SALEROOM

CHARLES MILLER LTD Royal yacht Portsmouth II was scrapped after 129 years of service, yet this rare Georgian dockyard model (estimated at £8,000-12,000) survives thanks to an Admiralty order requiring models to be made of every vessel built.

CHARLES MILLER LTD Sailor king’s favourite mistress

Though Charles II, the sailor king, is generally credited with inventing yachting, it wasn’t the only sport he was interested in. In rather less woke times there was barely a murmur when in 1674 he named his new royal yacht Portsmouth after his favourite mistress of the time, the Duchess of Portsmouth.

Years earlier his passion – for yachts, that is – had first been sparked in 1660 when the City of Amsterdam gave him what would be the first of many royal yachts, the Mary, and in the following year he took part in the first organised regatta, when he won a 40-mile race on the Thames against the Duke of York, who apparently did not protest the outcome – another yachting first. With the sport of kings established, Portsmouth II, pictured, joined the royal fleet in 1703. The 66-ton, 53-footer with 17ft beam was provided with half a dozen two pounders – guns, not burgers – and carried a crew of 14.

In the century that followed, the royal pleasure fleet proliferated, but eventually in 1832 the aging Portsmouth, by then renamed Old Portsmouth, fell foul of government cost-cutting, just as Britannia did when she was decommissioned in 1997. However, Old Portsmouth suffered a worse fate, for when radical politician Joseph Hume questioned “the extravagant waste of public money in keeping afloat no fewer than five royal yachts” much of the small squadron of royal yachts was scrapped. This was all the more the pity as Old Portsmouth’s timbers were still sound. Next Charles Miller Ltd sale: 2 November, 2021

ELDRED’S

ELDRED’S, USA Big bucks boy toys

American Horace Edward Boucher produced mechanical toys that were just as coveted by youngsters in the USA as those of Bassett Lowke and Hornby in the UK. And today, HE Boucher MFG Co toys produced from 1905 to 1943 are just as highly prized by collectors. This live steam hydroplane (top), which made $1,187, is a masterpiece of scale engineering with its propeller driven through a miniature outboard engine. The motorised cabin cruiser below proved even more desirable at $2,750.

Next Eldred’s Marine Sale: August 19-20, 2021

MECUM

MECUM Wet Vette

There’s a pleasing symmetry to the fact that the sports automobile named after a fast and nimble fighting vessel should one day be realised as a boat – or at least there should be. In 1953 as glassfibre was just beginning to make inroads into boatbuilding, the Chevrolet Corvette became the world’s first mainstream glassfibre sportscar. The plastic fantastic endures to this day, and in the 1990s Californian company Malibu Boats paid tribute with a Corvette-inspired ski boat, that must surely be the only speedboat with brake lights! Produced in collaboration with General Motors, this 1997 C4 Malibu Corvette ski-boat is powered by a monster 400hp 6.3-liter V8, with an arm-wrenching top speed of 57mph. One of just 150 produced, it sold for a bargain $25,300.

Yacht Brokerage

SALE, CHARTER & MANAGEMENT Also specialises in Transoceanic Charter

162.5ft New Classic Schooner ELEONORA

2000. Refit in 2008/14/18/19/20. Steel hull with teak superstructure, ELEONORA is an exact replica of the schooner Westward which was designed in 1910 by Nathanael Greene Herreshoff, the ‘Wizard of Bristol’, the designer of the America’s Cup defenders which turned back all six challenges from 1893 to 1920. Westward was arguably one of the most famous racing schooners in the world. ELEONORA not only follows Westward’s heritage of big schooners racing but she also offers with her comfort and space unforgettable cruising and relaxation experience. She was built at the Van der Graaf shipyard in Holland and was launched in March 2000. Since then, she has successfully participated in a number of classic sailing regattas and hosted on board a number of high-profile guests during her charter activities. ELEONORA shows astonishing beauty under sail, her slender hull cutting a pathway through the sea, an elegant combination of beauty and power. With no sacrifice to luxurious standards of comfort, her staterooms and the entire interior display the ambience and elegance of another age. ELEONORA is registered as a commercial vessel under MCA and classed under Veritas.

2011. As a replica of the schooner ‘Germania’ launched in 1908, she was built at Factoria Naval de Marin in Spain. As opposed to Germania, which did not include a motor or generators or air conditioning, GERMANIA NOVA has been outfitted with these important features for a charter yacht of her kind. In fact, GERMANIA NOVA has full charter class under LY2. External decks, and sail plan are impressive. Under deck she is composed of two main zones (guests and crew). Guest area is composed of 5 cabins, including a master cabin and 4 guest cabins. All cabins with unsuited bathroom. One large saloon and a bridge house with all necessary radio and navigation equipment, complete the guest area. Crew area is all located forward, and houses 10 crew in bunk areas, two cabins for officers and captain, a crew mess, a laundry and a galley. 196ft New Classic Schooner GERMANIA NOVA

71ft Laurent Gilles Ketch Aitor 65ft Sangermani Marconi Yawl Giannella II

1964. From a Laurent Gilles Design, AITOR is a very nice Gentleman’s classic yacht for blue water cruising and live aboard thanks to her cockpit and deck house. She is very well built and has been regularly maintained. She has a special character thanks to her classic style. She is easy to handle with 2 main engines. 1966. Refit 2010. This Eugène Cornu design has been built by the legendary Cantieri Sangermani in Italy, one of the best wooden boat shipyards in the world. She is a wonderful classic sailing yacht ideal for family cruising in absolute comfort. She has won many regattas including The Voiles de St Tropez and Conde de Barcelona. She features lovely warm interiors and is easy to sail!