2 weeks Ago
Whyte’s Body snatching was a serious problem in the 18th and 19th centuries. Cadavers were required for the training of medical students, and the only legal supply of corpses was the gallows. One of the solutions to the problem was an invention known as a “cemetery gun”.
This involved a flintlock firearm which would be set up on a rotating base close to a fresh grave. Cemetery gun (est €1,000 to €1,500) at Whyte's A series of tripwires were designed to swing the gun towards the thieves and trigger the firing mechanism. One such weapon (Lot 31: est €1,000 to €1,500) is coming up for auction at Whyte’s Eclectic Collector sale, which closes online on Sunday, April 6, at 2 pm.
The sale also includes a number of historic CIÉ posters. A 1950s “Ireland day trips by Radio Train” poster (Lot 397: est €400 to €600) was designed by Guus Melai. See whytes.
ie Read more 1950s CIÉ poster designed by Guus Melai (est €400 to €600) at Whyte's Sheppard’s The Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick is a British order of chivalry associated with Ireland. Created by King George III in 1793, it’s the Irish equivalent of the Most Noble Order of the Garter (England) and the Most Ancient and Noble Order of the Thistle (Scotland). A copy of the Statues of the Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick (1905) went under the hammer at Sheppard’s Sale of Paradigms and the Unexpected, which ran in Durrow from March 18 to 20.
The book carried an estimate of €100 to €150, but sold for €900. Statues of the Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick book (1905) est €100 to €150, sold for €900 Other highlights included a silver presentation trowel made to commemorate the building of the Adelaide hospital, Dublin, in 1877 (est €1,500 - 2,500) sold for €1,300. Victorian Killarney ware stationery box at Sheppard's A Victorian Killarney ware stationery box (est €500 - 800), sold for €1,200; and an Audemars Piguet Millenary Tour Auto Chronograph (pictured below, est €20,000 - 30,000), sold for €18,000.
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