Beatles and fish take centre stage at summer sale

You could say that our Summer Catalogue Sale had a bit of a natural history feel to it, as beatles and fish both stole the limelight! 

 

However, the Beatles weren’t actually the insect variety – more the biggest-selling rock band in history. We were lucky enough to be able to auction a prized collection of Beatles memorabilia, including a signed personal letter from Sir Paul McCartney, which sold for more than £1,700.

 

Other lots featured several signed photographs of the band and some early edition singles that were collected by a fan who wrote to Paul McCartney just as The Beatles were becoming popular in the early 1960s and he replied from his Liverpool address with a letter and some photos. 

 

The lady – who still lives in Liverpool – went on to meet Paul McCartney on several occasions and bought all The Beatles’ later hit singles. A few of these were sold as part of the collection.

 

So, where does the fish come into it? Well, it was a preserved 102-year-old trout that sold for a whopping £1,300 and that’s no fisherman’s exaggeration! It was caught just over a century ago by Alan Rigsby on Lough Mask in County Mayo, Ireland in June 2014 and is now displayed in a bow fronted case with a label identifying the taxidermist as J Cooper & Sons, 28 Radnor Street, St Lukes, London. The trout weighed 4lb and sold way above its guide price of £300 to £500. 

 

We also had some amazing jewellery and watch results in the Summer Antiques Sale, including a Breguet gentleman’s 18 carat gold wristwatch that reached £3,200 and a Jaeger Le Coultre gentleman’s stainless steel wristwatch that sold for £2,600.