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| The female bustard - some insect damage to plumage but otherwise apparently in good condition WHAT may have been one of the last great bustards to have roamed the wilds of eastern England has sold for £1,300 at auction. Stuffed and mounted, the bird went under the hammer at the sale conducted by Tennants of Leyburn in North Yorkshire. The pre-sale guide price was £800-£1,200 but bidding reached £1,300 before the hammer fell. There was evidence of insect damage to the underbelly of the bird, plus some minor insect damage to the tail feathers. The case also required restoration and repainting. A note in the auction catalogue states: Taxidermy: A Large Late Victorian Cased Great Bustard (Otis tarda), dated 1880, by J. Travis, Naturalist, Animal & Bird Preserver, Gold Street, Saffron Walden, a large full mount adult female, with head turning slightly to the left, stood upon painted faux rockwork, amidst a natural setting of tall grasses, set against a blue-yellow watercolour painted sky back drop, enclosed within a large typical period ebonised three-glass display case, raised upon four squat feet, 88cm by 36.5cm by 85.5cm, taxidermist's oval paper trade label to verso, data label to verso- Female Bustard, taken by Mr W. Jones, Manor Farm, West Wickham, Feb 6th 1880, stating purchased from George Bristow 1942, by James Harrison, a detailed account of this bird appears in Miller Christy The Birds of Essex, (1890), page 230, including a photocopy of the entry. The name George Bristow is of interest because of his implication in the so-called Hastings Rarities scandal. Pictured below is the photocopy No details of the purchaser have been released. The sale was in May this year. |
* Images: Tennants of Leyburn
The firm will be holding its next taxidermy/natural history sale on November 30.
More information at https://www.tennants.co.uk
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