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HALL LTD 4 Carpentry 4 Fencing 4 Decoration 4 Extensions 4 Kitchens 4 Loft Conversions 4 Bathrooms 4 New Build First Rate Building & Carpentry Work Start to Finish Service • References Available • Fully Insured • 1 year guarantee Free Quotations and Friendly Advice Given Contact: mchall126@btinternet.com or call 023 8089 8456 or 07976 937941 Website: www.mchallltd.co.uk WILLIS DECORATING & JOINERY SERVICES Est Since 1986 Interior & Exterior Painting & Decorating Wallpaper Hanging Hand-painted Kitchens & Spray Finishes Wardrobes, Bookcases, Radiator Covers Call David on 023 8084 9800 or 07946 048261 E: david.willis24@btinternet.com HANNAH’S ELECTRICS Your Local Female Electrician NEED AN ELECTRICIAN? From simple upgrades to complete house re-wiring - and everything in-between, Hannah’s Electrics is the perfect choice. A trusted tradeswoman with sensible rates covering Southampton, New Forest & Waterside areas CONTACT HANNAH 07585 778136 W: www.hannahs-electrics.co.uk • E: hannahelectrics@gmail.com Like us on Facebook FISHING PRIESTS MAKE A SPLASH e nest collection of shing priests ever assembled that includes Queen Victoria’s has emerged onto the open market for the rst time. ere are 97 examples in the collection including the oldest known one in the world that is inscribed with the date 1718. Anglers used the devices to dispatch sh before they were taken to the kitchen and cooked, and these historic examples display the full range of materials and designs. It took DaveWatson 50 years to assemble the collection which is now with leading antique dealer Charles Wallrock, owner of Wick Antiques in Lymington, Hampshire. Queen Victoria’s priest consists of a narwhal ivory head engraved with ‘VR’ and a crown, with a rosewood sha . She enjoyed shing trips in Scotland with her husband Albert and later her ghillie John Brown, and this priest has the patina to prove it was used. laburnum, walnut, boxwood, yew, ash, and lignum vitae. Some have ends made from whale bone, antler or narwhal tusk, and others have metal ends and some have metal inserted in the end to add weight. They’re probably all British and are beautifully turned and made by genuine craftsmen to last. They have wonderful patina and a number have clearly had a lot of use on the river bank. Some were made for specific fish, such as salmon or trout, and they range in size from quite dainty ones under seven inches long to sturdy ones over a foot in length. Others have inscriptions or initials on them and several are dated which has proved invaluable in helping date others.” Dave Watson who put the collection together said it started by accident when he bought some angling books then began collecting antique shing tackle. He went on: “One day I was offered a beautifully grained and elegantly-shaped priest in boxwood. It had fine patina from handling and ageing over the years – my focus completely changed.” For the next 50 years he sought out these antiques, adding: “They came slowly – and sometimes expensively… over time it became harder to find better quality examples for the collection as it developed to include different woods and materials. Still, each priest is unique.” e value of the priests – which are all catalogued - ranges from about £20,000 for the rarest and most desirable to a few hundred pounds. ey are being sold as a collection with a guide of £67,000. Charles added: “I have enjoyed them for a time and they really are wonderful things and it’d be great to find someone who would like to own them all as a collection and perhaps add to them.” e oldest known priest is inscribed with the date 1718 and the initials ‘IN’ and has a pewter band around the end and has clearly seen some use. Few historic shing priests have survived because they were broken or thrown away. But those that have survived show an array of woods and metals as well as designs and weights to satisfy the requirements of individual anglers. ey are called priests because they were used to administer ‘last rites’. Charles Wallrock said: “When the collection became available through a recent private sale I instantly wanted it because it’s unique and in my opinion the finest collection of its type. It gives a glimpse into the past and would be a dream to own for an antique fishing tackle collector. These are beautiful and tactile objects which are so similar to each other but at the same time so different. Each is unique and they display a huge variety of materials with beautiful woods including ebony, Charles Wallrock with Queen Victoria’s fishing priest (Photo: Emma van Lindholm) The Hampshire Hedge Initiative Launched e Hampshire Hedge is an ambitious new initiative by local countryside charity, CPRE Hampshire, to connect Hampshire’s two National Parks, the South Downs National Park and the New Forest National Park, with a nature recovery corridor of hedgerow. Hedgerows play an enormously important role in boosting biodiversity, capturing carbon, improving food production and enhancing our rural community. e countryside has lost over half of all hedgerows since 1945 and CPRE Hampshire believe it’s time to turn this around. e charity has already worked for several years on restoration of hedgerows across the Hampshire countryside, educating and working with local communities, schools, landowners and farmers. e Hampshire Hedge will wind its way through the central heart of Hampshire parishes and link woodlands, meadows, local nature reserves and Sites of Special Scienti c Interest (SSSIs). It will start from Copythorne in the New Forest and nish at Compton, on the edge of the South Downs, near Winchester. Ellie Banks, Hedgerow O cer at CPRE Hampshire, explains: “The Hampshire Hedge offers communities a great opportunity to work together to restore and plant hedges in their local areas. We provide training on the traditional crafts of hedgelaying and offer some great resources to help communities learn surveying and hedgerow management to achieve the full benefits of their rich offerings.” As part of the launch, the project was selected to take part in the ‘Big Give Green Match Campaign’, doubling charity donations made to the project from 20th–27th April. To nd out more about CPRE Hampshire hedgerow work and e Hampshire Hedge please visit: www.cprehampshire.org.uk
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