A NEWSPAPER advertisement placed on Saturday last, offering a reward for information leading to the return of two stolen antique garden seats, led to one caller a woman who mistakenly thought the seats were ones stolen from her garden three years ago.
The owner of two 19th century cast iron garden seats stolen a fortnight ago from his walled garden in Drogheda said he put an advertisement in The Irish Times despite the fact he has little hope of recovering the items.
"I just decided to put the ad in and see. They were my property and I'd like to get them back. I had them for over 20 years."
One of the seats was bought from a family in Sandymount, Dublin, who owned it since it was made in 1840.
The seat, which has a "Belfast" or "trellis" pattern, was stolen with another, heavier cast iron seat of a similar pattern.
The owner, an antique dealer, estimates the two seats to be worth around £2,400 and is offering a generous reward.
"I suppose they've been taken out of the country by now, or are hidden away somewhere, or have been sold on to some dealer who is not too fussy about where they came from," he said.
He added there were a lot of stolen antiques circulating the markets. Antique dealers who spoke with The Irish Times all expressed concern about trade in stolen antiques. They all had opinions to offer as to who was involved. Stolen items were being sold to unscrupulous dealers in Ireland or brought over to Britain and sold there.
While law abiding dealers always tried to ensure they did not end up trading in stolen goods, even they were sometimes caught out, the dealers said.
"Within the trade, there are people who are very, very straight, and there are people who are crooks," said one dealer. "Even the above board get caught out from time to time. You have to be on your guard against being set up.
"There's serious money involved in decent garden seats," said another dealer. "But an awful lot of the stuff is stolen, so you have to be very careful."
Cast iron seats from Coalbrookdale in England can fetch up to £16,000, a dealer said.
Some dealers were of the opinion that the theft of antique garden furniture peaked a few years ago. Since then, both the public and the trade were more cautious and prices in Britain had fallen.
