Knock-out bid: the set of three Isaac Robert Cruickshank prints carried an estimate of £100-150 but sold for £4800.
The set of three Isaac Robert Cruickshank (1789-1856) prints depicting ‘Gabriel, The Suffolk Champion’, ‘Cooper The Gipsy’ and ‘Thomas Cribb’ carried an estimate of £100-150 but knocked down for £4800 (24% buyer’s premium).
One of the prints by Isaac Robert Cruickshank depicts a bare-knuckle fighter notorious for killing an opponent in 1821.
One of the bare-knuckle fighters featured, Jack Cooper, was notorious for killing opponent Patrick O’Leary in 1821 – for which he was charged for manslaughter and given a six-month prison sentence. Upon his release he returned to the ring, adding an extra layer of fear to his opponents and attracting a larger, more bloodthirsty crowd. Thomas Cribb was the All-England bare-knuckle boxing champion between 1808 and 1822.
One of the prints by Isaac Robert Cruickshank depicts boxer Thomas Cribb.
Although rare, the high bidding was most likely down to collectors filling up gaps in their collections rather than anything unique to the set.
Other Cruickshank boxing portraits achieved favourable returns on the day, including a hand-coloured boxing print which sold for £3000 (estimate £80-120) and another set of three portraits which returned £1300 (estimate £80-120).
The prints were part of the collection of the late television quiz show host William G Stewart (1933-2017) with most being snapped up by one private collector.
