Inside This Week’s Canberra Auction Market – 38 Upcoming Sales inc Fine Jewellery, Irish Silver & Computing Gear

The headline piece is that antique inkwell, assay marked for John Grinsell & Sons, Birmingham, 1903. It pairs a hobnail cut crystal base with a hinged English sterling silver neck and lid, and the watch inside winds, ticks, and runs for around 24 hours per the vendor. Two minor fleabites to the base are noted, but overall it presents as very good for its age.

Watch collectors should look at the 14ct gold Georges Favre Jacot pocket watch from c.1890. It’s engraved, has a cream enamel dial with Arabic numerals, and carries an 1889 Paris Exposition marking on the cuvette. Be aware it’s listed for repair or servicing, as the movement only runs briefly when prompted and doesn’t sustain.

Elsewhere, there’s a good run of vintage jewellery: a 9ct gold operculum bar brooch, a 9ct white gold twin pearl ring, and a dragonfly brooch in sterling. The coin cutwork brooches are unusual, one using a 1951 ‘Jubilee of Federation’ florin and the other a New Zealand penny with tui bird detail. The Ming dynasty shard necklace is another point of difference, set in sterling silver. Everything closes on 19 August, with more than a dozen lots in this section.

This is a collection with genuine pedigree, not just a box of old cutlery. The core of the sale is the Wray family service, with crests of an ostrich and horseshoe appearing across dinner forks, spoons, a basting spoon, a salt dish, and a wick trimmer tray. The forks alone span 1807 to 1838, with assay marks from Dublin makers including Philip Weekes, Henry L. Gardner, and James Keating. That kind of documented, multi-generational provenance is what collectors pay attention to.

The Boyd family is also well represented, with a Georgian coffee pot bearing the family crest and motto ‘Confido’, and a salver carrying both Boyd and Atkinson arms. The earlier pieces are the real draw for historians: the 1773 sauce boat attributed to Matthew West, the 1767 London tray with old repaired damage, and the 1765 basting spoon with its flawed ‘WW’ mark. Condition is honest throughout, with minor dents, tarnishing, and surface wear noted, so factor that in if you’re chasing pristine examples.

Weights are listed for every lot, which is useful for scrap value, but the real money here is in the family history and the Irish assay marks. The auctioneer notes the collection has been held by one family since the 1800s. Bidding

The antique furniture here has real character, but most pieces show honest wear, so factor in restoration time. The French sewing table has a clever double top, one side inlaid chess board, the other inset green leather, though it needs work. Two neo-classical stone-top side tables in mahogany style are in good nick, barring a chip to one corner. The cedar hall table on turned legs has surface scratches and a missing handle, but it’s a solid usable piece.

For something more contemporary, the Isato low cabinet in vanilla off-white with push-open doors and half-glass drawers is in very good condition, but it’s long, wide, and heavy, so bring a trolley and a second pair of hands. The Biltrite-attributed vintage cabinet with modernist veneer fronts is another heavy one, marked Cusacks to the back, and could work as a bar or entertainment unit. A six-drawer tall boy in dark cherry with brass drop handles is structurally sound with only light surface wear.

Lighting and decor are worth a look too. Two dusty rose ceramic table lamps with fabric shades power up fine, though one socket sits loose and shades have minor stains. A brass-tone lamp with a frosted glass demilune shade is in very good condition. On the art side, Thelma Clayton’s oil on board ‘Betty’ comes framed, but the work is slightly loose in the frame and the frame shows age. A wicker-effect outdoor couch with a dark grey cushion has stains to the upholstery, so factor that

The vendor picked up the Michael Muir piece, ‘Morning Rain on George Street’, at a Hunters Hill art show back in 2002, and it comes with the original purchase documentation and catalogue. That provenance gives it a bit of a leg up for buyers chasing verified works. On the international side, the Michael Buthe pieces are worth a close look. One is a 1967 ink composition on gridded sketch paper, signed and dated, while the other is an editioned serigraph from a Cologne gallery publication, 101/120. Both are in very good to excellent condition.

