A Whangee cane belonging to Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889-1977), from the collection of cricket commentator Henry Blofeld, is coming up for auction at Christie's London, on July 13
One of the most interesting lots in the Christie's upcoming auction "Valuable Books and Manuscripts," scheduled to take place in London on July 13, is neither a book, nor a manuscript, but a photograph. It's not one of the most expensive lots on offer, nonetheless, it appears that it will be keenly contested for when the auction opens at Christie's King Street office next week.
That's a photograph, titled "England's Twelve Champion Cricketers, Photographed On Board Ship At Liverpool Sep 7, 1859," taken by photographer T.H. Hennah. It's a celebrated photograph of the first England team to tour overseas on the deck of the ship that took them to North America. Unfaded and with caption fully preserved, it is estimated at £1,000 - £1,500 ($1,296 - $1,944). The publisher, W.H. Mason, dedicates it to "The Cricketers of England and America. This group of England's Twelve Champion Cricketers. Photographed on the morning of their departure for America." The players, the cricketing giants of the mid-19th century, are listed as "Carpenter, Caffyn, Lockyer, Wisden, Stephenson, G. Parr, Grundy, Caesar, Hayward, Jackson, Diver, John Lillywhite." This photograph is a Carbon Print, measuring 219 mm-by-280mm in original mount with lithographic inscription.
Out of a total of 170 lots on offer in this auction, there's as many as two dozen lots that deal with the game's earliest days - from rare photographs to notices on rules of the game, cricket rhymes to prospectus of cricket associations, and news announcements of upcoming cricket matches to caricatures of top cricketers of the day.
Another item that is likely to be as keenly raced for is a Whangee cane that belonged to Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin, whom we better know as Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977). It measures 82 cm and is mounted on a contemporary black-painted wood frame, and bearing a white metal display plaque engraved with, "Presented to the Tivoli Cinema London UK Modern Times 1936." The piece is estimated at £6,000 - £9,000 ($7,776 - $11,664). It comes to the auction table from the collection of cricket commentator Henry Blofeld. The present cane was sold with the Tivoli Magazine Programme (London, 1936) presenting "Modern Times," the front wrapper with design of Chaplin with cane and in bowler hat; also sold with a non-vintage photograph of Chaplin in tramp costume. Released in February 1936, "Modern Times" marked Chaplin's last appearance as the Little Tramp.