AN ELEPHANT statue, an Olympic torch and Oriental treasures are among the discoveries to go under the hammer at Duke’s in Dorchester in the past year.

The auction house continues to thrive despite the economic climate, with no shortage of both vendors and buyers.

A combination of people wanting to sell and bargain hunters inspired by the television coverage of the trade has helped keep lots coming in and bidders at the sales.

Auctioneer Amy Brenan said the highlight of the year for Duke’s was the Treasures from the Summer Palace Sale in May, which saw over £2million worth of Oriental artefacts sold, including a jade cup and saucer set that fetched over £500,000.

She said: “We got some absolutely exceptional prices for things in there. We pitched that sale at the height of the Oriental market, it’s still doing well but it’s much more selective now.”

Another specialist sale that also got the bidders competing was the sale of the contents of interior designer Thomas Kerr’s French villa.

Amy said: “We had all sorts of things from fine 18th Century paintings right through to modern ceramics and sofas.

“So many people wanted to buy something from his house. We even had a pair of sofas where we got pretty much double what you pay for them new and they were second hand.”

Other items doing well include silver and jewellery with sovereigns, for example, more than double the value of a couple of years ago. Part of the excitement of the auctions are the unlikely finds that end up fetching vast sums of money.

This was no better highlighted than earlier this year when a bronze elephant statue found at the back of a China cabinet smashed expectations to fetch £50,000.

Other tales include a replica Olympic torch found in a box of bric-a-brac that fetched over £5,000 when it was sold in aid of the Weldmar Hospicecare Trust and some jewellery found at the bottom of a box of items left for the Cats Protection League that fetched £2,000.

Amy said the message is clear: always check out anything you think could be valuable, no matter how unlikely it seems.

She said: “The answer is to see what you have got and let somebody check it out because the worst thing they can say is: ‘It’s not valuable’ but it may not be as it seems.

“We have even sold China pits with cracks in them for half a million, so even if they are damaged it doesn’t necessarily mean they are worthless.”