Arms, Armour & Militaria

An early issue Queen’s Gallantry Medal was one of the highlights of the first militaria auction section at Elstob & Elstob (22% buyer’s premium).

If you are a birdwatcher, you need a good pair of binoculars.

Stowmarket saleroom Bishop & Miller’s Military, Medals & Weapons auction on April 30 features items from a distinguished Victorian military family.

Major Henry Milligan of the Royal Army Medical Corps not only won a Military Cross for bravery in the First World War in 1917, but gained another one.

Medal group awarded to First World War nurse is coming up at Bishop & Miller auction.

Soldiers are often associated with hard drinking – but rarely temperance.

The postponed January auction at Gloucestershire saleroom Chorley’s will take place on March 23-24.

A Second World War beret sold at a Kent auction was not only one of the famous maroon British paratrooper examples but had star billing of its own.

Princess Margaret’s lover Flight Lieutenant Peter Townsend (1914-95) has been introduced to a new generation of TV viewers due to Netflix TV series The Crown – but militaria lots sold at auction also underline his renown as an RAF ace.

The world record for a George Cross has been broken by a medal awarded to a courageous British soldier who died in captivity during the Korean War.

Dix Noonan Webb’s highest-priced lot of 2020 was this Crimean War Naval Brigade Victoria Cross group of four sold for £240,000 on October 15. The estimate was £120,000-160,000.

Among the highlights of the year at Spink was a group of 17 medals awarded to Air Vice-Marshal Sir Matthew Brown ‘Bunty’ Frew (1895-1974).

The Medals, Orders and Decorations sale at Morton & Eden in November featured two Victoria Crosses awarded during the Indian Mutiny. They sold to the same buyer for a combined hammer price of £300,000.

This small oval gold medal was struck at the end of 1650 to mark the victory of the New Model Army at the Battle of Dunbar.

The random selection of a place in the line is one of the long-established rituals of English driven game shooting and novel methods continue to emerge.

Baker rifle stands out in Kent saleroom.

Two iconic Colt pistols were the big money-earners from both sides of the Atlantic in the pre-Christmas arms and armour sales.

Such was the demand for suits of armour from late 19th and early 20th century collectors that European master armourers were kept hard at work long after the practical need for such protective wear had passed.

This Victorian dirk – with ensuite knife and fork – sold for 10 times the top estimate, £2000, at McTear’s (24% buyer’s premium) in Glasgow on January 21.

Boss over-and-under guns from the golden age of London gunmaking have long ranked among the most sought by game shots.