Spring is on the way, and it is a great time to get out and about, and enjoy a day at an auction.

East Anglian Daily Times: Clarke & Simpson bygones auction on Saturday February 23, 2019Clarke & Simpson bygones auction on Saturday February 23, 2019 (Image: Archant)

There are always bargains to be had and sometimes there are some surprising results.

One person’s discarded items can really be somebody else’s collectables and treasure.

Why not experience one yourself? It can be quite exciting.

On Saturday, February 23 Clarke and Simpson will be holding their first Domestic and Rural Bygones auction of the year at the Auction Centre at Campsea Ashe, near Wickham Market.

East Anglian Daily Times: Clarke & Simpson bygones auction on Saturday February 23, 2019Clarke & Simpson bygones auction on Saturday February 23, 2019 (Image: Archant)

The sale includes some 730 lots and has been accumulated over the past three months.

Auctioneer Keith Gray said: “This genre of sale never ceases to amaze me in its sheer diversity and the locations that the items come from; country house attics and cellars, barns, garages, outbuildings, farmyards, gardens – there is always a bygone hidden away”.

So what exactly is a Domestic & Rural Bygone? Keith said: “Really anything old or interesting from a bygone era that our forebears used in the home, on the farm, or in the workshop or office.”

Looking around the huge room 5 saleroom at Campsea Ashe you can see what Keith means.

East Anglian Daily Times: Clarke & Simpson bygones auction lots on Saturday February 23, 2019Clarke & Simpson bygones auction lots on Saturday February 23, 2019 (Image: Archant)

There are rows of milk churns, galvanised watering cans, boiling coppers from the laundry room, agricultural and woodworking tools, luggage items, moss-covered garden planters and ornaments, more than 70 enamel and other advertising signs, vintage petrol cans including a rare “Flight Motor Spirit” example, copper ship lamps, a wooden decoy duck and a pigeon.

A very popular part of this auction is the collectors’ vehicles and accessories, which this time includes a Range Rover Classic 300, a Daimler, and if you want to take it more slowly a pony trotting cart, or a four-wheel Phaeton carriage!

The auction is on view on Friday February 22, 2pm – 6pm and then the morning of the sale from 8am.

The sale commences at 9.30am live online bidding is available via the-Saleroom.com for anyone who is unable to attend.