Dear Friends
Welcome to our July Newsletter.
Flaming June certainly lived up to it’s billing, particularly during the middle of the month when the thermometer reached well into the 30’s here in the south of England, in fact a record high for the year was recorded on June the 20th. The glorious weather has enabled us to spend lots of time in the garden, we have witnessed the chicks fledging from the various nesting boxes, including a gorgeous little robin that had found sanctuary in a secluded spot within Mrs Slys kitchen garden, it was a joy to watch the industrious parents taking turns to bring food. The annual pilgrimage to our local grower and lots of patience from Mrs Sly has resulted in the hanging baskets in bloom and looking splendid, so all seems perfect in the garden at least, I will deliberately avoid mention of other world events at this time.
A combination of those world events and the emerging holiday season have naturally led to a slowdown in business, certainly on the sales front. It was however a very pleasant start on Sunday the 1st of June when my e-mail prompted me to the first sales enquiry of the month, a gentleman collector based in the beautiful Greek isles had secured last month’s exclusive item, the charming Iron Kogo depicting a wild boar.
Thank you to that gentleman for his much-valued repeat business and his incredibly poignant feedback that followed shortly after reciept.
Dear Steve, good afternoon
I am holding the kogo and admiring its perfect symmetry, the chiselled wild boar jumping across an empty space, all that which only the Japanese have mastered so perfectly. It shines in its simplicity and depth capturing the movement with just a few touches like the silver tusk and golden eye.Your imagination can then run wild like the boar and create your own story………” Poetry is a speaking picture, painting a silent poetry ” (Simonides of Ceos , Greek lyric poet 556 B.C.).
Thank you, Steve, for allowing me to be the custodian of such a magnificent piece.
Another piece to find a new home last month was the delightful Silver koro depicting swimming carp, it was the second time we had owned and sold this item, with it now heading to the Far East we probably won’t see it again, thank you also to that returning client.
On a buying front it has been frantic, with goods once again arriving from the USA, Japan and the EU as well as closer to home in the UK. One particular group of goods involved the arrival of a 46’ container lorry from the continent, it was delivering an outstanding single owner collection that has never been on the open market. I am really excited to be sharing this rather impressive collection with you, once catalogued and photographed in the months ahead.
Back onto the subject of gardens and for this month’s featured item, I am delighted to offer this most Charming copper and mixed metal vase depicting beautifully dressed Bijin’s picking flowers beneath a cherry blossom tree, fully artist signed and sealed by the Kuroda company of Kyoto.
Best wishes
Steve