Heart of stone

A cut-crystal bed, with associated mirrors and throne, sparkled at auction earlier this month, but no glamour could beat the prize that was the Union Flag flown by HMS Spartiate at the Battle of Trafalgar

Rufus Bird considers whether the market is up or down

FANCY A PUNT? ‘Online auctions – just too easy!’ ...

Estimate £15,000-£20,000 Sold £32,000+BP An evocative, delicate watercolour, The North Wind, came from the brush of free spirit Emily Brontë, author of Wuthering Heights and one-third of the world-fam

Canny collectors should swoop in when an artist falls out of fashion–but always pay attention to quality, because even the greatest names, such as Picasso, made the odd pot-boiler

The piece I’d never part with