Christmas cards galore sent by the royal family to a photography specialist who aided their festive image choices could achieve thousands at auction. (Dec 12)
As well as more than 60 Christmas and New Year cards, the memorabilia includes photo memos and orders, loose images and thank-you letters or notes from Queen Elizabeth II and Diana, Princess of Wales. The collection, which spans the 1970s-1990s, also features signed cards, correspondence or invitations from The Queen Mother, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York and the Duke and Duchess of Kent. Christmas cards from Charles and Diana, plus individual cards sent after they separated, will also go under the hammer at Hansons Auctioneers on December 12. Together, they could achieve in the region of £8,000.
All were despatched to Alan Maxwell, former photographic and camera specialist at London’s Wallace H Eaton Ltd, official suppliers to the royal family. Mr Maxwell, as the royal family always called him, assisted with all their photography needs, such as supplying and framing prints in different sizes, advising on camera issues and assisting in choice of images, including the annual royal Christmas cards.
A 1993 letter from King Charles (then Prince Charles), reads, ‘Dear Mr Maxwell, I just wanted to thank you so much for all the time and effort you put into producing possible Christmas cards for me this year. I couldn’t be more pleased with what you have achieved from some pretty unpromising material!
‘I thought you did wonders in interpreting my ideas of having a card made up of three small pictures, and only narrowly preferred the group version in the end. I only hope it is appreciated by several thousand recipients …
‘I am sorry that my ridiculously congested programme meant that you had a fruitless journey to London, and that I did not have an opportunity to congratulate you in person, but did want you to know how grateful I am for all you have done on this and other projects. What on Earth would I do without you?! Yours sincerely, Charles’.
He was not the only member of royalty to appreciate Mr Maxwell’s services. In 1992 Diana, Princess of Wales (1961-1997) wrote, ‘Dear Mr Maxwell, A very special thank you for coming to our rescue at such short notice! I did appreciate enormously the speed in which the photographs arrived here & am only sorry for the trouble we must have caused! Yours most sincerely, Diana’ [Lot 433, £250-£350]
Other Diana memorabilia includes multiple professional images of her taken in the 1980s and 90s including her 21st birthday portrait by Snowden, all in a box addressed to Mr Maxwell (lot 435, £50-£100). The Diana connection is underlined by a lot featuring a mounted photo of her; a memorandum regarding her photo orders; invitations addressed to Mr and Mrs Alan Maxwell for Kensington Palace receptions and invitations to Diana’s funeral (lot 434, £100-£200).
Meanwhile multiple memories of Christmas and the passage of time emerge thanks to the festive cards therough the decades. A 1984 Christmas card, inscribed ‘Mr Maxwell, from, Diana and Charles’, features a photo of the couple with a very small Prince William and baby Harry. The lot includes three negatives of the studio shots used for the card and loose colour prints of the image (lot 436, £100-£200).
A touching 1988 Christmas card, sent by Queen Elizabeth and The Duke of Edinburgh, features a photo of Elizabeth holding an infant Princess Beatrice of York on her lap with The Queen Mother standing by her side (lot 452, £60-£80).
The most valuable lot [472], estimate £500-£700, relates to Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022). It includes a typed and signed letter to Mr Maxwell, on Buckingham Palace paper, thanking him for his good wishes on the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh’s golden wedding anniversary plus 13 photo memorandums to Mr Maxwell signed with the initials ‘ER’.
The notes include, ‘Many thanks for getting a repeat for the picture of Harold Wilson and me – he’s had them in his wallet for years! Practically rubbed it away…’ and ‘I am giving you a large and difficult order for copies of pictures I took of my Jersey cows that won prizes recently; with the help of a New Zealand farmer and his wife, and they want the photos for souvenirs! There is no immediate hurry as they’ve gone back to NZ. ER’. This lot includes black and white photos of Queen Elizabeth with her dogs, letters thanking Mr Maxwell for cameras and royal event invitations.
Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers, said: “This amazing royal archive was discovered by the team at Hansons’ saleroom in Penshurst, Kent. Alan Maxwell worked for Wallace H Eaton and assisted the Royal Household for decades. Members of the royal family always called him Mr Maxwell, not Alan. He was a man of absolute discretion, hence earning their respect. He printed Christmas cards and trimmed and framed them. He was an absolute a perfectionist.
“Mr Maxwell, a Yorkshireman, passed away 15 years ago and now his collection has finally come to light. It’s important in terms of royal history but also allows us to pay tribute to a man held in high esteem by royalty. In the digital age it’s easy to forget all photos used to be sent off to be developed and printed. The royal family, among the most photograped people in the world, came to rely on Mr Maxwell for their photographc needs and he was proud to serve them.”
The find was made by Justin Matthews, regional director for Hansons Kent and Sussex. He said: “It was quite remarkable to uncover in a cardboard box this vast collection of royal cards, letters and photo memorandums. It even included original proofs of images of Princess Diana.”
Auction: The royal memorabilia, lots 472-471, is being offered in Hansons Auctioneers’ December 12 Fine Art and Decorative Arts Auction at the firm’s Derbyshire saleroom.
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