Joseph Durham cricket bronzes estimated at £10,000-15,000 in the Canterbury Auction Galleries sale on November 26-27.
The group of five young cricketers was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1864. An identical group, formerly in the Roger Pilkington Collection (of glass-making fame), is now in the Lord’s museum.
London-born Durham was one of only 12 sculptors to exhibit at the Great Exhibition of 1851.The reclining figure in this cricketing group is titled Waiting for his Innings and is signed and dated 1863. It served as the model for the lifesize reclining figure of Basil Edwin Lawrence, aged 12, which was presented to the Guildhall Museum in 1893.
According to the auction house: “Individuals or pairs of the figures come on to the market occasionally. For a complete set to appear is an exceedingly rare occurrence.” The estimate is £10,000-15,000.
