Overview

A thrilling history of mudlarkers, charlatans, experts and chancers – the underbelly of the Edwardian antiques trade. 'What a story! And how skilfully told! A tale about treasure, as twisty and thrilling as any of the adventures of Indiana Jones.' Lucy Worsley June 1912. A pair of workmen deposit a heavy ball of clay in the antiques shop of George Fabian Lawrence, or ‘Stony Jack’ as he's better known. As Lawrence picks through the mud, a speck of gold catches his eye. A pearl earring tumbles into his hand, then another. A Burmese ruby follows; then Colombian emeralds, lapis lazuli from Afghanistan and turquoise from Iran; tankards; watches; topaz; amazonite. Stony Jack has discovered the greatest single cache of Elizabethan treasure. Diving into London’s bustling, sometimes lawless, antiques trade at the turn of the century, Victoria Shepherd provides a compelling portrait of the city at the height of empire. A thrilling ride through Edwardian London, from the marble halls of the British Museum to the East End's maze of tenements and alleyways, Stony Jack and the Lost Jewels of Cheapside oversees the transformation of the city into a modern metropolis.

Full Product Details

9781836431930

Table of Contents

Reviews

'What a story! And how skilfully told! A tale about treasure, as twisty and thrilling as any of the adventures of Indiana Jones.' —Lucy Worsley 'A spellbinding dive into the murky world of London's antiquities. Totally captivating.' —Lara Maiklem, author of Mudlarking 'In this tantalizing account, BBC documentary producer Shepherd (A History of Delusions) revisits the mystery of the Cheapside Hoard, the largest collection of Tudor and Stuart treasures ever uncovered... Shepherd meticulously examines the Hoard’s possible origins and its murky fate... museum officials as well as royals, who may have surreptitiously acquired some of the Hoard for themselves. Full of fascinating asides, including a tangent on the similar fate of artifacts later recovered from Tutankhamun’s Tomb, this rivets.' —Publishers Weekly

Author Information

Victoria Shepherd conceived and produced the ten-part series A History of Delusions for BBC Radio 4 and is author of the book of the same name. She has produced scores of documentaries and major strands for BBC Radio 4 and holds an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia.

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