Johanna Tulp loved beautiful things and her daughter Christina Bouwman was surrounded by dozens of her antique pieces at the Bowning village hall yesterday.
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Ms Tulp, an antiques dealer who retired to Harden, spent much of her life collecting art and vintage furniture and many of her pieces went under the hammer at an estate auction yesterday.
More than 100 people braved spring showers to register as buyers, bidding on numerous antiques and classic furniture from a number of estates, including Ms Tulp's.
Ms Bouwman said her mother had always collected interesting pieces of furniture and decorative items, pointing out pieces including an imposing Australian cedar miner's couch, a delicate lace fan and ornate silver and tortoiseshell pill boxes.
''We grew up with this,'' she said.
Ms Tulp's love of antiques stemmed from her Dutch upbringing - she and her husband came to Australia in 1950 and settled in Sydney where she turned her collecting instincts into a market stall in Balmain and then an antiques shop in Forest Lodge.
In later life, the couple bought the historic home, Araluen, at Gundagai, which had belonged to sculptor Frank Rusconi, who created the Dog on the Tuckerbox.
Ms Tulp filled the home with striking pieces of furniture and art before moving to Harden where she died after heart surgery.
Ms Bouwman said her mother had been a keen traveller and had already bought a round-the-world ticket for her next trip when she died.
She said she was saddened by her mother's passing but hoped her antiques would find new, loving owners.
''It's lovely when you are the guardian of such treasures because then you can pass them on ... and then they belong to a new group of people who say 'Yes, I love this and I want this in my life,' or 'I'm a dealer and I love this, it's a good quality item','' she said.
''So today there'll be people buying with their heads and people buying with their hearts.''
Which one did her mother use?
''Mum had a happy knack of being able to buy with her heart and it was all sound stuff in terms of the head,'' Ms Bouwman said.