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1936 British Royal Navy HMS York Sailboat Ship Dish Tray UK Military
A unique find out of a home. This what we would call a small tray or trinket tray one would put on a desk or dresser, but it could also be a small ashtray, we're not certain. It is designed in the shape of a standing sailing sailboat with the oval tray at the base and keeping the sailboat upright or afloat.
We are not military experts, but we think this was made to be used on the British Royal Navy Military Ship, the H. M. S. York, as the labelled insignia or badge for the ship adorns the topside center of the tray portion. This raised insignia is metal with white enameling for its central flower, the White Rose of York, England, which in more recent times we read is also used as the symbol of Yorkshire. There is also a deep blue or navy enameling for the background of H. M. S. York at the bottom of the insignia and for the word York near the top.
On the underside base is the English Registry Number, 813811, which indicates that the design for this piece was registered in 1936. This makes sense from some internet research on this vessel, since it was launched in 1928 and commissioned in 1930. The HMS York was a York-class heavy cruiser that prior to World War II served the British military's North America and West Indies Station. During the war it escorted convoys in the Atlantic, was a part of the Norwegian Campaign in 1940, and later escorted convoys and ships of the Mediterranean Fleet. The cruiser was wrecked in an attack in Crete in March 1941 and sunk that May.
This vintage piece is of a one piece metal construction which we believe to be chrome (a magnet does not stick to this), to which the separately made ship emblem/badge is firmly attached. It sits about 4 5/8 inches in height, about 3 9/16 inches in width and about 2 3/8 inches in depth. A nice touch is that the standing sailboat portion is curved, as if being blown by the wind. This piece weighs 2.2 ounces unpacked and will be shipped in a box for safely. There is no manufacturer or country of origin marking on this old piece.
We've provided 8 images to show varied angles, with closeups, and in varied lighting. The camera light created white hot spots on the smooth metal surfaces, blanding out some of the detail, so images have also been included without the camera light (these appear yellower but can help you to see condition and detail better in many instances). Please use the zoom feature to examine closely.
Very nice overall condition with no major chips, cracks, crazing or pieces missing, but this does show evidence of age, wear and use. The HMS York emblem is firmly attached and in great shape with no enamel missing. The oval tray portion shows many line scratches and general wear from use/cleaning, particularly on the underside base but also on the topside. On this tray there are also pin dot raised bumps in somewhat two lines to the left side of the emblem (these don't immediately jump out at you but once looking in brighter light you will see these). It appears that something with a fine needle type point pressed upward on this tray from the underside in a number of spots here, creating the topside bumps and underside impressed dots (there appears to be 8 of these dots). The standing sailboat portion shows less wear but does have line scratches, rubbed spots, general wear. The top rim edge of the tray portion shows some slight unevenness to the rim, with some very tiny surface top edge chips and some very slight denting, but nothing bad. None of this is unexpected for an older piece that was used, and this does support it as being an original vintage piece of military history.
Could be a great addition to a collection related to military history for England, Great Britain or the United Kingdom (UK).. Would also make a fun addition to any collection related to sailboats in general, or an interesting gift for someone who like sailing.
Circa: 1936
Manufacturer: British Royal Navy
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