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Published March 18, 2016 at 504 × 498 in The UK’s 50 Best Antiques & Vintage Shops

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ABOUT MARK HILL :

Mark is an author, publisher, TV presenter, and the leading specialist dealer in postwar Czechoslovakian glass. He has been an expert on the BBC Antiques Roadshow since 2007, and co-presented four primetime TV shows on antiques, collecting and interiors for BBC2, including two series of Collectaholics. Mark lectures widely and is an Arts Society (NADFAS) accredited lecturer, a member of The British Antiques Dealers’ Association, and a Freeman of the City of London.

Member of The British Antique Dealers’ Association

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I love antique teddy bears! And the more loved and

I love antique teddy bears! And the more loved and time-worn, the better!!

My heart skipped a beat when I encountered this smart centenarian in a junk shop in Berlin. I had to add him to my collection of battered, balding but beautiful bears.

And, yes, he is a Steiff, and he dates from the 1920s-30s.

Read about this adorable time capsule full of character, love and history on my new blog post. Link in bio.

(And, yes, he survived the ignominy of having to be put in the overhead locker for our flight home together!)

Smiles all round! A break between lots being sold

Smiles all round! A break between lots being sold @gildingsauction filming @antiqueroadtrip with the gorgeous @izziedot. So much fun and laughter was had. But who found the real bargains? Who will win this Roadtrip? Tune in in Autumn to find out…!

After outstanding objects, divine decorative antiq

After outstanding objects, divine decorative antiques, and fine art @decorativefair came fabulous friends.

Dinner - and much hilarity and sharing of knowledge and passions - with @modernantiquarian, @designerkelliellis, @republicoftoma and @antiqnewsfairs. Deliciously divine all round!

Once again @decorativefair provides thrills, gasps

Once again @decorativefair provides thrills, gasps, variety and beauty from across the centuries and across the world. There’s literally something for everyone.

It’s so hard to pick three, but my ‘Objects of The Fair’ were:

The very BEST micro-mosaic box I have ever seen @lovedayantiques. The finest work showing the Capitoline Doves, mounted inside a gold frame on a green Jasper box, in a custom made case. Italian, probably by Barberi, c1810. His stand is truly a treasure chest worthy of a palace or top museum. Simply stunning!

Sculptural serenity with touches of Brancusi from a rare 20thC Japanese bronze sculpture titled ‘lonely’ by Mitsuo Saito from @joostvandenbergh.

And, finally, it was wonderful to see Ron Hitchins’ (1926-2019) unique and fantastic work so divinely displayed and perfectly placed @calsmithgallery. With his work having been accepted into the @vamuseum collection for V&A East, Hitchins’ star is rapidly rising…get in now…

A final top tip - check out lovely and friendly newcomer @flo_finds_art for amazing pictures with even more amazing stories behind them!

Go to the @decorativefair and see for yourself!

Six of the best! Join me and my friends Andy McCon

Six of the best! Join me and my friends Andy McConnell & Charles Hanson @PantilesArcade on 19th May as we compete by presenting six fascinating and inspirational antiques - the audience votes for the winner! Witty banter & humour guaranteed! Tickets £25 to include wine and canapés available at https://scottishantiques.com/events-at-pantiles-arcade-corn-exchange-tunbridge-wells/tickets/Andy%20McConnell-Mark-Hill-Charles-Hanson-Friday-19th-May

I love a bonkers thing, but not as much as I love

I love a bonkers thing, but not as much as I love a good story. A chance find of an oil painting last weekend fulfilled both!

A tureen, dolls, shells, rich colours - a still life extraordinaire. And the story of Lilian de Glehn Thibaut, a forgotten woman artist from a remarkable family working in the 1920s on the margins of the famed School of Paris.

Read my new blog post - link in bio.

Mystery studio glass vase, very kindly gifted to m

Mystery studio glass vase, very kindly gifted to me. Difficult to decipher signature, dated (19)78, brown streaked bubbly green glass, and very glassy and like early Studio Glass! It’s mysteries like these I love! Any ideas, anyone?!

Grateful. I feel grateful and lucky. Like all of u

Grateful. I feel grateful and lucky. Like all of us who were fortunate enough to have had her in our lives. My dearest friend Judith Miller died over Easter and I am heartbroken. My loving thoughts are with her family.

I’ve been lucky enough to call you a friend for nearly half my life. I’ve read and loved your books for longer. Your boundless energy, passion and incredible spirit inspired and supported. Books and telly would never have happened for me without your generous encouragement. I’ll never raise a glass of Pinot Grigio, choose a costume jewellery pin, or act on any of the sage advice you caringly gave without remembering you with a heartwarming smile.

“Never trust people who are rude to bar staff.” Don’t come with a problem, come with a solution. Entertain as well as educate. The rule of three. People always want to work with people they like. “Headlines, darling!”

Your knowledge was vast and you had a healthily strong work ethic - enjoy work as much as the rest of life. Along with your many stories, your smiles and laughter were endless.

Your name went across the world. Your achievements demystified antiques for millions of people for nearly half a century across TV, print and radio and - for those lucky enough to experience it - in person. Your work will continue to open up antiques and vintage for generations to come as the world increasingly looks towards reusing.

They often say that you never know how great something or someone was until it’s over or they’re gone. But we all always knew that you were truly great.

Despite all the antiques that we’ve seen, you proved that the only really priceless treasures worth having are strong friendships. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for ours.

Over 22 years, we had adventures from Atlantic City to New York, from icollector to PGC & DK to OPG, and the NEC and the V&A to the Antiques Roadshow. With a malodorous boar skin rug, crème de menthe frappés, the Groucho, and promised wine fridges along the way.

