history

Who Stole The Irish Crown Jewels?

Filed under: Jewelry

I love a good mystery, and the story of the theft of the Irish Crown Jewels is definitely an interesting one. Jerome Reilly for the Irish Independent reports that historical researcher Sean J. Murphy is set to publish his findings on the 100-year-old theft. The jewels, which are made of rubies, emeralds and Brazilian diamonds, were the regalia, or insignia, of the Order of St Patrick and were stolen from a safe in Dublin Castle. The jewels, which would be worth around one million euros today, were taken from the safe with a key which suggests it was an inside job. Murphy's report points the finger at Francis Shackleton, the brother of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton. Francis had been staying at the house of Arthur Vicars, the Officer of Arms of Dublin Castle, who had stored the jewels in his office. There is another possible suspect, Francis Bennett Goldney, but Shackleton is the likelier candidate both because he was having money problems and because he was later convicted of fraud in 1913. Also, in his will, Vicars named the thief as Francis Shackleton. The jewels have never been found.

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Tags: dublin, history, irish crown jewels, IrishCrownJewels, mystery

The Archaeological Conservancy, Charity of the Day

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Charity of the Day

I mentioned the Nature Conservancy earlier this month but a lesser known conservancy is the Archaeological Conservancy. The Archaeological Conservancy is a non-profit organization which is dedicated to acquiring and preserving our nation's remaining archaeological sites. Many sites in the U.S. which contain prehistoric and historic remains have been destroyed by both looters and urban development. By owning these sites the Archaeological Conservancy is safeguarding the history of North America and preserving them for posterity. Since its beginning in 1980, the Conservancy has acquired more than 325 endangered sites in 39 states across America. The types of sites range from the earliest habitation sites in North America to a 19th-century frontier army post.

For a contribution of just $18 dollars you get their quarterly magazine, American Archaeology and you can send a gift membership to someone else. They also offer various archaeological tours. Their next one is planned for March 13-23, 2008 in Guadalajara, Mexico and costs $2,695.

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Tags: american archaeology, AmericanArchaeology, archaeology, conservancy, history, preservation

Anne Frank Chestnut Sells For Over $10,000

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Green

In what appears to be a fairly sloppily (is that a word? I say yes it is...) put together eBay auction a chestnut that fell from the famous tree mentioned in Anne Frank's diary sold for $10,240.

Most of the time in these situations I think people overpaid, but I'm not so sure that this chestnut wasn't worth it. Assuming it's genuine and it sprouts a tree (if the new owner decides to plant it) it is a serious piece of history that will grow and create future pieces of history. That is so much cooler than paying money for something that's just going to sit in a room gathering dust. Nobody likes a dusty nut.

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Tags: anne frank, anne frank's diary, anne franks diary, AnneFrank, auction, chestnut, eBay, history, nut

Controversial Bronze Horse Expected to Go For $7.7 Million at Auction

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions

The highlight of the upcoming 4 day Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong, scheduled to start on Oct 6th, will be a controversial bronze Qing Dynasty Horse head. It's one of a 12 zodiac animal set and was looted from the imperial summer palace in China back in 1860. The Chinese believe it should be returned to the Chinese goverment because it's stolen property, but Sothebys has no intention of giving it to anybody but the auction winner -- and the law is on their side. It's expected to go for HK80 million ($7.7 million).

All's fair in love and war, but it's too bad it's been separated from the other 11 zodiac animals.

Via BornRich

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Tags: auction, bronze, china, chinese, history, hong kong, HongKong, horse, Qing Dynasty Horse Head, QingDynastyHorseHead, sothebys, zodiac

Parfum D'Empire

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cosmetics and Fragrance

Parfum D'Empire is a collection that combines history and fragrance based on extensive research into the "olfactive trail of different historical empires." Once the appropriately evocative elements were uncovered, the scents were combined and modernized and the resulting perfumes can be worn by both men and women. The empires touched on include: the Ottoman, the Greek, the Russian, the French (inspired by Josephine), the French (inspired by Napoleon). All are likely to be appreciated by history buffs, as well as those who like the lightness of perfumes that can be worn by both sexes. Prices range from $90 to $110 for 100ml.

