Hi Everyone, You may remember over the years I've tried on these esteemed pages to extract information on the above ship, that my great-grandfather Robert Henry Laws (1828-1891) commanded between 1873 and 1881. Last week my wife and I were watching a re-run of BBC's Bargain Hunt and when Tim Wannacott was talking to the Auctioneer at Goldings Auction Rooms of Market Harborough in Northamptonshire I spotted the portrait of this ship (painted by Frederick Tudjay in 1872) that I last saw hanging on the wall in my Great Aunts house at Fowey in Cornwall. When I was there after her death (I was executor to her estate) it was glaringly missing. We always thought it had been removed by her son, from whom she was estranged, he did not attend the funeral, and sadly both he and his wife have since died. The programme was first screened November 2012, I have been in touch with both the BBC and with the Auction Rooms without success. Can anyone advise how I go forward in recovering it to the Laws Family where it belongs. John P Laws Registrar Laws Family Register Putting Flesh on the Bones of History Member of GOONS (www.one-name.org) Email:- [email protected] Post:- 131a High Street, North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland EH39 4HB

The Auction House should keep records for at least 6 years. If a buyer claims they were sold a 'fake' the Auction House would need information to try to defend themselves. However, the Auction House will scream "Data Protection" and say they can't reveal information about the buyer. But you could ask them if they would forward a letter from you to the buyer as this is a 'missing' family heirloom. They aren't revealing any personal data, and it's up to the buyer if they contact you. Some auction results are available online, so you may be able to find out what it sold for and so assess what to offer to buy it back. Good luck! Regards Dawn Sent from my iPhone On 10 Oct 2013, at 17:31, "John Laws" <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Everyone, > > You may remember over the years I've tried on these esteemed pages to > extract information on the above ship, that my great-grandfather Robert > Henry Laws (1828-1891) commanded between 1873 and 1881. > > Last week my wife and I were watching a re-run of BBC's Bargain Hunt and > when Tim Wannacott was talking to the Auctioneer at Goldings Auction Rooms > of Market Harborough in Northamptonshire I spotted the portrait of this ship > (painted by Frederick Tudjay in 1872) that I last saw hanging on the wall in > my Great Aunts house at Fowey in Cornwall. > > When I was there after her death (I was executor to her estate) it was > glaringly missing. > > We always thought it had been removed by her son, from whom she was > estranged, he did not attend the funeral, and sadly both he and his wife > have since died. > > The programme was first screened November 2012, I have been in touch with > both the BBC and with the Auction Rooms without success. > > Can anyone advise how I go forward in recovering it to the Laws Family where > it belongs. > > > John P Laws > > Registrar > Laws Family Register > Putting Flesh on the Bones of History > Member of GOONS (www.one-name.org) > > Email:- [email protected] > Post:- 131a High Street, North Berwick, > East Lothian, Scotland EH39 4HB > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Hi John Gildings (not Goldings) of Market Harborough have a website with a search engine which allows you to search action results back till at least 2004. Their website is www.gildings.co.uk. Searching "ship" brings up 374 results in past auctions. Nothing under "Woolhampton", nothing under "Tudjay" or even "pierhead". "Vessel + painting" brings up 35 results. "Ship + painting" yields 5, "Sailing" 383. Some of those hits even have photos attached. There are no doubt other terms you could try. I would first of all try to identify the particular lot and date of sale, bearing in mind that it could be some time - maybe a year or so - prior to the date of transmission. It may be that it is not actually your vessel. Not that I am doubting you, but ship portraits often followed a fairly standard formula, and what might at first glance appear to be "your" picture could turn out to be verifiably a completely different one, although it might look very similar. Certainly if there was any information on the picture - such as the name of the ship or the artist - one would expect that to feature in the lot description. The fact that the identifying details score no hits suggests that the picture, albeit similar, may not have been of your vessel because one would expect those details to be given as they would add value. Equally, whoever Tudjay was, he may have painted more than one picture of the same vessel for different members of the crew. In which case details such as the framing could be significant. If you do find the picture in the catalogues, I don't think that Gildings (a respectable auction house) will be inclined to release any information to you, particularly about the buyer, who we have to assume bought it in good faith and is presumably a completely innocent party. They would doubtless co-operate with the police if required. But if neither your great aunt nor the executors reported a theft at the time, I can see a your having a certain amount of difficulty in convincing the police that the picture had been stolen and had not in fact been given by your great aunt to someone before she died, whenever that was. I am further confused by a post you made to the List in June 2011 when you stated that a Tudjay painting of "Woolhampton" was in the possession of your cousin Nicholas Laws in South Africa. http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/MARINERS/2011-06/1308845513. Was this another one? Cheers Piers On 10 October 2013 17:31, John Laws <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Everyone, > > You