Wiltshire news, sports, classifieds & more ! Definitive guide to the Wiltshire area - updated

History goes under the hammer again

From the Swindon Advertiser, first published Tuesday 29th Oct 2002.

A KING, a Kaiser, an air ace and the man who made Swindon famous all feature in an auction in the town next week.

Dominic Winter Book Auctions in Maxwell Street has assembled 634 lots relating to aviation, military matters and railways.

Mr Winter says the sale next Thursday will boost the town's growing image as a leading rival to London as an auction venue.

He explained: "The London auction rooms are finding this sort of thing too difficult and uneconomic to handle, but we are specialists.

"Swindon is becoming the centre of the world for this type of material ­ our strategy is working."

Items due under the hammer include:

An original photograph of King George V hauling on a rope while aboard the racing yacht Britannia ­ not the commonly known Royal Yacht but one of its predecessors. The image is one of 55 on a similar theme, and together they are expected to sell for up to £300.

A collection of photographs, postcards and press cuttings showing Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany ­ the grandson of Queen Victoria who was Britain's foe in World War One ­ aboard his various yachts. This collection is also expected to raise up to £300.

An 1885 auction notice relating to the sale of the Great Eastern. This was the huge steamship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the man who was mainly responsible for establishing Swin-don as the 19th Century cradle of the railway industry.

The document is expected to sell for up to £600.

An original photograph of German World War One fighter ace Manfred von Richthofen ­ also known as the Red Baron.

It is expected to raise up to £500.

The sources for the lots at next week's sale include prestigious collections such as the Gautier Archive, the Alfred Kruger Luftwaffe Collection, and military books from the estate of Air Commodore RHS Spaight CBE.

Mr Winter added: "You can tell by the quality of the material how much we are in command."

Archive Home