Maurice ‘Dick’ Turpin: The English dealer’s legend lives on at Sworders Jan. 25

George III padouk and kingwood commode attributed to John Cobb, which hammered for £20,000 and sold for £25,000 ($31,850) with buyer’s premium at Sworders.

STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET, U.K. — Sworders will conduct an auction on Thursday, January 25 devoted to the personal collection of Maurice Turpin (1928-2005). Known throughout the trade as ‘Dick,’ he achieved near legendary status in the course of a 50-year career as an antiques dealer.

During what’s been called the ‘golden age’ of the English antique furniture business, Turpin was a familiar sight at regional U.K. salerooms and was one of the first British dealers to undertake frequent buying trips to the U.S. The caliber of the pieces that he bought and sold was only surpassed by his persona; a giant of a man with a large walrus moustache, thick-rimmed spectacles and a trilby hat, he had a curiously high-pitched voice.

Following his death in 2005, the stock from his Bruton Street shop was dispersed in two sales at Christie’s, both titled The Legend of Dick Turpin. Sworders will sell the contents of the flat in London W14 he shared with partner Jackie Mann. The auction of 267 lots will simply be titled Dick Turpin: The Legend Lives On.

Leading the sale is a George III padouk and kingwood commode attributed to one of the great figures of British furniture history, John Cobb (circa 1715-1778). Of serpentine outline with ormolu mounts and a matched-veneered top, it carries an estimate of £30,000-£50,000 ($37,610-$62,680).

The auction also includes spectacular classics such as a pair of George III blue john and ormolu ‘Cleopatra’ candle vases attributed to Matthew Boulton (estimated at £2,000-£4,000, or $2,500-$5,015) and an Italian bronze group of Hercules and the Nemean Lion after the antique (estimated at £1,000-£2,000, or $1,250-$2,500). Both were areas in which Turpin held considerable expertise.

A pair of the distinctive ‘basso relievo’ embossed bird pictures by Samuel Dixon of Dublin, circa 1750, also appear in the sale lineup. The hand-colored prints Canary Bird with a Group of Flowers and The Cock Butcher Bird with a Group of Flowers are both signed and dedicated ‘To Her Grace the Duchess of Hamilton.’ They are estimated at £3,000-£5,000 ($3,760-$6,260).

Less expected from a dealer who bought what were considered ‘period’ antiques are four inter-war bronzes by Sir Jacob Epstein (1880-1959). The quartet of portrait busts includes casts of the First Portrait of Lillian Shelley and the Eighth Portrait of Peggy Jean, estimated at £2,000-£3,000 ($2,500-$3,7610) and £1,500-£2,000 ($1,880-2,500), respectively.