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Lot Essay
This splendid work, ambitious even by Dews's standards, portrays a veritable flotilla of identifiable yachts which includes practically all the most celebrated thoroughbreds of the early 1930s. In the foreground, the King's Britannia (K1) is 'neck and neck' with Shamrock (V) (J/K3) whilst astern of the two leaders Astra (K2), Candida (K8), Endeavour (K4) and Velsheda (K7) all jockey for position despite the knowledge they probably cannot win given the distances involved. One of the classic matches at Cowes Regatta in 1934, these giants of the sport little knew that only one more such season lay ahead of them; with the death of George V in January 1936 and the new King's lack of enthusiasm for the sport, yachting's most golden era was drawing to a close.
Shamrock (V) was the last of Sir Thomas Lipton's five "Shamrocks", each of which had been created in the hope of winning back the America's Cup or, as he habitually referred to it, "the Auld Mug". Lipton's final Shamrock was designed and built for him by Camper & Nicholson in 1930, her appearance at Cowes that year marking her debut prior to trying for the America's Cup in September. Registered at 103½ tons gross (163 Thames) and measuring 120 feet in length with a 19½ foot beam, all six competitors in the race featured above were remarkably well-matched, with very similar spreads of canvas, and provided the crowds with excellent sport and the usual excitement as they headed for the finishing line.
Endeavour was also designed and built by Camper & Nicholson to the order of Mr. T.O.M. Sopwith for his first America's Cup Challenge in September 1934. Displacing 143 tons and measuring 129½ feet in length with a 22 foot beam, she carried 7,560 square feet of sail and was considered the best 'J' boat of her day. Despite this, she narrowly failed to wrest the "Auld Mug" from the American defender Rainbow but nevertheless went on to enjoy a highly successful career and is one of the only three J-class yachts which have survived to ornament the contemporary racing scene.
For details of Britannia, Astra, Candida and Velsheda, see the notes accompanying the other works by J. Steven Dews included in this catalogue.
Shamrock (V) was the last of Sir Thomas Lipton's five "Shamrocks", each of which had been created in the hope of winning back the America's Cup or, as he habitually referred to it, "the Auld Mug". Lipton's final Shamrock was designed and built for him by Camper & Nicholson in 1930, her appearance at Cowes that year marking her debut prior to trying for the America's Cup in September. Registered at 103½ tons gross (163 Thames) and measuring 120 feet in length with a 19½ foot beam, all six competitors in the race featured above were remarkably well-matched, with very similar spreads of canvas, and provided the crowds with excellent sport and the usual excitement as they headed for the finishing line.
Endeavour was also designed and built by Camper & Nicholson to the order of Mr. T.O.M. Sopwith for his first America's Cup Challenge in September 1934. Displacing 143 tons and measuring 129½ feet in length with a 22 foot beam, she carried 7,560 square feet of sail and was considered the best 'J' boat of her day. Despite this, she narrowly failed to wrest the "Auld Mug" from the American defender Rainbow but nevertheless went on to enjoy a highly successful career and is one of the only three J-class yachts which have survived to ornament the contemporary racing scene.
For details of Britannia, Astra, Candida and Velsheda, see the notes accompanying the other works by J. Steven Dews included in this catalogue.