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A rare, colonial Australian brooch has sold for under £10,000 at Fellows Auctioneers in Birmingham. Pieces with aboriginal details are infrequently offered for sale at auction. The item depicts an emu and kangaroo amongst native flora – a common theme in Australian Jewellery. Perhaps slightly more unusual is the incorporation of an aboriginal person. The piece garnered a lot of interest before the sale and, against an estimate of £500 – £700, the brooch sold for over ten times its estimate for a hammer price of £7,300 (£9,314.80 including fees).
After frantic bidding over two telephone lines, bidders in the room and online, the bids kept rising until an Australian buyer bought the fascinating piece of jewellery over the internet. This brooch was the highlight of Fellows’ monthly Antique & Modern Jewellery auction on Thursday 24th January 2019.
Alex Duffy, Jewellery Specialist at Fellows Auctioneers, said “The brooch is a beautifully crafted example of Australian colonial jewellery, a rare commodity for which modern-day Australians show a wonderful appreciation. Among the more common motifs of the emu and kangaroo, this particular piece features an Aboriginal person seated among the flora and fauna. This is something I have never previously come across in jewellery of this period.”
A Similar Example in 2024
In our upcoming Jewellery auction on January 13th, we have a similar example:
Lot 14 in Fellows’ current Jewellery Timed Auction is an ‘Advance Australia’ pendant. Along with an early 20th century 9ct gold Australian Continent brooch. The pendant with marks to indicate 9ct gold, its length is 3.1 cm and its weight is 1.6gms. The pendant is in an overall good condition with surface scratches/wear in keeping with general age and wear. Its estimate is £70-100.
Jewellery | Day One & Day Two – Tuesday 13th & Wednesday 14th of February
Viewing Times (ID required):
Birmingham
Monday 12th February 10:00-16:00
Virtual viewings are available by request. Virtual viewings are the ultimate personal shopping experience. Using Zoom, you can ask us whatever you need to know in order to buy with confidence. Find out more here.
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