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Tags: empire, fragrance, history, parfum, perfume, scent

Revolutionary Flags Sell at Auction

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions

How much would you pay for a flag? What if there were four of them? A bidder at a Sotheby's auction paid a total of $17.4 million for four flags from the time of the American Revolution on Wednesday. The flags were captured by a 24-year old British officer and kept in his family since 1780; they were offered at the auction by one of his direct descendants.

According to a vice chairman at the auction house, flags were a primary target in the Revolutionary War because they were clear symbols of victory. The buyer and all the other bidders were assured that soldiers "suffered grievous wounds and made sacrifices to defend what were sacred objects," which gave these historic pieces additional significance.

Only 30 flags, excluding these four, from the period are known to exist today. All are housed in museums or other institutional collections.

[image via Seattle P-I]

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Tags: america, auction, history, revolution, sotheby's

Dracula's Castle Returned to Owner

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates

One of Romania's most popular tourist attractions, Dracula Castle, is being returned to its rightful owner, Dominic van Hapsburg, a New York Architect and descendant of the Hapsburg family line. The castle is actually named Bran Castle, and was never owned by Vlad the Impaler, though the prince who inspired the story of Dracula is though to have stayed there. The castle's remote, cliff-top location and striking Gothic architecture have made it a fixture of Dracula movies. The property is being returned under new legislation that reverses the seizures made by the former communist regime. The castle was originally taken in 1948 and was left to fall into disrepair until a restoration began in the 1980s. Part of the agreement for handing over the castle is that the new owner will not make any changes to it for at least three years. The hand-over ceremony will take place on Friday. The castle is worth approximately $25 million.

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Tags: bran castle, BranCastle, castle, communist, dracula, estate, history, myth, owner, romania

Titanic Deck Chair at Auction

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions

A deck chair from the Titanic is up for auction at Bonhams & Butterfields. The beech wood chair is one of only six surviving in the world and has the five-pointed star that was White Star's trademark emblazoned onto the headboard. The chair was not snatched off the deck during the last moments of the ship, but was taken as a souvenir by a newspaper photographer, Mr. Thomas Barker, when he did a piece about the ship at its last docking point on April 11, 1912. After the shop sank, Barker wanted nothing to do with the chair and it changed hands several times over the years. It is offered by a private collector. Nothing special in and of itself, as a relic of the Titanic, it is estimated to be worth $75,000 to $100,000.

[Image Bonhams]

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Tags: auction, chair, cruise, deck chair, history, ship, sink, titanic, white star

Bentley Book Wins Award

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Bentl y - The Book has just won the "Best Book on Car Design" award by Motor Presse Club e.V., a German organization. The book is a history of the company and its cars, written by British motoring journalist Andrew Frankel. It was first published in 2003. Bentley beat out four other books for the title. The winner of the category was selected by a panel that included well-known car designers and journalists. Autoblog has the full press release.

Now in its second, revised printing, the book is available online for $69.50.

Tags: autoblog, award, bentley, book, car, cars, german, hardback, history, motor club, print

"Fuddy Duddy" Plane For Sale

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wings

It’s not exactly going to be your commuter plane but if you are looking for a piece of history that still flies check out this B-17. “Fuddy Duddy” is up for sale. The yellow-tailed plane belongs to the Wings of Eagles Discovery Center which is selling it to fund the changing interests of the museumgoers. According to General Aviation News, the museum is pursuing more space-related exhibits and World War II prop planes aren’t as popular as they once were. The plane is one of only a dozen airworthy B-17s left in the world and is selling for $3.5 million.

Tags: aviation, classic planes, ClassicPlanes, history, planes, planes for sale, world war II, WorldWarIi, WW II planes