Jonathan Allen

I don't plan to post very often (if at all), but find this sale very puzzling. Firstly, His Lordship would have been much better going to a specialist auction house in the UK (such a Great Central, but others are available), where his collection would have been better catalogued and would have attracted UK buyers, who may be put-off by a sale in the Republic with uncertain import duties (to the UK) and transportation. Certainly, when I sold my modest collection, Great Central spotted that what I thought was a simple wagon plate was something much more important - I doubt His Lordship will get that level of specialist knowledge. And second, this is the sort of collection which should be going to IRRS, RPSI or even Cultra. It's not going to raise millions (perhaps a few thousand) - not enough to put a new roof on the servant's quarters - so why is it being sold rather than donated? There may be nobody in the family interested in railways and this collection, so it is understandable to dispose of these items. Proper provision for the fate of a collection should certainly be made during the owner's lifetime as widows have an unfortunate habit of chucking "that old junk" in the bin when the time comes. The fate of what we have gathered down the years should concern us all and I hope anybody reading this post will have considered the future of their collection when we all depart to that great steam shed in the sky.

Sorry Larne Cabin, but that shot of 169 at Larne Harbour with the weed control train is not one of mine. Wish it was, though: Also the DH - never got a DH at the harbour.

I presume the image was taken from Geograph (which I no longer use), and images may be reproduced under a Creative Commons Licence. However, the licence requires attribution as detailed on this web page: Use & remix - Creative Commons

I really would appreciate if people posting my photographs would acknowledge copyright: