A diamond half-hoop ring in Devon, a weathered stone urn in Perthshire and a boxed Hornby loco in Thornaby all cross the block on the same morning. Four salerooms open at 9:30am BST this Tuesday, 25 August 2026, and between them they span nearly 800 lots of silver and jewellery, two days of Cotswold interiors, a four-day general sale and a specialist tinplate railway auction. Here’s what’s worth your morning across all four.
What’s in the Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood silver, watches and jewellery sale?
Exeter’s long-established Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood leads with a cleanly structured single-discipline sale, the kind jewellery and silver buyers value because the running order is easy to follow. The book breaks down like this:
- Silver: lots 1–315 — expect Georgian and Victorian flatware, cruets and salvers where hallmarks and weight drive the hammer price.
- Costume jewellery: lots 321–339.
- Watches: lots 341–409 — compact, but often where the sharpest bidding sits; a well-catalogued gentleman’s wristwatch can carry a modest estimate and still fly.
- Jewellery: lots 410–774 — a run of over 350 lots that rewards patience, with value often past the headline pieces.
It’s an online and in-person sale at St Edmund’s Court, Okehampton Street, Exeter, Devon, EX4 1DU, on Tuesday 25 August 2026 from 9:30am BST. Browse the full running order on the Bearnes silver, watches and jewellery listing, or bid live via the easyliveAuction catalogue. For Devon auctioneers handling jewellery, this is the one to watch.
What’s in the Wotton Auction Rooms August Antique & Interiors Sale?
Up in the Cotswolds, Wotton Auction Rooms runs its two-day Antique & Interiors Sale across 25 and 26 August, taking in antiques, fine art, jewellery and collectables. This is a decorator’s sale: an interiors auction in Wotton-under-Edge is where you find a walnut chest, a run of dining chairs or a decent oil to finish a room, often for less than the reproduction costs new.
The catalogue is online now and viewing was on Monday 24 August, so if you’re reading this on sale morning you can still get live bids in. Two-day interiors sales reward a scroll through the whole book — the fine art and jewellery draw the early crowd, while smaller furniture and collectables often go under estimate late on, once the room has thinned.
Find it at Tabernacle Pitch, Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, GL12 7EB — an online and in-person sale starting 9:30am on Tuesday 25 August 2026 and continuing Wednesday. See what’s on offer via the Wotton August Antique & Interiors listing, or go straight to the live catalogue. For Gloucestershire auctioneers with a strong interiors following, Wotton is a reliable stop.
What’s in Iain M Smith’s four-day Perth auction?
The biggest sprawl of the four belongs to Iain M Smith Auctioneers and Valuers in Perth — a four-day sale that opens with garden furniture and stoneware before working through a genuinely mixed book. Leading with the garden material is well judged for late August:
- Garden furniture & stoneware — weathered stone urns, staddle stones, cast-iron benches and planters; the garden-antiques trade will be there early.
- Tools — pulling in restorers and green-woodworkers.
- Gold, silver & plate — drawing the scrap-and-melt trade alongside collectors.
- Ceramics, glassware, jewellery, paintings, prints, books, craft, modern and antique furniture, and white goods — enough breadth to furnish a flat cheaply or cherry-pick the antique lots.
It runs online and in person from 9:30am on Tuesday 25 August 2026 at Unit 50, Perth Airport Business Park, Perth, Perthshire, PH2 6PL, in Scotland. Full details are on the Iain M Smith four-day auction listing, and you can bid through the easyliveAuction catalogue. If you want garden statuary or a Perthshire auctioneer with a genuinely mixed book, start here.
What’s in the Vectis model trains and Meccano sale?
For the toy and railway collectors, Vectis Auctions Ltd — the specialist name in the field — opens Day 1 of its Model Trains sale alongside Meccano. Vectis is where serious collectors of tinplate and die-cast come to compete: Hornby, Bassett-Lowke and continental gauge trains, plus the boxed Meccano sets and construction pieces that carry a devoted following of their own. Condition and original boxes are everything, and a mint boxed loco can outrun its estimate in seconds.
This is a passion-and-investment crowd as much as a nostalgia one. Boxed model railways have held their value well, and a Day 1 sale lets you bid before the wider auction gathers pace. Newcomers are genuinely welcome — Vectis cataloguing is meticulous, so you know exactly what you’re bidding on.
The sale is online and in person from 9:30am on Tuesday 25 August 2026 at Vectis Auctions Ltd, Fleck Way, Thornaby, North Yorkshire. See the highlights on the Vectis Model Trains Day 1 & Meccano listing, or follow it live on the-saleroom catalogue.
How do you bid across all four sales?
All four run online and in the room from 9:30am BST on Tuesday 25 August 2026, and each takes live and absentee bids through its catalogue. Register in advance, set your maximum, and remember the buyer’s premium on top of the hammer. Follow Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood, Wotton Auction Rooms, Iain M Smith and Vectis on Auction Eagle to catch their next catalogues.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which UK auctions are on this Tuesday 25 August 2026?
Four sales run from 9:30am BST: Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood (silver, watches and jewellery) in Exeter, Devon; Wotton Auction Rooms' Antique & Interiors Sale in Gloucestershire; Iain M Smith's four-day general sale in Perth; and Vectis Auctions' Model Trains & Meccano sale in Thornaby, North Yorkshire.
When and where is the Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood sale?
The Silver, Watches & Jewellery Auction is at St Edmund's Court, Okehampton Street, Exeter, Devon, EX4 1DU, on Tuesday 25 August 2026 from 9:30am BST, both online and in person. It runs nearly 800 lots, from silver at lots 1–315 to jewellery at 410–774.
How do I bid at Wotton Auction Rooms?
Wotton's two-day August Antique & Interiors Sale (25–26 August 2026) is online and in person at Tabernacle Pitch, Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, GL12 7EB. Register on the easyliveAuction catalogue to bid live or attend in the room; viewing was Monday 24 August.
What is in the Iain M Smith four-day auction in Perth?
It opens with garden furniture and stoneware, then covers tools, ceramics, glassware, jewellery, gold, silver and plate, antique paintings, prints, books, craft, modern and antique furniture, and white goods. It starts 9:30am on Tuesday 25 August 2026 at Perth Airport Business Park, Perthshire, PH2 6PL.
Is the Vectis Model Trains sale good for beginners?
Yes. Vectis Auctions in Thornaby, North Yorkshire, specialises in model trains and Meccano with detailed, honest cataloguing, so newcomers know exactly what they're bidding on. Day 1 runs online and in person from 9:30am on Tuesday 25 August 2026.
Is there a buyer's premium at these auctions?
Almost all UK auction houses add a buyer's premium to the hammer price, usually a percentage plus VAT, and online bidding may add a small platform fee. Check each house's terms and conditions on its catalogue page before bidding.
