The Ultimate BARNacle FIND

What’s hidden away in our attics and garages? Might there be, amongst the dust, the cobwebs, the children’s old maths textbooks, an old family heirloom, an original Monet, a diamond ring? Items of immense interest or * [avert eyes sentimentalists] * great value? And just think what could be hidden away in a great big barn? We’ve all heard the stories of barn finds.

So, imagine the team at Marriott & Co.’s excitement when they were instructed to sell the yachts of a private collector, along with various other items, and found out that the items were in not one but four barns.

The inconspicuous and weather beaten barns, nestled in the New Forest, didn’t look very special, but boy, they didn’t disappoint.

Tucked carefully away were a number of boats, with a number of stories to tell…..

  • A Gary Hoyt designed Freedom 21 built with no expense spared. Only used for two seasons but won virtually every race ever entered.
  • The 6M Modern Classic ‘Thisbe’, who was previously owned by Bill Whitehouse-Vaux of Mistress Quickly fame, winner of 6M European Championships and successful racer in Worlds.
  • The 6M Vintage Classic ‘St Francis VI’ designed for and helmed by the famous Tom Blackaller for the St Francis Yacht Club of San Francisco. She was successful in defending the American trophy in the 1975 Australian-American Cup.
  • A Van de Stadt Yachting World Seahorse 28ft loa with a wood hull. Built in 1974 and lovingly restored in 2016, going on to win the Royal Solent Yacht Club Taittinger Regatta 2016.
  • There was also the Van de Stadt RCOD – sister to the Black Soo and one of the first ULDB’s – and, by all accounts, very fast.
  • A beautiful wooden Flying Fifteen and an even more beautiful and rare McNulty 9ft wooden sailing tender (never used and stored indoors since new).
  • The Tornado Catamaran used for the first ever solar crossing of the Solent 1998.

But it didn’t stop there! The barns were packed to the brim with most things marine, yes, but as they delved further Marriott & Co. also found:

  • A 1987 Yamaha TZR 125cc motorbike (never used!)
  • A Martin Baker De Havilland Vampire ejector seat, a De Havilland Vampire Team yellow toolbox, a Venom cockpit canopy, and various other vintage aviation pieces.
  • A life-size replica of a Chinese terracotta warrior statue
  • A quantity of imperial Whitworth aircraft hand tools, previously supplied to the Swiss Airforce
  • A vintage seed storage chest
  • A 1988 Tyrell F1 carbon front wing, ex Jonathan Palmer….and the list goes on….

These were some pretty special barn finds then, (I won’t tell you that the items had not actually been left, forgotten for several years, but in barns with electricity and security alarms and a lot of care with not a barnacle in sight!)

But, if you are the owner of barns, barns that aren’t housing cows or hay, maybe it’s time to have a rummage and see what you’ve been holding on to all these years……

And, should you need any assistance with valuing or selling your barn finds, make sure you get in touch with the team here at Marriott & Co.

And….if any of the above items excited your interest they are being sold by online auction Wednesday 21 June 2017, closing from 3pm. For the full catalogue and details please click on the link: http://www.marriottco-auctions.co.uk/

 

 

By Frances Smithson