Cheffins Fine Art continued its good start to the year with the Fine Sale surpassing pre-sale expectations.

An ornate early Louis XV gilt bronze mounted kingwood commode en tombeau which was made circa 1740 sold for £24,000.

A portrait by George Romney RA (British 1734-1802) of a person believed to be James Dunlop (1741-1816) sold for £16,000 – some way in advance of its pre-sale estimate of £7,000 to £10,000.

At just shy of that price was an oil painting of Venice at dusk by Italian painter Pietro Fragiacomo (1856-1922) which sold for £15,000, nearly double its pre-sale estimate.

A Chinese porcelain dragon dish by Guanxu Emperor (1875-1908) set to the tone early in the sale when selling for £12,000 to a buyer in the room.

A protracted duel between two telephone bidders for a collection of early 19th century watercolours and sketches saw the top price of the sale, with the gavel finally coming down at £44,000.