Over 60 people attended a free pop-up valuation event in West Cumbria from leading county auction firm Mitchells.
And if you think you have cash in the attic – you can visit our Penrith office next month for another of the firm’s events.
People flocked to Maryport’s Shipping Brow Gallery for the event earlier this month.
People were invited to simply turn up with their items for a free, no obligation valuation by Mitchells’ head of antiques & fine art James Moore and valuer Claire Machin.
Even before the doors opened at 11am there was a constant stream of people arriving from as far afield as Penrith, St Bees and Lorton carrying all sorts of items to be valued, from antique dolls and toys to jewellery, objects of art, collector’s items and metalware.
The largest items to come through the door were paintings by local artists including a pastoral scene by William Mitchell of Maryport (1823-1900), best known for his maritime paintings which have sold for as much as £8,000 at Mitchells auction.
Several artworks by Percy Kelly (1918-1993) were also brought in to be valued including two large charcoal drawings of machinery in Sekers Silk Mills in Whitehaven.
Neil Mossop, the owner of the drawings, said Kelly had originally been commissioned to produce 13 artworks by the mill founder Sir Nicholas Sekers who hosted the first public exhibition of Kelly’s work at Rosehill Theatre, near Whitehaven.
When the mill building was demolished in 1989, one of the demolition workers spotted the drawings in a skip and rescued two of them, missing three others hidden in the rubbish, now believed lost.
Some years later, Neil was in London and by coincidence bumped into the same man who recognised his West Cumbrian accent. He wasn’t keen on the Kelly drawings himself so Neil, a passionate collector, struck a deal with him and brought them back home to Cumbria.
After the event, James said: “We already offer free drop-in valuations at our Cockermouth saleroom during office hours but we wanted to make it easier for people further afield to access this service too by doing pop-up valuations.
“We’re delighted with the number of people who came and the quality of items they brought with them. It’s been really worthwhile.
“And whether it’s a painting by a local artist, jewellery or something else, we’re keen to encourage more people to consider selling by auction through Mitchells’ because we reach buyers all over the world thanks to our online bidding.”
Claire added: “It was great to talk to so many local people and hear the stories behind the items that came in. A Border Regiment embroidered picture was another piece of local history rescued from a skip. I also heard the history of a very well-loved childhood teddy bear who was priceless to his owner, but had come out for a trip to see us at the gallery anyway!”
James said: “We’re very grateful to Dolly and Brian at Shipping Brow Gallery for hosting us. The setting couldn’t have been more perfect. As we did the valuations, we were surrounded by some of the very best artworks by William Mitchell and Percy Kelly on display in the first floor gallery – it was inspiring. We hope the event has helped bring new visitors to the gallery and look forward to coming back again later in the year.”
Mitchells next pop-up valuation takes place at the offices we share with the Cumberland & Westmorland Herald in Middlegate in Penrith town centre on Monday March 4 between 10am and 2pm.
People are invited to simply drop by with their items – or a photo if too big to carry – for a free, no obligation valuation in return for a donation to the Herald’s chosen charity Eden Animal Rescue.
