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Textiles from Scottish Country Houses Lead Sale

17th November 2023.

The Costume, Accessories and Textiles Sale, held at Tennants Auctioneers on 17^th November, was filled to the brim with antique textiles, millinery, and costume from good private collections. Items dating from 1900-1930 were particularly in demand, with examples from this era amongst the highest in the sale.

A large proportion of the sale was consigned from two good family collections of costume and textiles from Scottish country houses – The Family Collection from Cullaloe House, Fife, and The Contents of an Attic in Perthshire. With many of the items having been stored away in trunks for generations, there were some fantastic, rare pieces in good condition. Highlights of the Scottish collections included an Early 20^th Century Decorative Cream Cotton Lace Stole (sold for £1,100 plus buyer’s premium), a Late 19^th Century Brussels Applique and Embroidered Cream Lace Shawl (sold for £650), and an Early 20^th Century Possibly French Chantilly Lace Flounce embroidered with racehorses and jockeys (sold for £300).

An Early 20th Century Decorative Cream Cotton Lace Stole
A Late 19th Century Brussels Applique and Embroidered Cream Lace Shawl
A Detail of the Chantilly Lace Flounce
A Late 19th Century Mother of Pearl Fan, and an Ostrich Feather Fan
A Late 18th/Early 19th Century Native American Birch Bark Box with Cover
A Late 19th Century Green Velvet Cape and Liberty & Co Velvet Stole
A Scottish Alphabet Sampler, worked by Susanna Robertson 1749
A Decorative Scottish Sampler Worked by Barbara Key 1812
A Circa 1930s Curved Walnut Vanity and Dressing Stand
A Globe Wernicke Oak Four Height Stacking Bookcase
A Circa 1930s Oak Glazed Shop or Haberdashery Display Cabinet
Mainly Early 20th Century Decorative Hat Pins (1)
A Circa 1930s Gold Satin Evening Dress and Black Silk Evening Coat
Late 19th Century Possibly Turkish hand Embroidered Stitched Panel
A Pair of Chinese Rank Badges

Further notable lots from Scotland included a Late 19^th Century Mother of Pearl Fan, sold together with an Ostrich Feather Fan (sold for £1,000), a Late 18^th/Early 19^th Century Native American Birch Bark Box and Cover decorated with embroidered moose hair (sold for £650), and a Late 19^th Century Green Velvet Cape and a Liberty & Co. Purple Velvet Long Evening Sole (sold together for £700). Good samplers were in demand, too, including a Scottish Alphabet Sampler worked by Susanna Robertson in 1749 (sold for £800), and a Decorative Scottish Sampler worked by Barbara Key in 1812 (sold for £800).

The Milliner’s Workroom, a private collection of antique and vintage millinery, sold well, too. Amongst the feathers, ribbons, hats and millinery tools in the collection were a Circa 1930s Curved Walnut Vanity and Dressing Stand (sold for £1,500), a Globe Wernicke Oak Four Height Stacking Bookcase (sold for £750), and a Circa 1930s Oak Glazed Shop or Haberdashery Display Cabinet (sold for £380). Hat pins saw strong bidding, too, with a group of approximately 150 early 20^th century examples selling for £350, and a stylish Circa 1930s Gold Satin Evening Dress and Black Silk Evening Coat selling for £700.

From other vendors in the sale came a Late 19^th Century, Possibly Turkish, Hand Embroidered Stitched Panel in Suzani Style, which sold for £900 having been spotted by the vendor in a car boot sale, and two pairs of Chinese Rank Badges which sold for £250 each.

The sale achieved a total hammer price of £52,460 with a 91% sold rate for 325 lots.

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