Local collectors will be interested in the Patti Holden portfolios. There are two lots here: one with five etchings and linocuts, the other with eight linocut prints. They cover her Canberra houses series and other domestic subjects, all signed and editioned. Also on offer is a Charles Ephraim Smith Tindall watercolour from 1934, depicting a landscape near Cooma, and an attributed Elizabeth Nyumi Nungurrayi etching, editioned 23/25 with the Northern Editions chop mark.

The rest of the list is a mixed bag of framed works, including an After Norman Lindsay photolithograph, a Lucinda Boyd pastel, and a couple of unattributed pieces like an abstract goose form and a mid-century seated nude. Condition varies across the board, so factor in the framing and mounting issues noted on some lots. The sale closes 28 August, and there are more than a dozen lots to work through.

The Keith Looby etchings are the standout grouping here, with four works from 1976: ‘New Life’, ‘Growth’, ‘First Moon’, and ‘Massacre of Tasmanians’. Each is an edition of 20/50, titled and signed under the plate margins, and they carry the weight of Looby’s reputation as the Archibald Prize winner for his portrait of Max Gillies as Bob Hawke. His etchings illustrating colonial Australia’s darker history are regarded among his most significant output, so this set offers a rare chance to pick up multiple pieces from that body of work in one go.

The Indigenous art section is strong too. Woodinda (Shane) Wallace’s ‘Goanna Hunt’ comes with a certificate of authenticity from Authentic Aboriginal Art in The Rocks, Sydney, while Shorty Jangala Robertson’s ‘Ngapa Jukurrpa’ (Water Dreaming) is a Basil Hall Editions print, with a different edition of the same composition held in that gallery’s collection. Tiwi artists are well represented with works from Janice Pungautiji Murray, Fiona Puruntatameri, Francesca Puruntatameri, and Pedro Wonaeamirri, plus a Rosella Namok etching from Lockhart River.

Condition varies, so check the lot notes. Several Looby pieces show light discolouration, possible foxing, and frame marks, and one has no glass. The Tiwi prints are mostly in very good condition with only minor frame wear

This auction leans into the weird and wonderful. The emu egg is the standout decorative piece, but the scientific gear might be the real draw. Two M5-Zeichentubus Camera Lucida drawing devices for Wild Heerbrugg microscopes come in original boxes, untested but promising for collectors of vintage lab equipment. A Bacharach ‘Tempscribe’ temperature recorder from the 1960s, with its bakelite case and seven-day paper chart, needs repair but is a rare find for industrial history buffs.

The geological lots are solid. You get a boxed collection of West Coast Australian minerals with original labels, plus two split and polished agate specimens dyed for candle use. The polished ammonites from Madagascar and an orthoceras specimen add fossil appeal. For natural history oddities, there is a taxidermied frog on a wood slice stand and a pair of stone and crystal bird figurines.

The Hanley galah print comes framed with a quote from Neville Connors, linked to the limited edition two-volume book ‘Jewels of Nature’. A rotating globe, a pair of Stellar binoculars, and laboratory beakers round out the lot. Most items show signs of age, and the scientific gear is sold untested with no parts guaranteed. Check the close date of 2026-07-24.

The collectables side is strong here. The Galaxy Invader 1000 is a proper slice of late-70s gaming history, and the Sturmanskie Amphibia is a serious mechanical diver’s piece, not a fashion watch. Wrestling fans get a pair of vintage Nikolai Volkoff WWF figurines, while the Barbie lot includes boxed Teresa and Ken figures.

Jewellery and accessories cover a fair spread: a 14ct yellow gold and smoky quartz ring in size O, a 925 sterling silver Siam brooch and earrings set at 19.56gms, plus a sterling hematite pendant on a 40cm chain alongside a multistrand cultured pearl wire necklace. There’s also a nine-lot collection of gold and silver tone necklaces.

Pop culture odds and ends round it out. A vintage canvas Wonder Woman backpack, a Russell Super Coca-Cola yo-yo with its original spare string, and an unframed daybill poster for *Batteries Not Included* (a M.A.P.S. lithographic print) should draw a look. The opals are uncut, so they’re for someone who knows how to spot a stone’s potential. Closes 4 August.

The storage lots are the headline act here. You’ve got HP’s 3TB SATA drives in a lot of three, plus a pair of 10TB units: one HGST SAS 12Gbps and one Western Digital Purple Pro, the latter built for surveillance systems. If you’re running a NAS or a small server room, these are worth a serious look, especially if the bidding stays sensible.

