London's 2019 Winter Arts & Antiques Fair promises treasures untold
Featuring more than 20,000 pieces by some of London's top dealers, including works by masters such as Lalique, Matisse, Meissen, Cartier and Boucheron, the Winter Art & Antiques Fair is a key event in November calendar.


With Christmas coming up faster than you’d want, a landmark event in London’s winter calendar promises to help you find a unique gift — or buy a present for yourself that may be the start of something bigger.
Packed with more than 20,000 pieces from 70 of Britain’s leading dealers, the 2019 Winter Art & Antiques Fair takes place from November 5 to 10 at Olympia London and it's the ideal springboard to launch or expand a collection.
Among others, you will find jewellery, textiles and furniture all the way from the 16th to the 20th century, plus Asian antiques, clocks, gilt-wood mirrors, unusual china, silver objects, bronze sculptures and art spanning the years from the Old Masters to contemporary works.
As an example, last year’s highlights included a glass cockerel mascot by Lalique, a priceless gold, silver and diamond ‘flower’ necklace from the Victorian era but also a signed pen and ink ‘Linus’ by Charles Schulz — and the 2019 edition, which features works by masters such as Lalique, Matisse, Meissen, Cartier and Boucheron, among others, promises to be just as interesting.
Visitors will also have an opportunity to attend a series of expert talks, including one by Country Life’s own correspondent, Huon Mallalieu, who will explain how to ‘listen’ to paintings; one by Dr Nicole Chiang who will examine the collection of China’s Emperor Qianlong; and one by Alexander Collins who will discuss the work of French Royal cabinet-maker Jean-Henri Riesener.
Country Life readers can claim two complimentary tickets for theWinter Art & Antiques Fair — visit www.olympia-antiques.com/country-life to sign up
In Focus: The William S. Burroughs shotgun art which was collected by Damien Hirst
A new exhibition in London brings together pieces from Damien Hirst's personal collection — including a shocking piece by William S.
Sign up for the Country Life Newsletter
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Credit: Clara Molden/Country Life Picture Library
The ancient collection of the Rothschilds, improved by technology and open to the public
The retiring banker Jacob, 4th Baron Rothschild, on continuing his family’s tradition of artistic innovation.
Carla must be the only Italian that finds the English weather more congenial than her native country’s sunshine. An antique herself, she became Country Life’s Arts & Antiques editor in 2023 having previously covered, as a freelance journalist, heritage, conservation, history and property stories, for which she won a couple of awards. Her musical taste has never evolved past Puccini and she spends most of her time immersed in any century before the 20th.
-
Graham Norton's elegant East London home hits the market, and it's just as wonderful as you would expect
The four-bedroom home in Wapping should be studied for how well it uses two separate spaces to create a home of immense character and utility.
-
Sign of the times: In the age of the selfie, what’s happening to the humble autograph?
When Ringo Starr announced that he was no longer going to sign anything, he kickstarted a celebrity movement that coincided with the advent of the camera phone and selfie. Rob Crossan asks whether, in today’s world, the selfie holds more clout than an autograph?
-
Dawn Chorus: The mini-Hogwarts for sale in north London, a song for the King and our Quiz of the Day
A house in the spookily Gothic Holly Village, a birthday song for His Majesty and good news for fans of keeping warm on remote Scottish islands.
-
London as you've never seen it — and as you'll never see it again
The East End of London has changed rapidly in recent years, but photographer Paul Trevor chronicled it from the 1970s to the 1990s. His images have been collected in a new book, Market Day.
-
The great Blue Plaque mystery in London
Dozens of blue plaques have gone missing down the years, and English Heritage is determined to try and find them.
-
The shire horses still ploughing the fields of London deep into the 21st century
Photographer Natasha Durlacher's passion project shines a light on the wonderful shire horses who still have a place in modern London.
-
James Bond's London: Where to see 007's haunts around the British capital
Carla Passino treads in the footsteps of James Bond and his creator, author Ian Fleming.
-
Building back Bermondsey: The new development breathing fresh life into one of London's vibrant areas
The new London Square Bermondsey development is at the heart of all the good things happening in this part of the capital. James Fisher takes a closer look.
-
Countryside house price growth to outstrip London and the South East for years to come, say Savills, as hybrid working is here to stay
House price growth will cool off but continue its upwards trajectory for then next five years, according to Savills' research — but the rise will be far from uniform across the country.
-
Country Life Today: The Ritz hotel set to go up for sale - with a 10-figure price tag
In today's round up we bring you news of the sale of one of London's great landmarks, a fall out between a ghost tour operator and a vicar, a collaboration between Prince Harry and Ed Sheeran and a crofter's 540-mile trip for a lovable lamb.