And you wrote amazing chapters of life before I even met you. Bravo, my friend, for a life that was truly well-lived.

Goodbye for now dearest Judith, travel well, and see you next time!

I have to echo Irita. We got in a classic car toge

I have to echo Irita. We got in a classic car together last Autumn not knowing each other at all. After laughter, teasing, competitiveness, and soooo much fun - and good buys and bad - we got back out as dear friends. Thank you, Irita, for being you and being so fab. And for an amazing Roadtrip!

If you didn’t see our Road Trip last week and want to, see it on @bbciplayer

I’ve never really been a military type. I obviou

I’ve never really been a military type. I obviously appreciate what they do, and the sacrifices they make, but it’s never been for me. Thanks to those that fought and died, I have a choice today.

I even complained so vociferously when my school put me in the CCF (Combined Cadet Force) that they immediately moved me into the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme instead. (I got to Silver!)

But I was fascinated to hear about how WWI affected both women’s fashions and the role of women in work when I visited the amazing @greatwarhuts as part of this week’s BBC Antiques Roadtrip.

Catch up on @bbciplayer

I also got to wear a Second Lieutenants uniform, which I think was a perfect fit!

When your jacket matches your car… Vintage 1970

When your jacket matches your car…

Vintage 1970s polyester, by Irvine Sellars, bought for £30 in a vintage clothes market years ago!

Irvine Sellar (1934-2017) was a fascinating and highly successful man. After starting as a market trader, he opened his first clothing shop in London in Soho in 1964. A second shop followed on Carnaby Street in 1965 - and they became part of the fabric of fashion in London’s Swinging Sixties. By 1981, his hugely successful Mates company had over 90 fashion stores across the U.K.

He then moved into property development, and saw even greater successes, developing properties all over London including, with Qatari support, The Shard!

So I won yesterday’s auction…but who finds wha

So I won yesterday’s auction…but who finds what and wins today?

Watch @antiqueroadtrip on BBC1 at 3.45pm with @iritamarriottantiques and me!

A real highlight of this week’s BBC Antiques Roa

A real highlight of this week’s BBC Antiques Roadtrip was to visit @retrovation, curated with care and love by the wonderful Dawn & Steve. It’s a real Aladdin’s Cave of treasures from across the centuries. I loved all the things I bought, and so did the bidders at the auction! I won the second auction hands down, after @iritamarriottantiques stonking win the day before, but what happens next? Who comes out on top? Tune in to today’s Antiques Road Trip on BBC1 at 15.45 to find out!

A rollicking rollercoaster of a Roadtrip ride!! Jo

A rollicking rollercoaster of a Roadtrip ride!! Join me and the inimitable and wonderful @iritamarriottantiques this coming week on BBC One for our adventures hunting, buying - and selling! Or catch up on @bbciplayer!

Are they vases? Or are they art? What do you think

Are they vases? Or are they art? What do you think?

I reveal how two bright and colourful 1960s Czech glass vases by master glass designer Pavel Hlava were made.

Follow @pantilesarcade for more videos by my friends and colleagues.

For more amazing art, antiques and 20thC design, go to scottishantiques.com or visit The Pantiles Arcade, Royal Tunbridge Wells, England.

Thank you to my wonderful boyfriend (not pictured)

Thank you to my wonderful boyfriend (not pictured) for a truly amazing birthday weekend in Prague. Glass, history, cocktails, culture, great food, dear friends…. What more could a boy want?!

Morning coffee brought to me in bed on my birthday

Morning coffee brought to me in bed on my birthday. Briglin, a tea light and a cookie from @gailsbakery. It brought a smile to my face!

“It’s a witch’s house!” said my partner, “…and it’s broken!”

I often fall a little bit in love with broken and restored old things. Especially like this.

It’s an early Victorian Staffordshire pottery pastille burner. The stench of cities and industrialised towns in the late 18thC and 19thC was often so bad that people took to burning small pleasantly fragranced pastilles to scent the air of their rooms.

The holders they were burned in began as luxurious silver or porcelain containers for the wealthy but, by the early 19thC, they were available to more people in other materials. Buildings were a typical form and, as time progressed, they also gained open windows and thus also acted as nightlights.

This large cottage ornée has a wealth of detail and is attributed to the notable Thomas Parr factory, sometime around 1830-1850. It’s not at all common, and is a notch or two above the norm.

But it’s the damage and repair that got me. This once much-loved home accessory clearly fell off someone’s mantelpiece at some point and broke into at least three pieces. Horrified by the fact that they would have to suffer foul air again, and loving it so dearly, the owner took the trouble and expense to have it restored - and to comparatively great lengths.

The restoration would have cost many times more than it’s worth, and it’s largely valueless today.

But for a fiver in a charity shop, I couldn’t leave it and its story behind. Especially as I then went next door to Pret à Manger and spent £5.15 on a cup of tea and a nut bar!

The tea and nut bar were gone in minutes, but this 180 year old battered survivor will remind me of times past for years to come. Make do and mend!

Today is the start a big new adventure! I’ve ope

Today is the start a big new adventure! I’ve opened a new shop at the amazing Pantiles Arcade in Royal Tunbridge Wells, with my friend and BBC Antiques Roadshow colleague Eric Knowles and Robert Woodmansey, his business partner from Hoard @scottish_antiques.

I’m honoured and thrilled to have been asked to join the top notch dealers here including @hickmet_fine_arts, @jeroenmarkiesartdeco, @richard_price_clocks, and others.

Expect colour, quality, fine design, expertise - and a very warm welcome.

Come and visit us!

Wassail bowl?! Wassat?! Find out here on the Ron

Wassail bowl?! Wassat?!

Find out here on the Ronati Reel for The Art & Antique Dealers’ Association of America’s ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ online event!

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