Welcome
If you are of a certain age, you may well remember with great fondness the swashbuckling, and yet bumbling, exploits of Captain Horatio Pugwash. Heralded on 70s TV by that jaunty accordion rendition of the Trumpet Hornpipe, just before the evening news, his presence signalled the final five minutes of watchable telly before the grown-ups took over.
For a brief interlude we were entranced by the vain and greedy pirate who took the credit for any successful venture, over the real brains of the outfit, his young helpmate Tom the Cabin Boy. The reason I mention it is not pure nostalgia but the fact that this month the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich is holding an exhibition on pirates. To honour it, we are putting buccaneering memorabilia in the spotlight (or telescope). I am delighted to say the cartoons of Pugwash’s creator, John Ryan, feature in both the exhibition and article. And, for fans of the Black Pig and all who sailed in her, the good news is his original cartoons won’t break the bank, or indeed treasure chest, have a look on page 50.
In more traditional vein, on page 16, our resident English furniture expert David Harvey gets to grips with an extending Regency dining table of quite monumental proportions – large enough in fact to seat 12. In its heyday, in the early 1800s, the well-to-do took dinner very seriously and it’s easy to imagine some of the glittering functions at which the table would have taken centre stage.
We have two saleroom spotlights this month, the first, on page 26, focusing on the single-owner collection of historic timepieces by some of the best makers in the business, including Thomas Tompion and Daniel Quare. The sale, in Norfolk, also features a portable sun dial which, as unlikely as it may seem, was the timepiece of choice for the well-dressed 17th-century man about town.
The other saleroom spotlight features the textile collection of Lady Ottoline Morrell. Although her name is today less known than others of the famous Bloomsbury Group, in line with most of her pals, she defied convention, having affairs with men and women and lighting a match under the artistic sensibilities of the day. In the process she also notched up a rather wonderful collection of textiles. Have a look on page 48.
Talking of defying convention, we also put the ground-breaking designs of Christopher Dresser, the father of modernism, in focus on page 18. Not for him the overblown gee gaws of the Victorian parlour, instead he created pieces still considered fresh today. Enjoy the issue.
Georgina Wroe, Editor
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This 16th-century Anglo Dutch strong box which has an estimate of £10,000-£15,000
at Bishop & Miller’s sale in Norfolk in March, date tbc,
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FIRST WORD
IN THIS ISSUE
CAROLYN HOULSTON
We go behind the scenes with the historic textiles specialist, page 8
ED TAXIL-WEBBER previews a collection of historic timepieces from 1500 to 1900,
page 26
SUSANNA WINTER
puts the collection of the Bloomsbury Group’s Lady Ottoline Morrell in the spotlight, page 48
ANNA MIDDLETON lifts the page on the market for works of pirate fiction and non-
fiction, page 50
THE TEAM Editor: Georgina Wroe, georgina.
wroe@accartbooks.com Online Editor: Richard Ginger, richard.ginger@accartbooks.com
Design: Philp Design,
philpdesign.co.uk Advertising and subscriptions:
Charlotte Kettell 01394 389969, charlotte.kettell
@accartbooks.com
ANTIQUE COLLECTING 3
