Sir Alfred Munnings painting romps home

A painting by Sir Alfred Munnings (1878-1959), Coade stone panels and a pair of 18th-century Italian commodes were among the top sellers in The Cotswold Auction Company’s recent sale of Pictures, Antiques and Interiors.

The Munnings painting, entitled Barnet Fair, sold for a hammer of £32,000, towards the lower end of its estimate. The painting depicts a boy at the well-known 19th-century horse fair, hands in pockets, flanked by horses with a marquee/tent in the background.

A pair of Coade stone panels flew away at £29,500, well above their estimate of £6,000 to £10,000. Entitled Agriculture and Navigation, the pair – dated London 1797 – were based on designs by John Bacon (1740-1799) and believed to have been moulded by Joseph Panzetta and Thomas Dubbin. The reliefs came from the gatehouse of the Apsley Estate, Hurstbourne Priors, Andover. They were salvaged and reclaimed in the 1970s when the gatehouse was demolished.

A pair of mid-18th century Italian red painted commodes also performed well, selling for £20,000, again well above their estimate of £5,000 to £10,000. The successful Italian bidder was so delighted he ran up to the rostrum to let everyone know they were going back to their home country.

Director of The Cotswold Auction Company, Lindsey Braune, said: “This was a very successful sale with some exceptional pieces on offer. “We had expected the Sir Alfred Munnings’ painting to attract a lot of interest, and it did. However, we were also thrilled by how well the Coade stone panels and Italian furniture performed relative to their respective estimates. This shows that the market remains strong for the very best examples across a range of categories.”