Thorburn watercolour to be sold in Edinburgh

A splendid watercolour of a pheasant in flight by the celebrated Scottish ornithological artist Archibald Thorburn heads Bonhams Sporting Sale in Edinburgh on 21 June.  It is estimated at £20,000-30,000.

Flying Pheasant has a fascinating history.  It was owned by Sir Crawford McCullagh, a prominent Ulster politician and the first man to suggest holding a period of silence to commemorate soldiers who had died in the First World War.  As the Lord Mayor of Belfast from 1914-17, McCullagh called for a five minute silence for the men of the 36^th (Ulster) Division who had died in their thousands at the Battle of Somme on 1 July 1916.  The familiar Two Minute Silence was first held at the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month in 1919 so that, in the worlds of George V “in perfect stillness, the thoughts of everyone may be concentrated on reverent remembrance of the glorious dead.”

Also included in the sale is Thorburn’s Stone Curlew and Red legged Partridge (est  £5,000-7,000).

Thorburn’s paintings of birds are enduringly popular and in recent years have realised high prices at auction. A new world record for the artist was established at Bonhams in July 2011 when his magnificent Peacock and Peacock Butterfly fetched £252,000.

The Sporting Sale is an annual auction of all things to do with sporting life and features paintings, prints, fishing equipment and books among other collectible objects.