Click here to donate towards ‘Running for Mum’ to support Leukaemia Care
Auction of Cricket, Football, Golf & Sporting Memorabilia
Knights Auctioneers last auction of Cricket, Football & Sporting Memorabilia was held on Friday 29th, Saturday 30th November & Sunday 01st December 2024. The sale included over 1350 lots and we have included some highlights below.
To view the results from the auction click here
Lot 1289 'Popular Stories for Boys 1955'. Claude P. Shilton. Very attractive and highly colourful gouache artwork for the front cover of the Annual for 1955. The artwork features a central boy footballer kicking the ball with his team mates and opposition running behind him. A wonderful evocative image. Hammer £220
Lot 395 Alfred Herbert Harold Gilligan. Sussex & England 1919-1931. 'M.C.C. Tour of Ceylon, Australia and New Zealand 1929/30'. Original gold hallmarked cigarette case presented to Captain Alfred Gilligan by the members of the team during or following the tour. The case is made of nine carat gold, and is hallmarked Chester 1929. A nice personal item given as a mark of gratitude to the players' skipper. Hammer £950
Lot 452 Frederick Robert Spofforth. New South Wales, Victoria & Australia 1874-1888. Vanity Fair. 'The Demon Bowler'. Original colour chromolithograph of Spofforth by Spy dated July 13th 1878. Beautifully signed in black ink to lower border by Spofforth. An original signature of the demon bowler is rarely seen and to have it signed on one of the most iconic images of the 'Demon Bowler' is a truly exceptional item. Hammer £2200
Lot 849 Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack 1917. 54th edition. Original hardback. Very good to excellent condition throughout. A rare wartime hardback edition with gilt titles to front board and spine bright. Hammer £2200
Lot 682 'On the Tented Fields of the South 1882'. By The Childe (W.F. Buckland). Printed at the 'Free Lance' Office, Vulcan Lane, Auckland (New Zealand) 1883. 32pp. Report of a southern tour of the Auckland Representative Eleven with 'pomes' in prose and verse, descriptions and scores of the tour. A very rare and early New Zealand cricket publication. Hammer £5500
Lot 326 David Denton. Yorkshire & England 1894-1920. Stuart Surridge 'Rapid Driver' cricket bat used by Denton in the 1905 cricket season scoring over 2405 runs and making 52 and 153 not out against the Australians at Bradford in June 1905. The bat is inscribed clearly in black ink in Denton's hand 'Scored over 2000 runs with this bat including 52 and 153 not out versus Australians at Bradford, June 5, 6 & 7th 1905'. Additionally inscribed 'Highest score against the Australians 1905 tour' and signed by him. Hammer unsold
Lot 399 'The Aboriginals'. Victorian brass metal embossed belt buckle, depicting an Aboriginal cricketer with a bat over his shoulder to which his cricket boots are hanging. A cricket tent with flag flying to background with floral decorative border and to lower border on raised bar the inscription 'The Aboriginals'. Beaded outer border decoration. A rare item from this very early tour by the Aboriginal team. Hammer £1100
Lot 1143 Golf jug. An attractive Copeland Late Spode slightly tapered cylindrical jug with short spout, square arched handle and pewter lid, the body decorated with a continuous scene of golfers and caddies in white raised relief displaying various golfing swings and poses on a cobalt blue and grey ground with floral decoration. Circa 1910. Hammer £140
Lot 366 Colin Milburn. Northamptonshire, Western Australia & England 1960-1974. M.C.C. navy blue touring cap worn by Milburn during his Test career. The cap with M.C.C. emblem of St. George & Dragon has 'C. Milburn' handwritten to label. Hammer £460
Lot 605 'The Cricketer’s Manual for the Border Counties containing a Review and Averages for the Season 1869'. Published by Askew Roberts, Woodall, & Venables, Bailey Head, Oswestry. Comprising match scores, match reports and club averages including those of the Shropshire county team. Hammer £700
Lot 509 Victor Thomas Trumper. New South Wales & Australia 1894-1914. Excellent photomechanical process print photograph of Australian legend Victor Trumper, 'jumping out to drive', taken from the original action photograph by George William Beldam based on a photograph taken at the Oval during the 1902 tour. Nicely signed to lower border by both Victor Trumper and George William Beldam in pencil. Published by the Swan Electric Engraving Company on 1st August 1905. The ultimate iconic image from the golden age of cricket. Hammer £1000
Lot 67 Don Bradman. Official menu for 'A Luncheon and Presentation to Don Bradman'. Savoy Hotel, London. September 20th 1948. Folding menu for the Luncheon given by 'The People' newspaper. The menu with gold tassel, title to front cover and colour 'Australia 1948' emblem above. The inside front cover with menu, list of speakers and details of the presentation of an antique silver replica of the Warwick Vase to Bradman. Very nicely signed in ink by Bradman and by eight attendees, Bill Johnston, Lyndsay Hassett, Arthur Morris, Ray Lindwall, Keith Miller and Ernie Toshack of Australia, Norman Yardley and Jim Laker of England. Hammer unsold
