Sporting guns, gold hound trail medals and quality taxidermy were among the highest selling lots in Mitchells Country Sporting Sale last week which totalled nearly £70,000.
The most valuable of the sporting guns was a pair of Stephen Grant & Sons London 12 bore side lever side by side shotguns with 28” sleeved barrels which sold for £4,000 the pair.
A Browning Custom Model 20 bore over/under shotgun with 28” barrels also did well selling for £2,400 and a Browning Ultra XS 12 bore over/under shotgun with 30” barrels made £1,200.
A 9ct gold Hound Trail Association medal engraved to the rear Champion hound 1950 Perivale, winner of 44 trails, trainer Mr J Nolan sold for £900 and another engraved Perivale Champion hound for the season 1948 winner of 59 trails, trainer Mr J Nolan made £880.
The sale included taxidermy by well-known makers.
The most valuable, attributed to Murray of Carnforth, was a wall hanging case containing a pair of kingfishers with rocks, trees and a watercolour background which sold for £720.
Created by Peter Scott of Barepot, Workington, a brown trout with a naturalistic gravel base in a three sided mahogany case inscribed Brown trout 6lbs caught by Peter Scott 27/5/2016 Bassenthwaite Lake made £420.
The most valuable of several taxidermies by Peter Spicer & Sons, one of the greatest firms of British taxidermists in the late 19th and early 20th century, was a badger mask mounted on an oak shield marked Ynysfor Gwynfyndd April 23rd 1931 sold for £400. Another Peter Spicer & Sons fox mask labelled Killed at Isel February 5th 1935 made £350.
Highlights among the fishing lots were a Charles Farlow & Co four tiered concertina fly box containing around 100 salmon flies which sold for £400 and a Hardy The Perfect 4” wide drum fly reel which made £160. .
Other notable lots included an early 20th century wooden pigeon decoy sold for £350 and two Dan Evans Ironmonger smokeless 12 bore shotgun cartridges which made £140 and £130 each.
A watercolour gouache of a stoat or weasel by Ralph Waterhouse (b1943) sold for £190 and a walking stick with a carved wooden handle in the form of a hare made £140.
