History

Anstey Horne’s origins date back to 1795, when Mr Pullen established a firm of auctioneers at 34 Little Moorfields, now Moorfields, near Moorgate Station. At the time, he would have been familiar with the Swan & Hoop, a prominent inn and livery stable at the London Wall end of the street. Today, the site is occupied by the Globe pub, which commemorates the birthplace of poet John Keats, also born in 1795.

 

Mr Pullen was later joined by Mr Eversfield and subsequently by Mr Edgar Horne. By 1860, the firm operated as Pullen, Horne & Eversfield and managed the auction of the late Duke of Wellington’s effects. Around this time, the business relocated to Fore Street.

In 1868, the Institution of Surveyors was founded by 49 surveyors meeting at the Westminster Palace Hotel. Edgar Horne’s son, Sir William Edgar Horne, later became President of the organisation, now the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, in 1911.

By 1884, Pullen’s name had been dropped from the practice. Trading as Horne, Son & Eversfield, the firm became Horne & Co in 1899.

Over its long history, the firm conducted several notable auctions, including those of the Royal Mint, Newgate Prison and Crystal Palace. These significant commissions left a lasting legacy, with the firm retaining historic artefacts such as the original sale catalogue for Crystal Palace. Its final auction was conducted on behalf of the Great Western Railway and later British Rail.

Following the First World War, Bryan Anstey of Johnston Evans & Company became associated with Horne & Co. His name was added to the practice in 1964, creating Anstey Horne.

After Bryan’s retirement, his son John Anstey became sole principal in 1973. He relocated the business to Newbury Street in 1977, transforming a neglected café into offices that won the first City Heritage Award in 1978.

John Anstey was a leading figure in party wall legislation, helping establish The Pyramus & Thisbe Club in 1974 and contributing to the development of the Party Wall Act. Joined by Lance Harris and Graham North in the early 1990s, the firm continued to grow.

In 2007, more than 210 years after its founding, Anstey Horne returned close to its Moorfields origins with a move to Chiswell Street, reconnecting the business with the area where its history began.