Lot 401 William Gilbert Grace. Gloucestershire & England. 1865-1908. A limp calf brown leather wallet which once belonged to Grace with his name 'W.G. Grace' stamped into the surface of the wallet. It was apparently acquired by a gardener to a relative of Grace and then by descent to a Charles Hemus, English born, who moved to live near Canberra in Australia. An historic item having apparently once belonged to the 'Champion’. Hammer £290
Lot 328 David Denton. Yorkshire & England 1894-1920. Attractive silver hallmarked cigarette case presented to Denton in the 1908 cricket season to commemorate him scoring two consecutive centuries for Yorkshire against M.C.C. at Scarborough in August and September 1908. Hammer £340
Lot 1174 'Golliwog Golfer'. Large handpainted ceramic figure of a golliwog golfer with putter and ball made by Carltonware. This figure was a trial piece, limited edition 78/120. Carltonware stamp and number to base. 8.5” tall. Hammer £55
Lot 457 Lord Harris. Kent & England 1870-1911. 'Kent'. Signed Vanity Fair colour chromolithograph of Harris. ‘Kent’. 16th July 1881 by SPY. Nicely signed by Harris in black ink to lower border. Rare in this signed form. Hammer £150
Lot 1117 Fishing Tyg. Large and impressive three handled tyg with scene of monks fishing. Rhyme to side reads 'Tomorrow will be Friday, Every Brother his rod he took, Every rod had a line and a hook, every hook had a bait so fine, and thus they sang in the Evenshine, tomorrow will be Friday'. Rods, net and catch bag, grapes and floral decoration to inside border. Circa 1908. Marks to base for 'Late Foley, Shelley’. Hammer unsold
Lot 1314 Aston Villa F.C. 'The Villa News and Record' Season 1906-1907. Edited by Edwin W. Cox. No 1. Volume 1. A bound volume of Aston Villa home match programmes for the 1906-07 season in red/brown half leather with titles in gilt to spine, all programmes lacking original covers. Rare first season. From a complete run of the programme to 2023 being sold in this auction. Hammer £440
Lot 396 Peter Barker Howard May, Surrey & England 1950-1963. Large and impressive silver cigarette box presented to Peter May following the club's County Championship winning season of 1953. A nice personal item from the collection of one of England's finest batsman in the post-war era. Hammer unsold
Lot 683 'Pavilion Echoes from the South 1884-85'. By The Twelve. Printed by Cecil Gardner & Co, High Street, Auckland (New Zealand) 1885. 36pp plus advertising to rear. This is the third account of an Auckland tour to the south, following those of 1874 and 1882. They played the major teams on the island plus Wellington. Original blue paper wrappers. Signature of ownership of W.H. Newton ('Trundler Thames’) and date October 23rd 1885 to top border of the front wrapper. A rare and early New Zealand cricket publication. Hammer £2200
Lot 434 'Boy Cricketer'. Excellent Parian ware figure of a boy cricketer resting against a tree stump holding a cricket bat to left hand. The figure is of a very high quality and with exceptionally good detailing. Circa 1860's. A rare figure in very good condition. Hammer £900
Lot 1108 'The Billiard Book'. New edition, enlarged and revised. By Captain Crawley & W. Cook. London 1877. Illustrated by Robin Proctor. Wonderfully decorative original boards showing a full size billiard table with cues and balls. Gilt to top edge. An early Billiard book. Hammer unsold
Lot 1286 'Arsenal 1953'. Excellent and original pen and ink drawing artwork by artist Joseph Lee, showing Arsenal Manager Tom Whittaker watching players and youngsters kicking and heading balls on the steps of Highbury Stadium. The suited Commissioner comments to an onlooker 'Now the old Arsenal's started moving at last perhaps Mr Whittaker won't need all the new blood and good advice that's been turning up here lately'. The artwork, signed by Lee, was published in the London Evening News and is dated 17th September 1953. A wonderfully evocative scene beautifully illustrated by the artist. Hammer £300
Lot 1131 'The Golf Courses of the British Isles'. Bernard Darwin. Illustrated by Harry Rowntree. Duckworth & Co, London 1910. First edition. Excellent green decorated cloth covers with gilt titles to front cover and spine. Gilt to top page edges. Hammer unsold
Lot 848 Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack 1915. 52nd edition. Original hardback. Very good to excellent condition throughout with gilt titles to front board and spine bright. A rare pre-war hardback edition. Hammer £900
Lot 402 Cricket clock. An attractive late Victorian/ Edwardian brass clock of cricketing interest, formed with a central drum form enamelled dial, encased within a set of cricket stumps and bails with cricket bats leaning against the clock and a cricket ball to the top of the clock. The whole mounted on a half oval wooden plinth with a pair of cricket shoes and hat to wooden base. An unusually decorated clock, not often seen. Formerly in the M.C.C. Collection. Hammer £170
Lot 1372 Aston Villa. Original 'Grays Sports China' Aston Villa miniature ople shaped vase circa 1911. The vase inscribed in enamel 'ASTON VILLA' with a Villa player dressed in claret and blue strip and football to side, the reverse with a panel listing the clubs achievements from winning the English Cup in 1886/87 to being Champions of the First Division in 1909/10. Rare. Hammer £160