may remember over the years I've tried on these esteemed pages to > extract information on the above ship, that my great-grandfather Robert > Henry Laws (1828-1891) commanded between 1873 and 1881. > > Last week my wife and I were watching a re-run of BBC's Bargain Hunt and > when Tim Wannacott was talking to the Auctioneer at Goldings Auction Rooms > of Market Harborough in Northamptonshire I spotted the portrait of this > ship > (painted by Frederick Tudjay in 1872) that I last saw hanging on the wall > in > my Great Aunts house at Fowey in Cornwall. > > When I was there after her death (I was executor to her estate) it was > glaringly missing. > > We always thought it had been removed by her son, from whom she was > estranged, he did not attend the funeral, and sadly both he and his wife > have since died. > > The programme was first screened November 2012, I have been in touch with > both the BBC and with the Auction Rooms without success. > > Can anyone advise how I go forward in recovering it to the Laws Family > where > it belongs. > > > John P Laws > > Registrar > Laws Family Register > Putting Flesh on the Bones of History > Member of GOONS (www.one-name.org) > > Email:- [email protected] > Post:- 131a High Street, North Berwick, > East Lothian, Scotland EH39 4HB > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

PS - Since the painting was presumably in the same sale as the Bargains being hunted, or in one just after, you could try to identify the sale from the descriptions of the various "Bargain" items featured in the programme. You might then be able to find the painting by searching through the catalogue for that sale. On 10 October 2013 20:58, Piers Smith-Cresswell <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi John > > Gildings (not Goldings) of Market Harborough have a website with a search > engine which allows you to search action results back till at least 2004. > Their website is www.gildings.co.uk. Searching "ship" brings up 374 > results in past auctions. Nothing under "Woolhampton", nothing under > "Tudjay" or even "pierhead". "Vessel + painting" brings up 35 results. > "Ship + painting" yields 5, "Sailing" 383. Some of those hits even have > photos attached. There are no doubt other terms you could try. I would > first of all try to identify the particular lot and date of sale, bearing > in mind that it could be some time - maybe a year or so - prior to the date > of transmission. It may be that it is not actually your vessel. Not that > I am doubting you, but ship portraits often followed a fairly standard > formula, and what might at first glance appear to be "your" picture could > turn out to be verifiably a completely different one, although it might > look very similar. Certainly if there was any information on the picture - > such as the name of the ship or the artist - one would expect that to > feature in the lot description. The fact that the identifying details > score no hits suggests that the picture, albeit similar, may not have been > of your vessel because one would expect those details to be given as they > would add value. Equally, whoever Tudjay was, he may have painted more > than one picture of the same vessel for different members of the crew. In > which case details such as the framing could be significant. > > If you do find the picture in the catalogues, I don't think that Gildings > (a respectable auction house) will be inclined to release any information > to you, particularly about the buyer, who we have to assume bought it in > good faith and is presumably a completely innocent party. They would > doubtless co-operate with the police if required. But if neither your > great aunt nor the executors reported a theft at the time, I can see a your > having a certain amount of difficulty in convincing the police that the > picture had been stolen and had not in fact been given by your great aunt > to someone before she died, whenever that was. > > I am further confused by a post you made to the List in June 2011 when you > stated that a Tudjay painting of "Woolhampton" was in the possession of > your cousin Nicholas Laws in South Africa. > http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/MARINERS/2011-06/1308845513. Was this another one? > > Cheers > Piers > > > On 10 October 2013 17:31, John Laws <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Hi Everyone, >> >> You may remember over the years I've tried on these esteemed pages to >> extract information on the above ship, that my great-grandfather Robert >> Henry Laws (1828-1891) commanded between 1873 and 1881. >> >> Last week my wife and I were watching a re-run of BBC's Bargain Hunt and >> when Tim Wannacott was talking to the Auctioneer at Goldings Auction Rooms >> of Market Harborough in Northamptonshire I spotted the portrait of this >> ship >> (painted by Frederick Tudjay in 1872) that I last saw hanging on the wall >> in >> my Great Aunts house at Fowey in Cornwall. >> >> When I was there after her death (I was executor to her estate) it was >> glaringly missing. >> >> We always thought it had been removed by her son, from whom she was >> estranged, he did not attend the funeral, and sadly both he and his wife >> have since died. >> >> The programme was first screened November 2012, I have been in touch with >> both the BBC and with the Auction Rooms without success. >> >> Can anyone advise how I go forward in recovering it to the Laws Family >> where >> it belongs. >> >> >> John P Laws >> >> Registrar >> Laws Family Register >> Putting Flesh on the Bones of History >> Member of GOONS (www.one-name.org) >> >> Email:- [email protected] >> Post:- 131a High Street, North Berwick, >> East Lothian, Scotland EH39 4HB >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >> [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >> quotes in the subject and the body of the message >> > >