Borthwick's the Butchers in the Victorian Village
For almost 50 years Flambards has been Cornwall’s most beloved visitor attraction. It was a delight for all ages, but will be most firmly etched into the happy memories of many generations of Cornish children.
But rising costs and falling visitor numbers forced its closure in November last year, and now its extraordinary contents will be auctioned.
The auction will encompass all 50 astonishingly detailed shops in the Victorian Village, the similarly remarkable ‘Britain in the Blitz’ installation and the surrounding War Galleries, plus all the supporting historical displays, including the full size Concorde and the Avro Shackleton cockpit.
W.C.White's, the extraordinary 'Time Capsule chemists'
Flambards is an iconic institution within Cornwall, and the Victorian Village is the jewel in its crown. Like a time-capsule-within-a-time-capsule, it recreates an entire community of Victorian shops and businesses in incredible detail; a human sized dolls house in the form of a whole town. Every nook and cranny meticulously curated by its visionary creator Audrey Hale, to contain exactly the products that shops sold, the clothes people wore, the food they ate and every other imaginable detail of everyday life in a small English town of the Victorian era. The creation of the Victorian Village was a remarkable achievement and no one who has visited it will ever forget it.
Likewise the Britain in the Blitz display recreates a crowded British pub, a bombed out street, shops and more. Equally unforgettable is the full-sized Concorde flight deck and cabin complete with aircrew, the Avro Shackleton cockpit and the many fascinating displays of wartime history full of heartrending stories and important and valuable artefacts.
.JPEG)
Flambards Steam Fire Engine
This will be an extraordinary auction; the quality and quantities of fascinating and valuable, historic items is breathtaking, but it also presents a unique opportunity not just for collectors but members of the public wishing to acquire memorabilia of this most beloved and iconic place.
David Lay, director and founder of Lay’s Auctioneers has been on site with his team since December last year, cataloguing the thousands of extraordinary items that will be sold. He muses upon the sale:
"The whole is so much greater than the sum of its parts. To walk the streets of The Flambards Villiage is to be transported to a halcyon past, a past created by Audrey Hale using vast quantities of original material which is now so rare as to be akin to hens teeth. Whilst we have all been enriched by the experience of cataloguing this remarkable collection, it has been tinged with sadness that this incredible creation - a whole Victorian town, perfectly realised in full-scale, with every corner, shop, street and building absolutely historically correct, down to the most minute detail, must now be dispersed. However, that is the nature of things, and from this auction other collections will be improved, new collections will be formed.
This collection will be an inspiration."
1450 incredible lots. Some of the highlights of the auction include:
Birch, Birch & Co. Georgian III shop & contents (to be sold in 58 lots)
Including shopfront, shop cabinets, advertising panels, fitted shelves, drawers and toleware produce bins, cannisters, bottles, displays, stands, and all manner of period shop stock. (Note: This is just one of fifty similarly detailed shops in the Victorian Village).
This George III shopfront was originally situated in Angel Court, in the City of London, and was one of 2 shops owned by the Birch family, the other one being in Cornhill. The Cornhill shopfront is now in the Victoria & Albert Museum.
Estimates range from £30-50 up to £5,000-10,000
The Historic Shand Mason fire engine and tender from Cliveden
A 19th century Shand Mason & Co Engineers London horse-drawn fire engine, together with Merryweather & Sons London coal cart in 'Cliveden' livery.
Provenance: The Hon W W Astor, Cliveden, Buckinghamshire.
Estimate: £15,000-25,000
A World War II period Willys MB Military Jeep
With 9-slot grille, rear canvas tonneau & hoops, spare wheel and spare fuel can in very good, complete condition.
The Willys MB, also known as the Jeep, was a light military utility vehicle and the primary 4-wheel drive vehicle used by the US Army and Allies during WWII.
Estimate £10,000 - 12,000
Dates & Viewing information
The contents of Flambards will remain in situ for public viewings:
Saturday 22nd March - Monday 24th March, 10am-4pm
Hourly, timed admission only by scanned £10 pp. pre-purchased entrance ticket, (details to follow)
Flambards, Clodgey Lane, Helson, Cornwall, TR13 0QA
The auction will be held globally online and in Lay’s Penzance Salerooms
Tuesday 25th March - Thursday 27th March, 10am start daily
Lay’s Auctioneers, The Penzance Auction House, Alverton, Penzance, Cornwall TR18 4RE
Collections will be by timed appointment from Flambards Theme Park
During the the sale (where practically possible) Fri 28th/Sat 29th/Mon 31st to Fri 4th April: Collections & postage from Flambards for smaller/portable lots (excluding specified large or structural lots)
Mon 7th April to Fri 11th April: Removal of specified large or structural lots
View the Auction Catalogue, register to bid online: www.davidlay.co.uk
More info & media enquiries: mimi@davidlay.co.uk & davidlay@davidlay.co.uk
The news, history and stories behind our art and antiques