A hoof of the 1896 Grand National winner 'The Soarer,' converted as a silver-mounted vesta case by Rowland Ward Limited of Piccadilly, hallmarked Lond
£700 - £1,000
A hoof of the 1896 Grand National winner 'The Soarer,' converted as a silver-mounted vesta case by Rowland Ward Limited of Piccadilly, hallmarked London, 1903, the outside of the hinged lid inscribed THE SOARER, WINNER OF THE GRAND NATIONAL, 1896, the inside of the lid machine roughened to form a match striker, above a well for storing vestas, the hoof with polished finish The Soarer (see also next lot) was sold by Captain David Campbell of the 9th Royal Lancers to Colonel Hall-Walker on condition that he himself could ride him in the 1896 Grand National. This was agreed by the Colonel with the caveat that Cambell wore Hall-Walker's famous chequered colours. At Hurst Park, prior to the Aintree meeting, The Midshipmite fell and The Soarer fell over him. Thus The Soarer was easy to back at Aintree and started at odds of 40 to 1 but held off a late and determined challenge from the 1892 National winner Father O'Flynn to win by a length-and-a-half. Willie Walker had backed ?50 on The Soarer at long odds and a large proportion of his winnings went towards an extension of the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool.