Cheffins is delighted to offer the collection of the late Evelyn Clarke, passionate collector and veteran antique dealer, with a vast array of artefacts, furniture, textiles and objets de vertu going under the hammer on Thursday, 25th July.
11/07/2024 Collectors' Items, Fine Art
Evelyn (known as ‘Eve’) had occupied her shop in the high street of Fulbourn, Cambridgeshire, for nearly 60 years. She was a prominent figure in her local parish but also known to many dealers and collectors alike. Her larger-than-life character is reflected in her personal collection of antiques, antiquity and interior decoration, 340 items of which are included in the sale.
Eve’s lavish and well-travelled lifestyle was manifested in a private collection which was equally rich in diversity and visual splendour. She had a great eye for decoration - lots of colour, decorating techniques, and the very best silk fabrics were used throughout her home. The sale includes a nucleus of early 17th and 18th century oak furniture and textiles (including several stumpwork items) which are complemented by numerous items that would have originated in Europe in the 18th century, many from places of worship, such as altar sticks and religious carvings. These religious artworks were collated and displayed in a dedicated room: “Chapel room”. Eve also loved to buy items with an interesting provenance; was proudly displayed in the ‘gold’ room.
The silver-gilt coronet from the Countess of Craven (lot 294)
In contrast, another room in the house was very much more 19th century in style and was decorated with opulent boulle work furniture, gilt salon furniture with sumptuous silk fabrics, a collection of Palais Royal sewing boxes, items of miniature furniture and objets vertu.
Beautifully detailed 20th Century furniture also features in the sale, such as an early 20th Century green painted and gilt lacquer Chinoiserie decorated bedroom suite, intricately painted with scenes of Chinese figures, pagodas and wildlife (Lot 228 - pictured below).
Dolls and automata were another passion of Eve’s, from a wish to have them as a child, but being unable to do so due to war and their unavailability. The automata on sale includes a fabulous knitting rabbit (Lot 198) and a beer-drinking polar bear (Lot 197) both by the famous Roullet Decamps. A wonderful 19th Century doll’s house (Lot 187) and furniture also features in the sale, with a collection of intricate gilt metal dolls’ house furniture (Lot 183) amongst the lots. Eve’s significant collection of dolls will be sold in a separate auction in the autumn.
A knitting rabbit (Lot 198) by Roullet Decamps
Motoring was another pastime - Eve’s late husband, Denny, had served as a Lancaster bomber pilot and post-war, he started a garage and taxi businesses, moving on to dealing in classic cars. Eve and Denny would also compete in the Monte Carlo rallies in the 1950s and 60s. Cheffins will be offering some of the bumper plates from these rallies, together with some pre-War tinplate toy motor cars, such as a 1930s Meccano No. 2 clockwork Constructor Car (lot 174). For those looking for the real thing, a Rolls Royce Corniche Convertible and an Overfinch Range Rover, which was Eve’s personal transport for the last few years of her very full life, will also be on sale.
Christopher Halls, Director at Cheffins, comments: “Cheffins is privileged to offer the eclectic and visually arresting contents of Eve’s home. Eve had been a long-standing client of Cheffins and a personal friend of mine for over 30 years and her experience as an inveterate collector and dealer is evidenced in her sophisticated layering of objects for decoration. Eve was a larger-than-life character, and this rich and disparate collection is a manifestation of a life well lived.”
Click here to view the catalogue!