For the gentleman who has everything

bonhams sale

published 23 January 2013

The skeleton of a pygmy hippo (estimated at £10,000- £15,000), a pair of 18in Thomas Malby library globes (£60,000-£80,000) and a painting of an extremely fat heifer are surely the must-have items for any discerning gentleman's lair. These are among the more eclectic lots in Bonhams's Gentleman's Library sale in Knightsbridge, London SW7, on January 29-30.

* Country Life New Year subscriptions sale

There is also a George III kneehole desk (£2,000-£3,000) which reputedly belonged to Sir Alexander Dixon, a soldier held in high esteem for his part in the Napoleonic and Peninsular Wars by the Duke of Wellington, and is being sold by a descendant, plus crocodile-leather cases, a whale-tooth inkwell frame, a horn snuff mull, a snake cigar lighter, a rhino-horn walking stick, a bust of Gladstone and much, much more (www.bonhams.com).

* Follow Country Life magazine on Twitter

Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by His Majesty The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.