This Irish George III mahogany hall table in the Chinese Chippendale manner caused a considerable stir in the Adam's salerooms last Wednesday when it made almost five times the upper estimate.

The keen interest it excited - six telephone bidders and many more in the room - may have been due to the table's provenance; it was one of a number of lots included in the auction which had come from Farmleigh, the former home of the Guinness family bought by the State last year. Expected to make £10,000-£20,000, the table eventually fetched £95,000.

Other items in the same sale which did well included a French 18th-century inlaid kingswood serpentine front commode (£18,000), a set of four Irish George III mahogany-framed dining chairs in the Chippendale manner (£14,000), an Irish George III mahogany serpentine-front side table (£13,000, another piece from Farmleigh) and a set of eight George IV rosewood railback dining chairs (£10,000).