A large private collection of fine Asian art, sold for over £220,000 (inc. buyer’s premium) at Newcastle auctioneers Anderson & Garland on the 6th and 7th September 2016. The collection belonged to George Yuille Caldwell who was born at Crook, Co. Durham in 1924 and lived for most of his adult life in Singapore where he practiced as a doctor.
Fred Wyrley Birch Specialist at Anderson & Garland said “This is a great result, with the collection achieving twice the original estimate. The saleroom was very busy with bidders and we had telephone and internet bidding from around the world, with particular interest from China.”
Highlights of the sale included a rare pair of celadon jade quatrefoil wine cup stands, which sold for £16,800, a pair of blue and white and iron red saucer dishes, the interiors of each with a single dragon made £12,000 and a cast bronze bombe-form censer made £8,400. A white jade flattened globular shaped ‘bat’ snuff bottle measuring only 5.7cm made £7,440.
Dr George Yuille Caldwell was educated at Durham School and joined Newcastle Medical School in 1941. He interrupted his studies in 1943 when he volunteered for the Royal Navy and served in the Mediterranean until demobilisation in 1946. He then returned to Newcastle to complete his medical studies and qualified in 1951. After stints in various hospitals around the North East he made a voyage to the Far East as a ship’s doctor on a passenger / cargo ship belonging to Glen Line. In 1958 he applied for and was accepted for a position with Dr. Bain and partners, medical practitioners, in Singapore where he remained until his death earlier this year.
Mr John Caldwell, Dr George Yuille Caldwell’s nephew said “I think my uncle would be very pleased with today’s auction, he loved every single item in the collection and it is sad to see it go. We felt we were unable to look after it in the way he wished, as many of the pieces are of museum quality. I hope that the new owners will treasure them as much as my uncle did.”
Other items of note in the sale included a collection of rare maps of South East Asia one by mapmakers Arnold and Hendrik Floris Van Langren from the 16th Century made £6,240, while another by Jacobo Castaldo Pedemontano made £4,200.