Have you ever wondered what Charles Dickens’s glasses looked like? Not the ones he wore on his nose, but the ones he drank out of. Well, now you can find out, at the Luxury Antiques and Fine Art Fair in Harewood Pavilion next week.

This pair of glasses would set you back £1,200, and were bought from Charles Dickens’s home at Gadds Hill.

Of course, most of us couldn’t afford even one of these glasses, let alone two, but the fair makes a great day out, even if you are just looking and admiring.

The fair was launched last year, and this year’s event will once again feature expert exhibitors dealing in a wide variety of fine art and antiques.

The Suffragette movement was very strong in Yorkshire, and Anderson Jones has some exquisite examples of Suffragette jewellery – with trademark green, white and violet precious and semi-precious stones signifiying the phrase ‘Give Women the Vote’.

Art historian and fine art consultant Charles Nugent will be at the fair with items from his stock of watercolour landscapes of Yorkshire and the North West, particularly the Lake District. The paintings show how little the landscape in Yorkshire has changed.

There’s fine porcelain for sale too, including a collection of silver overlay procelain which has been collected in America for some years, while an impressive selection of silver includes a magnificent large oval meat dish, engraved with a stag’s head and bearing the York town mark.

There is much to admire among the artefacts on display, including town and country furniture, silver, glass, jewellery, oriental rugs and carpets, contemporary and 19th century sculpture, paintings and illustrations, jewellery, books and porcelain.

Even if the prices are beyond your budget, by just going along to look around you will be helping to raise money for two charities – St George’s Crypt in Leeds and the Art Fund.

Once you have seen your fill of priceless antiques, there is plenty more on offer, including a striking exhibition in the Servants’ Hall. Objectivity: The Art Of Useful Things, is an eclectic mix of objects collected by artists and collector David Usborne, who has a fascination for useful objects he considers “accidental masterpieces”.

The Harewood estate grounds offer breathtaking views, rolling landscapes, shady woodland, lakeside paths and delightful walks all year around. There are more than 100 acres of gardens at Harewood House to explore, which are full of a variety of plants from all over the world in the setting of a magnificent landscape created by Capability Brown.

The dazzling range of gardens includes the Terrace, Lakeside Garden, Himalayan Garden and Walled Garden.

Children will find excitement and thrills in the adventure playground, with its slides, swings and climbing frames, and the cafe, picnic areas and ice cream kiosk are close by.

Visitors will see penguins, flamingos, owls, macaws and cranes, bringing you up close to birds from Africa and America, Australasia and Indo-China. Read the labels that give fun facts about the birds and tell you about where they came from, as well as their habitat, diet and behaviour.

From the sloping site there are magnificent views across the lake where visitors can see the many species of waterfowl that naturally congregate on the water, as well as red kites flying above.

You may not be able to afford the antiques, but you may find some fresh produce from the walled garden and locally-sourced foodstuffs to take home.

Factfile

  • The Luxury Antiques and Fine Art Fair takes place at Harewood Pavilion, Harewood House, from Friday, March 1 to Sunday, March 3.
  • Tickets cost £5 each and opening times are Friday, from 11am-6pm, Saturday, 10.30am-6pm and Sunday, 10.30am-5pm. There is free parking for the fair.
  • Tickets for the grounds and the Below Stairs exhibition are £10, senior £9, child £6 and family £30.