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Lot Essay
This magnificent trophy vase was won by Andrew Barclay Walker's yacht Ailsa after the March 14, 1895 regatta at Cannes. The regatta was sponsored by Americans Ogden Goelet, James Gordon Bennett, and the Union des Yachtsmen de Cannes, which they founded together in 1893. 1895 was Ailsa's first season and she became one of the most famous large-class racing yachts of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
In the 1890s many of the large-class racing yachts competed in a series of winter regattas in the Mediterranean. These races were popular among the owners, crew, and spectators because they coincided with the fashionable winter season along the Riviera. The regattas were sponsored by organizations such as the Société Nautique de Cannes, Nice Club Nautique, and the Union des Yachtsmen de Cannes and they took place at Nice, San Remo, Menton, Monaco, Cannes and other fashionable harbors. After the winter season, the large-class racers would return to their homeports to be re-fitted before the summer regatta season started in England.
The winter regattas of 1895 saw the Prince of Wales's yacht, Brittania, competing against Andrew Barclay Walker's new yacht, Ailsa. Walker, the Scottish brewer millionaire, commissioned Ailsa in 1894. She was designed by William Fife III of Fairlie on the Ayrshire coast, built by A&J Inglis of Glasgow, and with sails by Lapthorn. Ailsa was 107 feet long and weighed 283 tons.
Ailsa arrived in Cannes on March 6, 1895 after encountering a bad storm at sea. She carried Captain Tom Jay and a crew of thirty men. The New York Herald headline read on March 7, 1895, "The Ailsa Gets To Cannes. Mr. A. B. Walker's New Cutter Experiences a Violent Storm in the Bay of Biscay, Ready for Today's Race." The Cannes regatta, held on March 8, 1895, was the first in the series of Riviera races. Brittania was considered the fastest ship and it was very surprising when Ailsa won. The next two regattas were also held in Cannes. The second race was on March 9th and Ailsa was damaged, giving Brittania the victory.
The third regatta on March 14th was again won by Ailsa, who easily beat Brittania by 13 minutes, thereby winning the present trophy as the prize. The course began at the Cannes clubhouse, to a mark boat off the Island of St. Honorat, then to Point d'Aguille, three times around which was approximately 30 miles. The regatta was a major social event and boats of all sizes were filled with eager sightseers. The next day, March 15, 1895, The New York Herald reported that Ailsa "has left a deep impression upon the minds of numerous yachtsmen that she is out and away the best yacht ever produced."
Ailsa won another regatta in Nice that month against Britannia on March 29th which was also sponsored by James Gordon Bennett. The trophy was a magnificent silver Tiffany punch bowl and was part of the Victor Niederhoffer Collection and sold at Sotheby's, New York, 15 December 1998, lot 109 (see figure above). The New York Herald reported on the Cannes and Nice regattas on March 29, 1895 writing "there is no prophesying that the Fife cutter is the fastest racing vessel ever built."
James Gordon Bennett (1841-1918) was the only son of the founder of the New York Herald. In 1867, he took over the management of the Herald from his father and after 1877 he lived primarily in France. There, he created a European edition of the newspaper that was known to Americans as "the Paris Herald" and to Parisians as "Le New York."
Bennett was an avid yachtsman and was the youngest member of the New York Yacht Club, as well as Commodore from 1871 to 1874 and 1884 to 1885. He was known as a spirited adventurer, his hobbies including automobiles, polo, tennis, aviation, and hot-air ballooning.
Ogden Goelet (1846-1897) was a descendant of a Huguenot family who came to the United States in 1718. The family had a policy to never sell land and their fortune grew throughout the nineteenth century. By 1900, the Goelets were considered one of the wealthiest and most fashionable families in America.
Ogden Goelet was passionate about yachting and sponsored over a dozen races. In the 1880's and 1890's, he commissioned Tiffany to make a series of Goelet cups for schooners and sloop's regattas sponsored by the New York Yacht Club. He owned both large and small boats and in 1897 he died aboard his yacht Mayflower.
