Nelson & Bonaparte, the continuing rivalry by Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood
T hough it has been over two hundred years since the decisive battle of Trafalgar that changed the course of history, these two protagonists continue to meet in battle once more, in the auction room at Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood.
Both renowned strategists and celebrities of their own time, Nelson and Bonaparte are still regarded in high esteem by many modern day collectors who are eager to obtain a piece of history. While there are many commemorative pieces relating to both men that can be seen at auction on a regular basis, period items with good provenance are the Holy Grail to collectors. It is not until you are actually face to face with such items that you suddenly have a wave of realisation that you are holding history in your hands. This is the motivation behind the competitive bidding in the saleroom.
Over the years of dealing with the Specialist Maritime auction at BH & L, I have been fortunate to have sold a number of pieces from these two great men and the battle was renewed in the Maritime auction held on 11th June 2014. Included in the auction was a small unassuming late Georgian ivory and gilt mounted toothpick case. Not an interesting piece in itself but inside carefully wrapped is a small packet labelled ‘Bonaparte’s hair’. You may wonder how Old Boney’s hair would come to be in a property in Devon but on investigation the story revealed the possibility that it was genuine. After his defeat at Waterloo, Bonaparte was held captive aboard HMS Bellerophon in Torbay harbour prior to being exiled. Word spread and the bay was full with thousands of small boats and ships with curious onlookers all trying to get a look at England’s greatest enemy. It is entirely possibly that a sailor aboard the Bellerophon may have taken a memento from Bonaparte’s cabin. A similar lot was sold by Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood for £800 in 2009. This time the interest fell a little shorter (no pun intended!) with it selling for £240.
However, to the victor go the spoils and this continued to be the case for Nelson with the high prices for his items at auction. Included in the Maritime auction was a wall cabinet constructed from the timbers of Nelson’s first flagship HMS Foudroyant. Styled in the form of the stern galley of the ship with anchor light and arched transom, the cabinet would be a fine piece in which to display all of your other Nelson antiques. Constructed by Goodall, Lamb and Heighway in 1899, it shattered its £5,000-£7,000 estimate with telephone bidders taking it to a record price of £16,000.
It is interesting to think that such pieces relating to perhaps two of the most significant historical figures can be found tucked away around the county. We continue to hold weekly Antiques and Collectables auctions alongside Quarterly Fine and Specialist auctions in order to provide a range of suitable auctions for the most diverse items that are found and consigned to auction.
By Brian Goodison-Blanks
Maritime and Sporting Expert
For further details please call Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood on 01392 413100
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