took him a while to decide on one piece, but eventually came up with: “One thing I doubt I’ll forget for quite a while is the J V Aarne brooch in the form of a stag beetle, with a large oval opal making up the body of the subject (lot 414 from our September 2019 sale) and diamonds making up the head with ruby eyes. The workman ship was exceptional, and at every angle there was something to grab your attention”.