Wick Antiques was established by Charles Wallrock in the early 1980s. Having grown up in the Antiques world Charles developed an extensive wealth of knowledge. Starting out as a ‘man with a van’ he quickly gained a good reputation and embarked on a longstanding relationship with Harrods. He was later joined by his wife, Caroline Wallrock. Caroline having completed a Persian degree, went on to study at Christie’s fine art and then joined Sotheby’s specializing in Islamic and Japanese works of art, as well as taking the occasional auction. Together they make a formidable team with extensive knowledge and buy and sell some of the best items on the market.
Certified DealerApproved listing361 sales by dealer
Certified DealerApproved item361 sales by dealer
Description
A fine and large model of a Thames wherry. This planked model of a Thames pleasure boat is made of mahogany with copper pins. There is a broad passenger seat behind four thwarts, two of which are adjacent to oar locks set into the saxboard. The two oars have metal tips and leather collars. The bow has a brass rubbing strake with a fleur-de-lys attachment and two padded cushions for a small seat, while the stern is fitted with a yoke tiller on a working rudder. The model is raised on two brass supports on a mahogany double cruciform stand. English, circa 1885.
Open rowing boats have been a commonplace feature on the River Thames for hundreds of years as passenger wherries. However, the Victorians, and later the Edwardians, developed a passion for boating as a leisure activity, as shown in the famous painting of Boulters Lock on a Sunday afternoon by Edward John Gregory. 800 boats and 72 steam launches passed through Boulter’s Lock on a single Sunday in 1888. Punts and rowing skiffs were the preserve of the more athletic enthusiasts, with Henley Reach hosting the first race between Oxford and Cambridge in 1829 and the First Henley Regatta a decade later. We have silver rowing scull trophies on pages 62-63 and some glass slides of the Regatta of 1907 in Sir Harold Dudley Clayton’s collection on pages 26-27.
measurements
Height:
7 in
Width:
50 in
Depth:
9.75 in
measurements
declaration
Wick Antiques Ltd has clarified that the Fine & Large Model of Thames Wherry (LA496579) is genuinely of the period declared with the date/period of manufacture being c.1885