Cheshire Antiques Consultant

Oil Painting Marine Steam Yacht Valhalla In The Kaisers Transatlantic Race 1905

£2,900.00

Shipping calculated at checkout.

1 Fine Antique British Work of Art Oil Painting Marine Sailing Steam Yacht Valhalla In The Kaisers Transatlantic Race of 1905.
Subject seascape marine portrait of the famous known auxillary steam yacht Valhalla, in full side profile view on the high seas, steaming along relative choppy high seas, you can see smoke billowing out of the funnel, you can see the rigging and all of the sails are tied down. Having 3 masts, you can see figures on deck to the bow and stern and lifeboats along the side, at the stern you can see the Saint George with Union Jack flag, also above at the top of the middle mast is a saint George flag flying high. You can also see the name of the yacht on the bow Valhalla., in the background further back you can view other sailing racing yachts
Oil on board.
Circa early 20th century.
Set in a beautiful decorative gilt frame.
Signed by the British artist J Dawkins bottom right.
Valhalla RYS was a steam yacht, much admired in her day for her beauty and unusual rigging. She was famous for her participation in the Kaiser's Trans-Atlantic Race of 1905, and the sighting of a Sea-serpent in the Atlantic that same year. She had several owners, most notably Joe Laycock a trans-Atlantic racing yachtsman and Olympian, and Lord Crawford, who employed her as a research vessel on three major voyages from 1902 to 1908, which resulted in the book Three Voyages of a Naturalist : Being an Account of Many Little-Known Islands in Three Oceans Visited by the 'Valhalla' R.Y.S., by M.J. Nicoll, published in 1908. During the Great War she served with the Royal Navy as a part of the Eastern Mediterranean fleet's Aegean Squadron during the Gallipoli campaign. After the War she became a French-owned fruit carrier, before being wrecked off Cape St. Vincent in 1922.
Her first owner was Capt. J. F. Laycock of Bawtry, Portsmouth, a British Army officer and Olympic sailor. Laycock, was a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes,[2] he commissioned Ramage & Ferguson of Leith in 1892 to build him a Steel Auxiliary 3 masted Steam Yacht. Laycock had envisioned his own private clipper ship, a 3/4 sized version of the Cutty Sark. He drew up some basic outline plans, and handed them over to Mr. W. C. Storey, who produced detailed plans for both the yacht, and its auxiliary power unit. The design had its critics, however once built, she was found to have excellent sailing qualities. She is believed by many to have been the finest example of a steam auxiliary ever built.
Launched from the Victoria Shipyard on 20 October 1892. At 1,218 tons gross, she sailed for Southampton for fitting out. She was the only British steam yacht to carry a full ship rig and was originally rigged as a privateer with stun’s’ls. Her ward room, gun-room, and armoury after the manner of RN vessels of century before. Her complement was 96 hands.
Laycock had the yacht fitted with two Hotchkiss cannons and a Maxim machine gun. Most of the crew were ex Royal Navy and she had aboard a selection of rifles, pistols and cutlasses. For her maiden voyage of 9,632 miles; Laycock and ten idlers embarked from Southampton on 22 March 1893 for Madeira, around the Mediterranean (stopping off at Cannes for a family wedding), Constantinople, the Black Sea to Sevastopol and back to Cowes. Laycock later in 1894, had the firm of Howard Cox privately publish The Log of the Valhalla which covers this voyage in detail.
He took her to Newport, Rhode Island for the America's cup of 1895-1896, and gave Lord Dunraven a lift home via New York on 28 September 1895. The race was notable for Dunraven's allegations of cheating by the winning American yacht, Defender (1895 yacht). Dunraven had been racing the British keel cutter Valkyrie III.
Ownership by Lord Crawford
James Lindsay, 26th Earl of Crawford ( 1847–1913), registered her in London in 1902. Like Laycock, he too was a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes. He was the owner of several private yachts that he used for scientific expeditions.
The first voyage a round the world cruise left Cowes on 19 November 1902, she took in coal at Lisbon, carried onto Madeira, the [[Canary Islands| and the Cape Verde Islands. On to the east coast of South America, stopping at Bahia, Montevideo, via the Straits of Magellan to Valparaiso in Chile. She then struck west for 8,000 miles through the Southern Pacific islands, Easter Island, Pitcairn, Tahiti, Tutuila, Apia, Suva, Thursday Island, Singapore, Colombo, Aden, Suez, Port Said, Gibraltar, and back to Cowes by 1 August 1903. In 8 months she covered 38,000 miles.
The second Valhalla voyage was to the West Indies and the Gulf of Mexico. Leaving Cowes on 18 December 1903, starting at Barbados it took all the Island in, and up to Jamaica, the Caymans and Cuba, before arriving at Florida for tarpon fishing and coaling at Key West returning via Bermuda and the Azores to Cowes by 8 May 1904. They collected over 400 birds.
In 1905 she took a respectable ‘’easy third’’ place in the famous German Emperor’s Cup, despite being, by far, the largest participant. She crossed the Atlantic from Sandy Hook, to the Lizard under sail in only 14 days and 2 hours. All this despite competition afforded by much faster schooners taking part.
The third Crawford voyage was loosely inspired by the voyages of Captain Vanderdecken. Crawford and Nicoll would arrange another scientist, Edmund Meade-Waldo to join them on the expedition. Valhalla left Cowes on 8 November 1905. Calling in at Las Palmas, running off the Florida coast, St. Pauls's Rocks, Bahia and then on to the Southern Atlantic islands, and the Southern Indian Ocean where two cyclones on the Madagascar coast, before arriving at the Seychelles]].
She returned home via the Suez Canal to Cowes by 13 May 1906. This was to be the most successful trip from a scientific standpoint, collecting many new species.At the onset of WWI War in 1915 she was leased by the Royal Navy from her then current owner George Marvin. George Marvin & sons owned a successful yacht stores business in Cowes. She was renamed Valhalla II in February 1917, as her name had been allocated to HMS "Valhalla" (D44), a V class Flotilla Leader, launched in 1917.
She was to serve as a repair and depot ship, Pendant No 088. 1219grt/1490TM. Armament: 4-12pdr. In service 20 June 1916 – 9 September 1919.
After the war, Valhalla was sold to a French company, ‘’Merrienne Frères - Alexandre & André - Soc. Merrienne’’ and converted into a fruit carrier. Her new owners registered her as a 1170 GRT steamer.
At some point her ownership was transferred to F. Baudoin, of Le Havre, France, and it was under her tenure that, while carrying oranges and wine from Valencia to Dunkirk, she foundered and was wrecked in a storm on 2 December 1921, off Cape St. Vincent. Reference sources wikipedia, dbpedia, shipindexorg, bonhams.
An exceptional sought after collectible artwork.
Provenance frame maker label verso with ref no 53870 , purchased from an art dealer in the Shires
Such a delightful scene to the eye a great conversation piece.
Highly sought after due to the collectible nature of subject marine matter such elaborate detail.
With hanging thread on the back ready for immediate home wall display.
Incredible conversation piece for your guests.
We only select & sell paintings based upon subject quality & significance.
We provide our clients with friendly professional customer service.
Condition report.
Offered in fine used condition.
Front painting surface in good order. Having had some minor paint loss in places,foxing staining. Set in fine gilt frame which has general wear, scuffs, stains commensurate with usage & old age.
International buyers worldwide shipping is available please ask for a quote.
Viewings are welcome by appointment only for customer support please send a message thankyou.
Checkout our exciting other available collections in our shop gallery, happy shopping.

Dimensions in centimetres of the frame approximate

High (43cm)
Wide (58cm)
Depth thickness of frame (2.5cm)