IN THE SALEROOMS

WELDON’S

Convertible jewellery from the inventive Victorians takes centre stage at John Weldon Auctioneers on 23 June at 10.30am. The sale includes several early transformers: a diamond and ruby bangle that becomes a hair piece (guided between €3,000 and €5,000) and a diamond and pink tourmaline set brooch with a detachable fitting so that it can also be worn as a pendant (€3,000 to €4,000).

A Victorian diamond set star burst brooch (€9,000 to €12,000) can also be worn on a chain as a pendant or used in a tiara. The auctioneer points out that the recipient of such works of miniature engineering is getting two pieces of jewellery for the price of one. There are also pieces that reflect the Victorian fascination with bugs in jewellery – once again in high style – including a diamondset dragon fly brooch (€1,200 to €1,800). Viewing begins on Saturday 20 June with full details on www.jwa.ie.

ADAM’S

There’s something intimate about an artist’s collection. It may include their own work – paintings they loved too much to sell and paintings that they simply couldn’t – and the work of their friends, purchased out of admiration or compassion. It may include gifts, both wanted and unwanted, and items that they treasured and or just happened to possess.

The collection of the artist Nancy Wynne-Jones and her sculptor husband Conor Fallon of Ballard House, County Wicklow, will go under the hammer at Adam’s Auctioneers on Wednesday 24 June at 6 pm. Items include several sculptures by Fallon, most publically known for his winged horse triptych, Pegasus, outside the Independent Newspapers building at City West on the Naas road. There are also a number of paintings by Wynne-Jone and a very personal selection of works by artists including Tony O’Malley, Sean McSweeney, Peter Lanyon and Nano Reid. Viewing is from Sunday 21 June with full details from www.adams.ie.

SHEPPARD’S

A carved jade seal ( pictured) sold for €260,000 at Sheppard’s auction of Chinese Ceramics, Asian Works of Art and Paintings on 26 May. It was described as a “Chinese celadon jade SSan Xi Tang double gourd” a title that could do with a bit of explaining. Jade, of course, is an intensely vvaluable stone.

“Celadon” rrefers to its colour and “double gourd” to the shape of the object, which resembles a figureof-eight. As a seal, it would have been used as an official stamp. And, most importantly, San Xi Tang translates as the “studio of the three rarities”, the Imperial Sleeping quarters and power centre of the Forbidden City in mid 18thcentury Beijing.

The seal is carved with intertwining qilong (coiling mythic beasts) while the characters are cut on the underside. The piece, which would fit comfortably into a box of fireside matches, had been estimated to sell between €4,000 and €6,000.