A RARE HOUSE FLAG FROM SIR THOMAS SOPWITH'S J-CLASS RACING Y...

Hammer

£4,800

A RARE HOUSE FLAG FROM SIR THOMAS SOPWITH'S J-CLASS RACING YACHT ENDEAVOUR, CIRCA 1934

in stitched blue, yellow and white bunting attached to canvas sleeve with lanyard and wooden toggle (old wear and signs of use) -- 33 x 46in. (84 x 117cm.)

Edward Carrington Heard (1879-1947), Skipper of Shamrock V for 1930 America’s Cup and Endeavour to son, Edward Albert Rose Heard (1906-1999) to friend Albert Kalizsewski (1918-1975) and thence by descent.

After cutting his teeth on Shamrock V, the last of Sir Thomas Lipton’s boats bought after Lipton’s death in 1931, Mr T.O.M. “Tommy” Sopwith then built two successive yachts named Endeavour with which to mount his own challenges for the elusive America’s Cup. Both were J-class boats designed by Charles Nicholson and each was built in Camper & Nicholson’s yard at Gosport. The first Endeavour, displacing 143 tons and measuring 129½ feet in length with a 22-foot beam, carried 7,560 square feet of sail and was considered the best J-class boat of her day. During the America’s Cup series in September 1934, Endeavour was not only skippered by Sopwith himself but she also featured a double-clewed jib designed by her owner. Defeated by the defender Rainbow by only the narrowest of margins, Endeavour returned home to rightful acclaim and thereafter enjoyed a successful racing career in home waters. Still racing competitively, Endeavour is one of the only three surviving J-class yachts and thrilled the crowds in the 1999 Antigua Classic Week Regatta.