Busy week ahead with art and antiques sales nationwide

It’s the busiest week of the year for fine art and antiques auctions. Aside from the three big art auctions in Dublin, there are also numerous other sales nationwide.

Tomorrow (November 29th) Drums Auctioneers of Malahide will hold a house contents auction in 14 Asgard Park, Howth, Dublin 13 at 2pm. It has relatively affordable paintings, some of which have an appropriately maritime theme, including Between Skerries and Balbriggan by Alexander Williams (€1,000-€1,500); Fishing Trawlers, Howth by Ivan Sutton (€800-€1,200); and Among the Blaskets, County Kerry by John Faulkner (€800-€1,200). The top lot is The Bog Road, Donegal by Frank McKelvey (€4,000- €6,000). Viewing is today from 11am-5pm.

On Monday (November 30th) in Waterford, RJ Keighery's City Auction Rooms will hold

its first antiques auction to be broadcast live on the internet (the-saleroom.com) facilitating online bidding . Highlights include a Killarneyware arbutus wood fold-over games table (€4,000- €6,000); an Asprey silver tray and six sweet dishes (€6,000-€8,000); and a Victorian mahogany grandfather clock with brass face, “Sharp, Dublin” (€1,500-€2,000).

On Wednesday (December 2nd) in Roscrea, Co Tipperary, Victor Mitchell Auctioneers will hold its Winter Antique & Decorative Interiors Auction at 10.30am. Among the 750 lots (see victormitchell.com) is a copper token, dated 1802, in mint condition, inscribed: "One Shilling and One Penny, payable at Tullamore first Tuesday in each month." It is one of the specially minted coins used to pay workers building Charleville Castle (€100).

By coincidence, on Sunday week, (December 6th) Matthews Auction Rooms will hold an antiques auction in that very venue, Charleville Castle, just outside Tullamore. The intriguing, neo-Gothic house, originally built by the Earl of Charleville, Charles William Bury (1764 -1835) was abandoned by the family in 1912. The then heir, Colonel Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury, the famous Himalayan explorer, chose to live in his other inherited property, Belvedere House, near Mullingar.

Although the auction does not include the contents of the castle, it’s an interesting venue and auctioneer Damien Matthews says “the castle is a Gothic confection without parallel in Ireland – quite extraordinary really, untouched – and this auction is worth viewing to see the interiors alone”.

The viewing begins at Charleville Castle on Friday, December 4th from 11am and the auction takes place there on Sunday at 1pm. For further information, see matthewsauctionrooms.com