9 minute read
Memory Reign: From the coronation
The commemorative industry exploded in the reign of Queen Victoria, image courtesy of the Museum of Brands, whose exhibition Jubilation: 200 Years of Royal Souvenirs is on now
Memory Reign
Royal memorabilia is in the spotlight like never before. From sought-after ceramics to throwaway ephemera, commemorative pieces shine a light on Britain’s historic and social changes
As a gauge of public sentiment, levels of patriotism and even history itself, royal memorabilia is a valuable barometer. Consider this: there were 20-25 lines of official merchandise for the marriage of Prince Charles to Camilla Parker Bowles, compared to 1,600 for Charles’ previous wedding (while there were 700 for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee compared to 600 for the Golden event).
Right A slice of cake from William and Kate’s wedding sold for £260, image courtesy of Chiswick Auctions Because of its very nature, royal souvenirs rarely fulfil collecting’s number one requirement – rarity. For all the limited-edition descriptions, royal memorabilia is a mass market where few people make any money – save for the producers. Paul Fraser, of Paul Fraser Collectibles, goes even further. He said: “Don’t invest in jubilee memorabilia. It’s being produced in such large numbers (even the “limited edition” pieces) that there’s not enough rarity to drive prices upwards in the decades to come. Plus, so many people today are alive to the idea of buying memorabilia as an investment. It means most owners will keep their jubilee mugs and plates in pristine condition so the market will be saturated for decades to come.”
But such has been the case throughout history. 300 years ago engraved goblets marking the accession of Queen Anne in 1702 cost a shilling to make and were punted out for a guinea to the waiting public.
Personal connection
When it comes to collectables the rule of thumb is a personal connection. The ultimate example of which being the sale of the Duchess of Windsor’s jewels, which made £31m in 1987.
Paul Fraser continued: “If you’re looking to profit from the Windsors, concentrate on the high end of the royal memorabilia market. This is where you find those rare pieces touched, owned or worn by the royals. These are the items that have historically grown in value, due to their scarcity and desirability.”
Pieces like the bicycle Princess Diana rode in the months before marrying Prince Charles which sold for £211 in 2008. In 2018 it sold again. For £9,200. That’s 45.8 per cent per annum growth over 10 years.
Long history
Royal memorabilia can be traced back to the coronation of King Charles II in 1661 when ceremonial pomp was encouraged after 10 years of puritanical austerity under Oliver Cromwell. Handmade chargers by English Delft marking the coronation are extremely rare and can fetch more than £60,000. It was more than 100 years before transfer printing on pottery replaced hand painting, and a still longer wait for the Victorian era’s sophistication of distribution to help ship royal souvenirs.
Above left An English Delftware charger of Charles II, 1670, sold for £60,000 in 2015 (against an estimate of (£40,000£60,000), image courtesy of Christie’s
Above right Ravilious’ mug commemorating the coronation of Edward VIII can fetch £600
Left Souvenirs commemorating Queen Elizabeth II, image courtesy of the Museum of Brands, whose exhibition Jubilation: 200 Years of Royal Souvenirs is currently on show
Right Dame Laura Knight designed mug for the planned coronation of Edward VIII, image courtesy of Black Bough
Below right Knight adapted her design for the coronation of his brother, George VI, with a portrait of him and his wife, Elizabeth, image courtesy of Black Bough
Edward VIII’s coronation
While the monarchy despaired at Edward VIII’s abdication announcement on December 10, 1936, the souvenir industry was equally plunged into chaos. The coronation, due to take place in May 1937, was off – leaving warehouses full of commemorative china and other objects set to celebrate the big day. Many collectors assume, because the coronation didn’t take place, their mugs and plates must be valuable. Not so. The UK was already awash with more than 400 separate designs of souvenirs issued for the coronation – the majority being mugs. When it was announced Edward’s younger brother, the Duke of York, would be crowned George VI on May 12, 1937 – the original date for Edward’s coronation – the factories got to work. To recoup losses they started adapt transfers of inscriptions and images. A Wedgwood mug by the artist/ designer Eric Ravilious commemorating the coronation of Edward VIII can fetch as much as £600, with the hurriedly redesigned version fetching half as much again. Dame Laura Knight’s mug added new transfers to the later designs to read ‘Proposed Coronation King Edward VIII’ with the inscription ‘Abdicated Dec. 10th 1936’ hastily added to the rim.
