Live Auction 14139Out of the Ordinary
BRITISH ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION (1910-1913)AN ICE AXE
Lot 516 Property from the Collection of David Gainsborough Roberts

BRITISH ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION (1910-1913)AN ICE AXE

EARLY 20TH CENTURY

Closed14 September 2016

Price Realised

GBP 1,375

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BRITISH ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION (1910-1913)
AN ICE AXE
EARLY 20TH CENTURY
With cast steel head by Manskey & Co., Stourbridge, the handle with original twine grip; together with an electroplated serving spoon, engraved with the emblem of a penguin standing on the southern hemisphere encircled by the legend, 'BRITISH ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION TERRA NOVA RYS' with maker's mark for Walker & Hall
The axe: 19 ¾ in. (50 cm.) long
The spoon: 8 ½ in. (21.5 cm.) long

William Richard Timothy.
Thence by descent.
Christie's, London, 29 April 1999, lot 163.

Specialist note

W. R. Timothy, a retired marine engineer, became licensee of the 'Hope and Anchor', Cardiff, in the late 1890s. Cardiff, with its importance as a coaling station, was probably the town from which Scott received his strongest support. As an ex-sailor himself, Timothy was naturally inclined to befriend members of the expedition and the previous vendor informed us that he amassed a large amount of Antarctic clothing and polar equipment. The collection was moved to Merthyr Tydfil in the 1920s and kept in a large cellar. The importance of the collection was unrecognised and it was allowed to deteriorate, the present ice axe and spoon alone surviving.