FULL HULL MODEL OF THE AMERICA'S CUP YACHT "COLUMBIA"
Circa 1899
Attributed to Gustav Graham (Sweden/America, 19th/20th Century). Hull built up from the solid, which has been hollowed. Topsides painted white and the bottom bronze. Mahogany veneer deck with a brass plaque engraved "Columbia America Cup 1899". Displayed on a simple mahogany stand, supported at the keel with a post.
Height on stand 10". Length 49.5". Width 9".
Provenance:
Thomas Darling, and thence by descent.
Christie's East, New York, February 1998, purchased by Richard Kelton.
The Kelton Collection of Marine Art & Artifacts.
The current consignor.

Notes:
This model is believed to have been made by Gustav Graham, one of the principal model builders for New York Yacht Club in the Late 19th Century. The companion model is in the Club collection.

Columbia was designed and built in 1898-99 by Nathaniel Herreshoff and the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company for J. Pierpont Morgan and Edwin Dennison Morgan of the New York Yacht Club, and she was launched June 10, 1899. She was a fin keel sloop, with a nickel steel frame and Tobin bronze hull. Skippered by Charlie Barr, she easily won the elimination trials against the rebuilt yacht Defender and won all three races against the British challenger, Shamrock, in the 1899 America's Cup. Columbia was selected in 1901 to defend the Cup, again under the command of Charlie Barr, and she easily won all three races against Shamrock II. In 1903 she was refitted with the hope of being selected for a third time, but she was badly beaten in the selection trials by Reliance. She was the first vessel to win the trophy twice in a row, a record not equaled until Intrepid 's back-to-back wins in 1967 and 1970. Columbia was broken up in 1915 at City Island and sold to Henry A. Hitner and Sons of Philadelphia for scrap. Today, the mast sits in the Forest Hills Gardens neighborhood of New York City in a park known as "Flagpole Green".

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age; these issues will likely not be mentioned in the condition report. Please contact Eldred's before the auction with any condition questions. Questions about condition will not be answered after purchase. Condition reports are provided as a courtesy, and we are not responsible for any errors or omissions. Important note on frames: Frames are not guaranteed to be in the same condition as they are in the item photograph. Due to handling and shipping, many frames, especially antique ones, are prone to losses. If you have questions about the condition of a frame, please contact us prior to the auction.