The industry had previously been caught out at the coronation of Edward VII (which was delayed for four days when the prince had appendicitis and almost died). More recently, the marriage of Prince Charles and Camilla ParkerBowles in 2005 had to be postponed a day due to the funeral of Pope John Paul II.
LOOK OUT FOR
•Two-handled loving cups and three-handled friendship ‘Tyg’ mugs tend to be worth most because they are the easiest to break - and are therefore more rare. •Humorous one-offs can add to the appeal. A Spitting Image Prince Charles ‘big ears’ mug by cartoonist Marc Boxer, costing around £1 in 1981 can now fetch £100. A favourite with the critics, it made the Design Council’s list of top wedding commemoratives. •If you have deep pockets the Royal Mint’s proof coins are desirable as only 850 were minted – only the gold coins hold their value, not the silver ones. •A limited-edition 1992 commemorative ‘Annus Horribilis’ mug is also sought after today.
In the meantime, royal troubles proved a boon. Drinking glasses to commemorate the abortive Jacobite rising are among the most expensive examples of glass collecting, and the Queen Caroline Affair (where the public sided with badly-treated wife of the Prince Regent) featured on ceramics which can command large prices.
Victorian age
But it was during the Victorian period that the commemorative market reached its peak, aided by the new means of mass production later in her reign which
Above left The ear handle made the mug more delicate and hence rarer over time
Above Charger with a double portrait of William III and Mary II, c. 1690, Dutch, Delft. It depicts William and Mary after the 1688 Glorious Revolution, image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Right Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, 1887, scarf, image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Left A Swansea mug showing a youthful Victoria at her coronation in 1838
Above right Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, 1887, by medallist Anton Scharff Austrian. The profiles represent Queen Victoria at ages 18 and 68 coincided with her jubilees. One of the most charming pieces is a Swansea purple transfer coronation mug marking her coronation in 1838. A million miles from the dour portraits of later years, it shows a girlish young monarch a year after she was crowned aged just 18. It would have been one of the few portraits of the sovereign many of her subjects would have have seen.
Double jubilee
Fast forward 50 years to her Golden Jubilee in 1887 and Diamond Jubilee in 1897, and the commemorative market had changed along with production methods and the population in general. The jubilee, on June 22, 1897 was a grand procession, covering six miles of the streets of London with thousands hoping to catch a glimpse of the 17-carriage procession.
Victoria had surpassed her grandfather George III as the longest-reigning monarch in British history in September 1896 and to celebrate street feasts were supplied with free ale and tobacco to more than 400,000 Londoners. The celebration wasn’t limited to the capital. In Derby, as elsewhere, children received an enamel beaker. In Pendlebury Sunday school children were given a brown salt-glaze mug. Several factories updated themes from the Golden Jubilee 10 years prior, with some adding pictures of Prince Albert who had died in 1861. These are greatly sought after as little was produced at the time of his death.
Left A pair of Queen Caroline engraved commemorative goblets, English, c. 1821, on offer for £850 from Fileman Antiques
Right Charles and Di’s splicing spawned the first royal wedding commemorative coin
Below left Bowl, c. 1700. probably Dutch, English Delft, depicting King William, image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Below right Two Regency glass crown scent bottles made for the coronation of George IV, English, 1820, £650 and £850 from Fileman Antiques
Coining it in
Richard Beale from the auctioneers Warwick & Warwick Ltd reveals six of the most notable, though not necessarily valuable, commemorative coins issued by The Royal Mint 1935 George V silver crown, issued to mark the Silver Jubilee of George V, commonly referred to as the ‘Rocking Horse’ crown due to its art deco interpretation of the traditional St George and the Dragon coin design. 1953 Queen’s coronation five shilling crown, issued in 1953 to celebrate the Queen’s coronation, this coin has a face value of 25p but is worth far more to a collector. 1972 Silver wedding anniversary commemorative crown, issued in 1972 to mark the silver wedding anniversary of the Queen and Prince Philip. 1977 Queen’s silver jubilee commemorative crown, issued in 1977 to commemorate her 25-year reign. 1981 Royal Wedding Charles Diana commemorative crown, issued to mark the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, it is the first ever royal wedding commemorative coin. 2011 Royal Wedding gold £5 proof crown, issued in 2011 to celebrate the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