On the computing side, the iMac is a Late 2012 model with a Core i5 and 21.5-inch screen, so it’s not cutting edge, but it’ll handle office work or light creative tasks without complaint. The Lenovo IdeaPad 1 is a basic Celeron laptop, fine for browsing and documents. The Dell 23-inch monitors and Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 LTE tablets round out the practical gear for a home office or small business refresh.

Networking types should check the HP 2920-48G switch. It’s a managed PoE+ unit with 48 gigabit ports, the kind of thing that usually costs real money new. If you’re building out a warehouse, workshop, or campus network, this could be the bargain of the lot. Allbids is running the sale in the ACT, so factor in pickup logistics before you bid.

The live auction portion is where the big-ticket items sit. The Chubb Australian Open 2027 Experience is the headline, and the Multicut Diamond Charm Necklace offers something for jewellery buyers. There’s also a Mossology art piece from Ronan Moss and a Contentious Character Urban Winery Experience for the Canberra region.

For those after practical gear, the 8 Classes Pilates Pack at KX Kingston is a solid local option, and the Kenwood Chef mixer comes with the instruction manual and cookbook, so it’s ready to go straight out of the box. The 90 Days to Dominance digital marketing package from Region Media is aimed at small businesses looking to sharpen their online presence.

The trek-for-two lot is the one to weigh up, as it includes a choice of Machu Picchu or Kokoda plus the Flight Centre voucher for flights. Bidding closes 14 August 2026, so there’s time to pick your lot and decide how far you want to push it.

The Logitech Tap Touch Controller kits are the headline act here. They’re the full package for boardrooms or huddle rooms, and at auction they’ll likely go for a fraction of what a vendor would charge. The MeetUp 2 cameras are solid for small-to-medium spaces, and if you’re setting up a home office or a training room, they’re worth a serious look.

Beyond the conferencing gear, there’s practical stuff that often gets overlooked. The Cygnett 30k power bank with cable and light is handy for tradies or field work, and the DUNE 4WD Power Distribution Box is a niche pick for anyone running 12V setups off-grid. Throw in the MAGNER 165 currency counter for a cash-heavy small business, and the ARTISS velvet bar stools in peacock blue add a bit of style for a waiting area or home bar.

Bidding closes 14 August. It’s a mixed lot, so check the condition notes and factor in pickup logistics if you’re bidding from outside the ACT.

Allbids has put together a wine auction that leans heavily on the flashy end of the bottle shop, and the Lamborghini range is the main event. The Luxe Titanio Cabernet Sauvignon Sangiovese carries a $199 RRP, while the Torami Cabernet Sauvignon Sangiovese sits at $178. If you’re after something with bubbles, the DJ Luminoso Pinot Noir Chardonnay Brut NV is listed at $289 per bottle, and it also appears as a six-pack case with a combined RRP of $1734.

Sparkling drinkers get plenty of options. The Legend Rose Metodo Classico Vintage Organic Sparkling Pinot Noir comes in a case of six, also totalling $1734, while The Legend Metodo Classico Vintage Organic Sparkling Pinot Noir is offered as a lot of three bottles at $867 total. There’s also a Magnum Lamborghini in the mix, which is worth chasing if you want something for a serious dinner party or a display shelf.

Bidding closes 14 August 2026, so there’s time to work through the list. Check the full lot details on the allbids site for vintage years and bottle sizes, and factor in any buyer’s premium before you commit. Wine auctions like this can throw up decent value if you stick to the cases rather than the single bottles.

This Cub Longreach is built for serious dirt miles, not just the caravan park. The 2020 model comes with the usual Cub toughness, a full off-road chassis, and the kind of independent suspension you want when the bitumen runs out. Inside, you’re looking at a solid layout with a decent bench, storage, and the essentials for a week away from power.

Grays has listed this as a single caravan lot in their rolling format, so the close date is still to be confirmed. Worth checking the photos for any stone chips or wear underneath, because these things get used properly. If you’re after a no-fuss camper that’ll tow behind a dual-cab without complaining, this is one to pencil in.