19/09/14 Ros Beardsley, from Hansons Auctioneers inspects the ship ahead of next week's auction. A rare model of a war ship is expected to fetch t
19/09/14 Ros Beardsley, from Hansons Auctioneers inspects the ship ahead of next week's auction. A rare model of a war ship is expected to fetch thousands when it goes under the hammer at auction next week. The two-hundred-year-old model war ship made from old cattle bone discovered in a Lichfield attic is anticipated to sell for up to £5,000 at Hansons Auctioneers in Derbyshire on Saturday, September 27. A model of a British naval ship dating from circa 1800-1810 and constructed from recycled cattle bone and box wood has been uncovered in a Lichfield loft. Charles Hanson, manager of Hansons Auctioneers, said the model ship would actually have been carved by captured French prisoners who had served Napoleon. The retired couple who own the ship were reportedly delighted to learn its anticipated value, commenting: “Despite being in land-locked Derbyshire, we hope the wind will blow and the ship will set sail with a gale behind it!” The price guide on the ship is £3,000 to £5,000, and is expected to create international interest. Mr Hanson described the intricacy of the detailing on the item, housed within a glass and walnut case, as superb. He said: “The fine carved work and symmetrical hull and deck is remarkable together with the delicate rigging. “The prisoners who made such works of art were not treated like convicts, they were confined to the likes of prison hulks in naval dockyards, old castles or purpose built prison camps such as Norman Cross or Dartmoor. “On the encouragement of their captors, they formed their own guilds to produce small objects d’art to sell in the camp’s periodic civilian open market.” All Rights Reserved: F Stop Press Ltd. +44(0)1335 300098
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Photo credit: © Rod Kirkpatrick / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: auction, auctioneers, fsp, hansons, model, press, ship, stop
