Latest News Articles by Tom Derbyshire
Remembering the Great War’s ‘first black officer’
02 November 2020A First World War ‘dead man’s penny’ memorial plaque awarded to a soldier believed to be the first black officer commissioned into a British army regiment during the conf lict and the first black officer casualty is coming up at auction.
Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson rarities emerge in studio archive
02 November 2020An archive cleared from Bray Studios after Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson’s production company wrapped up its final series of Terrahawks in the mid-1980s is coming to auction at Surrey firm Ewbank’s on November 30.
Auction previews: issue 2466
02 November 2020A selection of 16 upcoming lots from auctions taking place around the UK and Ireland.
Auction previews: issue 2465
26 October 2020A selection of 16 upcoming lots from auctions taking place around the UK and Ireland.
Art Deco poster rides into Edinburgh auction
19 October 2020This striking example of Art Deco poster design promotes the Blue Train: the luxury overnight express between Calais and the French Riviera named after the dark blue Compagnie International des Wagons-Lits carriages used when the service resumed after the First World War.
Louis Vuitton trunk made to aid the war effort offered in Munich
19 October 2020As travel possibilities opened up with the advent of railways and steamships, the question of how to transport belongings became an important one. One of the first manufacturers to tackle this with great success was entrepreneur and designer Louis Vuitton (1821-92).
Mobile wardrobe brings demand in Norfolk
19 October 2020At TW Gaze (18% buyer’s premium) in Diss, Norfolk, on August 12 this early 20th century Louis Vuitton wardrobe trunk, no 796731, sold for £4200 against an estimate of £1800-2500.
All you need for a civilised packed lunch
19 October 2020Motor cars became more affordable and reliable particularly in the 1920s-30s, making day trips increasingly popular.
Dealer hails ‘exceptional’ campaign chest
19 October 2020An early 19th century campaign chest designed to be broken down into two parts for easier travel has been hailed as “exceptional” by the specialist dealer who bought it at an Essex auction.
Auction previews: issue 2464
19 October 2020A selection of 14 upcoming lots from auctions taking place around the UK and Ireland.
Travel memorabilia: Bradshaw railway guides remain an affordable route into the collecting market
19 October 2020“Bradshaw becomes first-hand for any sort of railway guide – you can argue whether or not he was the very first to create them, but he was the first to be successful. It is a bit like everyone calling vacuum cleaners Hoovers.”
Soviet travel posters included in Surrey auction
19 October 2020Ewbank’s of Send, Surrey, will feature a series of rare 1930s Soviet travel posters in its Vintage Posters auction on October 30.
Two wheels v four legs
19 October 2020Tim Bryars’ enthusiasm for the “democratisation of travel” extends well beyond the railways.
William Russell Flint railway poster for Bamburgh emerges at Onslows
19 October 2020Sir William Russell Flint (1890-1969) is an artist well known for his watercolours, often featuring exotic landscapes and ladies with not a lot on.
Bradshaw off the mark as a mapmaker
19 October 2020Before railway mania came canal mania – key to the Industrial Revolution. This 1830 second edition copy of George Bradshaw’s 'Map of Canals, Navigable Rivers, Rail Road &c. in the Midland Counties of England from Actual Survey' sold for £500 (estimate £200-300) at Forum Auctions (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) on October 8.
Promotion poster pre-Titanic tragedy comes to Wiltshire sale
19 October 2020This lithographic poster design of Titanic and Olympic, c.1910-11, was withdrawn after the disaster of 1912 so there are only a handful in existence today. They would have been used in travel agents and White Star Line offices to advertise the liners.
Antikbar offers best of British
19 October 2020What could be more British than a policeman in traditional garb standing on Tower Bridge?
Early 18th century documents detailing a slavery abolitionist's ill-fated project emerge at auction
17 October 2020Decades in advance of Britain’s Slave Emancipation Act of 1833, 275 British men, women and children attempted to settle an African island to prove plantations could be run without slavery.
Auction previews: issue 2463
12 October 2020A selection of 14 upcoming lots from auctions taking place around the UK and Ireland.
Very early Victoria Cross awarded for Crimean War gallantry features in London auction
01 October 2020One of the earliest Victoria Crosses ever awarded is coming to auction at London specialist saleroom Dix Noonan Webb.