CAPTION: James Gordon Bennett (1841-1918), Courtesy of The Naval Historical Center
CAPTION 2: Captain Tom Jay with owners Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Barclay Walker on board the Ailsa with this trophy and the James Gordon Bennett Cup both won in March 1895, Collection of John Leather
CAPTION 3: Andrew Barclay Walker as captain of the Ailsa
CAPTION 4: Brittania and Ailsa racing at Cowes, 1895, Brian J. Jones, Christie's images
In the 1890s many of the large-class racing yachts competed in a series of winter regattas in the Mediterranean. These races were popular among the owners, crew, and spectators because they coincided with the fashionable winter season along the Riviera. The regattas were sponsored by organizations such as the Société Nautique de Cannes, Nice Club Nautique, and the Union des Yachtsmen de Cannes and they took place at Nice, San Remo, Menton, Monaco, Cannes and other fashionable harbors. After the winter season, the large-class racers would return to their homeports to be re-fitted before the summer regatta season started in England.
The winter regattas of 1895 saw the Prince of Wales's yacht, Brittania, competing against Andrew Barclay Walker's new yacht, Ailsa. Walker, the Scottish brewer millionaire, commissioned Ailsa in 1894. She was designed by William Fife III of Fairlie on the Ayrshire coast, built by A&J Inglis of Glasgow, and with sails by Lapthorn. Ailsa was 107 feet long and weighed 283 tons.
Ailsa arrived in Cannes on March 6, 1895 after encountering a bad storm at sea. She carried Captain Tom Jay and a crew of thirty men. The New York Herald headline read on March 7, 1895, "The Ailsa Gets To Cannes. Mr. A. B. Walker's New Cutter Experiences a Violent Storm in the Bay of Biscay, Ready for Today's Race." The Cannes regatta, held on March 8, 1895, was the first in the series of Riviera races. Brittania was considered the fastest ship and it was very surprising when Ailsa won. The next two regattas were also held in Cannes. The second race was on March 9th and Ailsa was damaged, giving Brittania the victory.
The third regatta on March 14th was again won by Ailsa, who easily beat Brittania by 13 minutes, thereby winning the present trophy as the prize. The course began at the Cannes clubhouse, to a mark boat off the Island of St. Honorat, then to Point d'Aguille, three times around which was approximately 30 miles. The regatta was a major social event and boats of all sizes were filled with eager sightseers. The next day, March 15, 1895, The New York Herald reported that Ailsa "has left a deep impression upon the minds of numerous yachtsmen that she is out and away the best yacht ever produced."
Ailsa won another regatta in Nice that month against Britannia on March 29th which was also sponsored by James Gordon Bennett. The trophy was a magnificent silver Tiffany punch bowl and was part of the Victor Niederhoffer Collection and sold at Sotheby's, New York, 15 December 1998, lot 109 (see figure above). The New York Herald reported on the Cannes and Nice regattas on March 29, 1895 writing "there is no prophesying that the Fife cutter is the fastest racing vessel ever built."
James Gordon Bennett (1841-1918) was the only son of the founder of the New York Herald. In 1867, he took over the management of the Herald from his father and after 1877 he lived primarily in France. There, he created a European edition of the newspaper that was known to Americans as "the Paris Herald" and to Parisians as "Le New York."
Bennett was an avid yachtsman and was the youngest member of the New York Yacht Club, as well as Commodore from 1871 to 1874 and 1884 to 1885. He was known as a spirited adventurer, his hobbies including automobiles, polo, tennis, aviation, and hot-air ballooning.
Ogden Goelet (1846-1897) was a descendant of a Huguenot family who came to the United States in 1718. The family had a policy to never sell land and their fortune grew throughout the nineteenth century. By 1900, the Goelets were considered one of the wealthiest and most fashionable families in America.
Ogden Goelet was passionate about yachting and sponsored over a dozen races. In the 1880's and 1890's, he commissioned Tiffany to make a series of Goelet cups for schooners and sloop's regattas sponsored by the New York Yacht Club. He owned both large and small boats and in 1897 he died aboard his yacht Mayflower.
CAPTION: James Gordon Bennett (1841-1918), Courtesy of The Naval Historical Center
CAPTION 2: Captain Tom Jay with owners Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Barclay Walker on board the Ailsa with this trophy and the James Gordon Bennett Cup both won in March 1895, Collection of John Leather
CAPTION 3: Andrew Barclay Walker as captain of the Ailsa
CAPTION 4: Brittania and Ailsa racing at Cowes, 1895, Brian J. Jones, Christie's images