York’s Golden Boar Unique 18 carat gold replica of Richard III’s emblem to be auctioned A unique 18 carat gold replica of a Richard III boar badge has been commissioned by the Yorkshire Museum. The replica will be the only gold replica of the badge in existence, accurately based on the rare 15th Century silver badge on show in the museum. It has been created by jeweller Charmian Ottaway as part of York’s year-long programme of events entitled Richard III: Rumour and Reality. Such badges were originally worn by supporters of Richard III (1483-1485) with precious metal versions given to his most loyal supporters. The replica will be auctioned by the Yorkshire Museum, with the money raised being put towards the museum’s acquisition fund. People can bid in the silent auction by dropping off sealed bids at a collection point at the Yorkshire Museum or by emailing [email protected] The piece has a reserve price of £2,000. Natalie McCaul, curator of archaeology, said: “Since we acquired the badge we have been inundated with requests by people wanting to buy replicas of it to wear as a symbol of their interest in Richard III. We asked Charmian to make a mould which we have used to create silver versions of the badge to sell in our shop. However we thought we would make a unique 18 carat gold badge so one lucky person can be the proud owner of the only one in existence.” The auction for the badge will officially start on Thursday July 18, with the winner being announced in October. The pewter and silver badges are on sale in the Yorkshire Museum shop. The original silver gilt livery badge in the form of a boar, a symbol of Richard III, was found by a metal detectorist in 2010 near Stillingfleet, North Yorkshire. It is one of only a relatively small number ever found and because it is silver-gilt it would have once belonged to someone of high status. Gold ones were also in existence at the time of Richard III but were extremely rare. Richard III: Rumour and Reality is a series of events and academic research based around the life and times of Richard III. It is led by organisations including City of York Council, the University of York, York Minster, York Museum’s Trust, York Archaeological Trust, Richard III Museum, English Heritage, Richard III Society and York Theatre Royal. How to bid Those interested in acquiring the gold replica badge should submit sealed bids to the reception at the Yorkshire Museum or to [email protected] Bidders should supply their name, address, telephone number, email , whether they wish to remain anonymous and the amount they wish to bid. Bidders are advised to submit unconventional amounts (for example £2,001.23) so the chances of having two bids the same are reduced. The highest bidder will be informed in October, with regular updates of the highest bid released on Twitter (bidder to remain anonymous unless requested). The original badge The badge, which is 3.6cm by 2.9cm, depicts the white boar of Richard III, a symbol of King Richard III. Members of the king’s household wore cheap badges of stiffened cloth. Expensive precious metal badges were often gifted to wealthy and important supporters of the king. Richard ordered that 13,000 boar badges be made for his son Edward’s investiture at York Minster in 1483, but despite this large number few have actually been found in this region. The Yorkshire Museum hopes that clues to the owner of the badge could be found by looking at those with power and loyalty to Richard III living in the Stillingfleet area. This will be an area the museum will look at when research is carried out.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Jul 2013 10:12:50 +0000
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