THIS IS the Christmas issue – huzzah! The Emperor standard courtier cheer of approval that fans of The Great, Channel 4’s rumbustious romp through the reign of Catherine the Great, will instantly reognise. But I’m writing this through the after haze of a tedious dose of Covid. Boo! But my body will be bouncing with antibodies and I’ll be able to mix freely at call those Christmas parties. Huzzah! But the newspapers are now saying that the latest vicious variants are reinfecting us after a month. Boo! All of which means I know as little about Covid as those speculating feverishly about the future state of the economy. My conclusion, to quote Private Frazer of Dad’s Army fame: “We’re doomed!” “And what,” you ask, “has all this economic turmoil got to do with this auction column?” Quite a lot, I reckon.
On 28 September, I had my a varicious eyes fixed on four good-sized and highly decorative 12th- and 13th-century Persian
