Four Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide balls – including one from 1906 – are set for auction in March offering a rare opportunity to own a piece of Derbyshire history.
The balls currently belong to a family whose ancestors have played their part in the town’s world-renowned annual street football game for around 130 years.
Over the course of decades, more than 40 Shrovetide balls were collected. Some were acquired, some were made by relatives and others were goaled by family members. Various Shrovetide balls were gifted to family and friends and, sadly, a number were sold years ago at the time of the death of the original owner.
The current family now own six Shrovetide balls, two of which hold great sentimental value and will be kept within the family. However, they have reluctantly chosen to part with four of them – including a ball goaled by Mr C Goodwin on Ash Wednesday in 1906.
The balls will go under the hammer in Hansons’ March 31 Fine Art Auction guided at £1,000-£1,500 each.
The 1906 ball was painted for the late Jack Smith, an Ashburnian, by Jack Roberts in the 1960s. However, due to damage, the current owner had it repainted by Ashbourne ball artist Tim Baker.
It’s decorated with a George and Dragon emblem and the words ‘Turned up by J.C. Prince 1906’ on one side and St Oswald’s Church with spring daffodils and the words ‘Sturston Mill G. Goodwin 1906’ on the other. It also features the football emblems of Derby County and Liverpool FC, clubs close to the family, and the Union Jack and flag of Hong Kong, a place of special memories for the current owner.
The 1926 ball is painted but makes no mention of who threw it up or goaled it. This can only be ascertained from The Shrovetide Roll of Honour which shows the ball was thrown up by Mr T Farmer on Shrove Tuesday and goaled at Sturston by Mr William Brown.
The 1928 example is a Royal Shrovetide ball as it was used as the second ball on the day the Prince of Wales threw up the ball on Shrove Tuesday 1928. Consequently it features the Prince of Wales insignia of three feathers and is of special historical importance.
Finally, the fourth and last ball is the Jack Smith Memorial Ball. It has not been used in a Shrovetide match but is special because it was made by Jack, formerly of Station Street, Ashbourne – the original owner of all the balls.
Jack goaled a ball at Clifton in 1954, threw up a second ball in 1967 – the same day his brother Alec Smith goaled a third ball at Clifton – made Shrovetide balls and painstakingly collated the original research which led to the creation of the Shrovetide Roll of Honour.
Jack also presented a Shrovetide ball to the West German football team when they stayed in the Ashbourne area ahead of the 1966 World Cup.
In all, the family have goaled three balls recorded in the Roll of Honour – William Twigge (1938), Jack Smith (1954) and Alex Smith (1967). However, what is not commonly known is that their great grandfather Samuel Arthur Smith, who is buried at Clifton, Ashbourne, goaled nine balls in the late 1800s before records were kept but then turned against the game and burnt all his Shrovetide balls.
A family member said: “Family balls goaled in 1954 and 1967 will stay in our family so we can pass down the legacy and share the importance of what they represent. They will forever be protected and cherished.
“We understand the importance of Shrovetide and the absolute honour to own and be a guardian of these Shrovetide balls. This has been a hard decision and we want to respect their legacy.”
Ashbourne’s Royal Shrovetide Football Match is a medieval game played annually on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday. It dates back to at least circa 1667 but its exact origins are unknown due to a fire at the Royal Shrovetide Committee office in the 1890s which destroyed records.
The game is played with a special ball filled with Portuguese cork to keep it afloat when it ends up in the river. The balls are hand-painted by artists. The design is usually related to the dignitary given the honour of turning-up the ball – starting the match. Once a ball is goaled it’s repainted with the name and in the design of the scorer and is theirs to keep. If a ball is not goaled it’s repainted in the design of the dignitary who turned it up and given back to them to keep.
The Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide balls will be offered in Hansons Auctioneers’ Derbyshire Fine Art Auction on March 31, 2022. Catalogue due live March 24: www.hansonslive.co.uk. To find out more, or to book a free valuation, email Isabel Murtough: [email protected].
