Martel Maides holds its first specialist maritime auction

Viewings are now open for Martel Maides’ first-ever specialist maritime sale.

The collection includes silver items, books, paintings, ship models, military swords and knives and Royal Navy artefacts.

‘This is the first one of these that we’ve done, so it was a bit of an experiment, but we’ve had a lot of interest,’ said Martel Maides auctioneer Guy Cooper.

‘There are specific collectors of these things, or some people just have an interest in naval history, some people are fascinated by the sea, and others just think a particular item is interesting.

‘It’s not inconceivable for a museum or gallery to be interested in some of the pieces, but it is mainly private buyers.’

A wide variety of art is going under the hammer.

The Battle of the Saints by Thomas Luny, 1782 is estimated to sell for between £10,000 and £15,000.

It is a painting of the last major action of the American Revolutionary War, fought near the islets called the Iles des Saintes, just north of the West Indies.

‘The Thomas Luny picture is really wonderful,’ said Mr Cooper.

‘I think he painted about four of that scene, one of which is in the National Maritime Museum, this is probably the last one in private hands.

Another art piece is the Flagship of a Vice-Admiral of the Red Before the Wind by Charles Brooking, who painted it in 1754. He died five years later.

‘The history of this picture is quite interesting.

‘I think it was in Herm and then when the Germans took over the Channel Islands it was in the officers’ mess,’ said Mr Cooper.

‘The provenance is a big part of it and is super-interesting for a lot of these things, and the market for them changes too.

‘Traditional pictures aren’t as fashionable as they once were, but other things are now instead.’

A series of six original artwork for posters by Kenneth Denton Shoesmith are up for an estimated £1,000 to £1,500 each.

Shoesmith was famous for drawing ships and nautical scenes.

For a while he served as a ship’s officer but as he found he did not have enough time for painting, he quit and dedicated himself to his art until his death in 1939.

Much of his work is held by The Ulster Museum in Belfast.

Among a 12-bolt diving helmet and carved and polychrome painted ship’s figurehead, a 19th century fire surround is up for auction.

The surround is thought to have once been in a ship captain’s cabin and is intricately hand-carved with solomonic columns, putto masks, geometric patterns and stylised sea creatures.

The legs and plinths are later additions.

n The collection opened for viewing on Saturday. There are further viewings available tomorrow, Thursday and Friday between 10am and 4pm, above Health Connections in Market Square.

The auction takes place on Saturday at 10am at Martel Maides on Cornet Street.