Nameplate Ketley Hall from GWR No. 4935 may have been overall champion at GW Railwayana’s
March 17 sale at Pershore thanks to its £4000 realisation, but a couple of other items did their best to reach the top of the podium.
They were Western Region totem sign Ashchurch for Tewkesbury, from a station on the Cheltenham-Bromsgrove line that opened in 1840, closed in 1971, reopened in 1997, and is now used by nearly 100,000 passengers annually (£3600), and a previously unknown GWR Weston-super-Mare poster (£3500).
Returning to the nameplate selection, Usk Castle from GWR No. 5032 failed to sell under the hammer, but had gone the following day for £8480, while similarly, one of its cabside numberplates went to a new owner after the end of proceedings for £2000. Also in the nameplate category, Will from a colliery 0-6-0T built by Andrew Barclay in February 1904 (works No. 999) kept the industrials’ flag flying with a price of £1450.
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Clocks and watches enjoyed the day, doubtless much to the delight of GW Railwayana director and auctioneer Simon Turner, a dedicated and knowledgeable horologist. Top of this particular pile was a GW & GC Joint Railway 12in clock at £2700, closely pursued at £2600 each by two guards’ watches, a circa 1837 London & Birmingham Railway example and another from the Isle of Wight Railway dating from 1867, while a Rhymney Railway 12in clock wasn’t far behind (£2300).
London Transport platform bullseye signs were also on the money, headed by Earl’s Court (£2300), and so too a SR Hayling Island station enamel seatback (£2100), a Vale of Rheidol Light Railway trespass sign (£1950), and a Southern Electric Strawberry Hill station direction sign (£1700).
Top BR steam worksplate was an LNER Darlington 1935 from B17 No. 61646 Gilwell Park (£1550), and others into four figures included a GWR police truncheon and a Tyer’s rotary train describer receiving instrument also from the GWR, each of which went for £1150, and the smokebox numberplate from Standard 9F 2-10-0 No. 92111 (£1050). Prices exclude buyer’s premium of 10% (+ VAT).
“Warnings of snow affected the attendance a little, but we had a great day,” said Simon as one and all made for home with one eye on the weather. “We had a good mixture, and clocks and watches were fantastic.”
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