Nameplates are classic examples as Talisman returns to saleroom auctions
TWO of the most successful racehorses in the UK in the late Victorian era will feature in the nameplate category in Talisman’s landmark March
26 auction – the first by a mainstream railwayana auction house with a saleroom audience for two years.
The plates are Diamond Jubilee and Isinglass from LNER A3 Nos. 60046 and 60063, built respectively at Doncaster in August 1924 (works No. 1601) and June 1925 (works No. 1618). The older of the two was withdrawn from Grantham (34F) in June 1963 and the younger from the Peterborough shed of New England (34E) a year later, meaning both had a main line life of 39 years. The two horses the locomotives were named after each won the Triple Crown of classic races, Diamond Jubilee achieving the feat in 1900, seven years after Isinglass.
Another racehorse will make its mark in the auction when the smokebox numberplate from LNERdesigned and BR-built A1 No. 60149 Amadis goes under the hammer.
This Peppercorn Pacific was built at Darlington (works No. 2068) in May 1949, withdrawn from Doncaster in June 1964, and was named after the winner of the 1909 Doncaster Cup.
From a more modern era comes a cabside numberplate from E3041, a Bo-Bo electric that in November 1972 became Class 84 No. 84006 under the TOPS numbering system. It was one of a class of 10 locomotives built by North British Locomotive Co in 1960/61 for operating on the West Coast Main Line, and was withdrawn from Crewe in January 1978.
More on offer
Among the worksplates are three Great Northern Railway Doncaster examples, from C12 4-4-2T No. 67362 built in 1899 (works No. 815), N1 0-6-2T No. 69459 which entered traffic in 1911 (works No. 1294), and 1914-built J6 0-6-0 No. 64240 (works No. 1451). Another locomotive item is the smokebox numberplate from B1 No. 61112, which was offered to Talisman for auction after its owner had seen a photograph of the 4-6-0 in a Heritage Railway article.
A variety of posters will be a colourful feature of the sale, among which are LMS trio ‘The day begins’ by Terence Cuneo, featuring Princess Coronation No. 46255 City of Hereford on the Willesden shed turntable issued in 1946, ‘Crewe Works building Coronation class engines’ by the Austrian-born artist Lili Réthi from 1937, and another from 1937, ‘The Merseyside Express’ by Cecil King.
From the LNER comes an Edinburgh poster that, despite research by Talisman’s Roger Phipps, was the work of an unidentified artist.
Roger, who will share the auctioneering with his wife Sandra, said of their return to organising a live saleroom auction: “It’s been a long time, and our feedback is that we might get a full house. We obviously won’t know until the day itself but we’re raring to go.”
The 600-lot auction, which due to its return to live action will be closely watched by other specialist railwayana auction houses, is at Newark Showground and starts at 10am.