From our archives: Lots for lovers of art at auction at Tredegar House

Wondering what it was all about, we managed to track down the story we ran at the time.

Here it is:

TREASURES of Wales went under the hammer yesterday as art lovers descended on Newport's Tredegar House for a special auction.

Hundreds of people turned out to bid for Welsh antiques and works of art as auctioneers Bonhams held its second auction of national treasures.

A full house presides over the auction at Tredegar House

The lots, including furniture, books and silverware, filled the grand Stables and Orangery building. Before the auction, browsers had the opportunity to examine every plate, chair, painting and tie pin, as the items were on display for four days.

Estimated prices went from £80 for a mounted fox's head, up to £12,000 for a landscape by Sir Kyffin Williams.

The exhibits captured the full range of Welsh culture, from a painting of David Lloyd George and renderings of Chepstow Castle to more contemporary, grainy, dark images of Ebbw Vale and Newport's Steelworkers.

During bidding an air of restrained excitement descended over the hall. Nods, gestures, raised brochures and other indications of a bid kept auctioneer Jeffrey Muse busy as prices crept up quickly.

There were a few surprises for the auctioneers, including lot 68, two Swansea dessert plates dating back to the battle of Waterloo that were expected to fetch £2,500 and went for £3,800.

Bids are taken privately over the phone

Other items such as lot 91, a silver dog collar, soared in price, with auctioneers expecting it to fetch £300. It finally collected £650.

A spokesman for Bonhams said: "For two plates, it's not a bad price at all, far more than we expected to get. As far as the dog collar goes, for an unmarked collar of silver that is a very good price."

"This year we have been especially lucky in attracting buyers from Wales, we get a lot of international buyers but hopefully we will have the majority of the items stay this side of the River Severn."