An Important Early Victorian Horse Racing Trophy - Doncaster 1844
£34,000
Auction: 14 October 2015 at 11:00 BST
Description
Hunt and Roskell, London 1844, modelled as an equestrian group, with a Lord and Lady on horseback with an archer standing giving directions, possibly intended to be Robin Hood with the Sheriff and Marian, the whole mounted on a gilt bronze naturalistically modelled ground,
Dimensions
Height silver: 43cm, maximum width: 63cm
Footnote
In 1844 Alice Hawthorn won all but three of her races - including
seven walk-overs - in another crushing schedule - and in those
three non-winning races, she ran second once, dead-heated once,
and paid forfeit once.
She began by running second for the Chester Cup, beaten by Red
Deer in a field of twenty-five. She then won £100 in race in which
she beat Philip, who, the next day, won the Cheshire Stakes, and
six others. She then embarked on another succession of wins all
over the north and in the south; in a number of cases, there were
no challengers, and she enjoyed walk-overs.
Alice Hawthorn was certainly acclaimed as the premier racehorse
of the season; as well as the trophies offered here she won many
more over her career on the turf.
The firm Hunt and Roskell, originally founded by Paul Storr, has always been a name to
indicate items of high quality and design. The two trophies by them certainly confirm that
statement. They also made other trophies of this sculptural type up until the Royal Hunt
Cup for Ascot in 1884, sold at Christie's 10th June 2010
In the mid 19th century the fashion changed from traditional horse racing trophies of the
vase and cup style to more sculptural and narrative trophies. The principal exponent of this
craft was Edmund Cotterill (1795-1858), sculptor and head of Garrard's design department.
Trophies of this type by Cotterill were very well regarded by critics and the public. He was an
expert in not only modelling the figures but
also the animals and the interaction
of the group as a whole. The
public, in particular, held the
sculptural groups at the
Great Exhibition of 1851
as one section not to be
missed and Garrard
were awarded a prize
for a piece by Cotterill