Paintings by Samuel Peploe, one of the leading Scottish Colourists, were the stars of the show at Bonhams annual Scottish Sale in Edinburgh on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
In all, the sale made £1,312,413.
Daffodils in a Glass Bowl by Samuel Peploe sold for £158,500
Daffodils in a Glass Bowl, estimated at £100,000-150,000 was sold for £158,500 and was the best-selling lot in the sale. Kirkcudbright, estimated at £60,000-80,000, went for £97,300 and Cassis (Rooftops) dated 1913 and estimated at £80,000-120,000 made £92,500. Kirkcudbright, in Dumfries and Galloway, was a favourite haunt of Peploe’s in the years immediately before World War I as was Cassis in the south of France in the 1920s.
Two further Peploe works, Paris Plage and Iona Abbey sold for £67,300 and £50,000 respectively. In total the five Peploe works made £465,600.
Bonhams Head of Scottish Art at Bonhams Edinburgh said, “Peploe’s work has always been highly prized and the fact that five of the top ten selling pictures in the sale were painted by him speaks for itself.”
An exceptional collection of antique arms, armour and militaria contributed more than £200,000 to the overall total. The James Gordon Collection contained some significant and rare pieces including a pistol which had once belonged to James Boswell, the Scottish biographer of Samuel Johnston, compiler of the first English dictionary. The weapon sold for £20,000 against a pre-sale estimate of £5,000-7,000.
James Boswell’s pistol sold for £20,000
The Managing Director of Bonhams Scotland, Miranda Leslie said, “The Scottish Sale is an annual highlight for Bonhams Scotland. Its broad range of all things Scottish has great appeal and it is always eagerly anticipated by collectors. This year we had some exceptional items, including the Peploes and the James Gordon Collection, but it was a strong sale across all areas with 80% of lots finding new owners.”
And the lot we were most interested in was Bonnie Prince Charlie’s cooking pot which sold for £22,500.
We got a glimpse of it up close and personal during the preview last week.
The Edinburgh Reporter News – Bonhams Scottish Sale from Phyllis Stephen on Vimeo.
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