School facing closure sells ‘astonishing’ furniture to mark end of era
Two extraordinary Robert Thompson “Mouseman” 1930s dining tables sold at an East Yorkshire auction at the weekend for a combined total of £78,000. Hawleys auctioneers, based at North Cave, said the £42,000 paid for the 1937 6m (19.7ft)-long table, made from a single piece of oak, was a “world record price for a piece of Mouseman furniture”, with the offer coming from a buyer in Yorkshire.
A second table, made in 1935 and measuring almost 5m (16.4ft)-long sold for £36,000 to a Canadian bidder phoning into the auction from Hawaii. Both bids were sold to phone bidders at the Hawleys Antiques and Fine Art Auction at Beverley Racecourse over Saturday and Sunday, November 22 and 23, where calls and internet bids came in from all over the world.
Caroline Hawley said: “We are incredibly proud to announce a new world-record for a piece of Mouseman furniture. The £42,000 paid for the 1937 table sets a new benchmark for Mouseman craftmanship and the £36,000 for the smaller 1935 table sets another record in its size category.”
She said the sale prices for the two tables had “burst through” the estimates, with the 1937 table having a guide price of £8,000 to £12,000, and the 1935 table at £5,000 to £8,000. Each table had four benches, which sold to the same bidders for prices ranging from £540 to £3,000.
Caroline said: “Two superb results. Two new records. One unforgettable auction. I’d like to thank all our bidders, the hard-working Hawleys team and Mouseman enthusiasts for making this a landmark moment.”
Sotheby’s New York had previously held the auction record for Mouseman furniture – $70,000 (£40,460) for a distinctive two-section cupboard c.1923 with elaborate ironwork by the Kirkby Moorside blacksmith Will Dawson. The furniture, along with other separate items including honour boards and pictures, were sold by Moorlands School in Leeds, an independent preparatory school which has educated children for almost 130 years.
Its doors will close in December. In a statement in June this year, the school trustees said the decision to close was made “in the face of increasingly difficult economic conditions that are impacting many independent schools and show little sign of abating”.
Generations of pupils at Moorlands School had gathered around the enormous oak tables at mealtimes, sitting on benches that were also Mouseman crafted and looking out for the hidden trademark signature mice carved into the furniture. Head teacher Jacky Atkinson said the Mouseman tables and benches had been at the heart of school life.
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“It was where the children and staff chatted together at lunchtime, and for other meals. These tables brought everyone together.”
A mother and her young son, who had been a pupil at Moorlands until its closure announcement, attended the auction to bid for some of the items. Caroline said: “It was incredibly emotional for them and many of the parents and pupils were too sad to come.”
Other Mouseman pieces at the auction sold for well above the guide price, including an oak meat platter of octagonal shape, with a brass central removable spike and signature mouse to one side, sold for £900.
Thompson is regarded as one of the greatest furniture makers of the 20th century, with his trademark signature seen as a mark of authenticity and a symbol of a lasting legacy. The little mouse continues to be hand-carved on every piece made by his Kilburn workshop today.
And he inspired other craftsmen, known as the Yorkshire Critters, whose work was also in the auction, fetching well above guide prices. Many of them trained in Thompson’s Kilburn workshop before setting up their own craft shops but all used the same oak material, and traditional hand tools and techniques.
They also carved a signature “critter” – rabbit, squirrel, woodpecker etc – on their work. Hawleys next auction will be a live online sale of fine wine, port, whisky and spirits, on Friday, December 5, from 10am; the next antiques and fine art auction at Beverley Racecourse will be held over the weekend of March 7 and 8, 2026.