Lot 27 - Booty Call

This week, it emerged that a number of items allegedly belonging to Captain Kidd were being sold at auction; a bible box, a bible (which presumably he didn't read very much) and a mirror which he hid his treasure map in (and fiendishly wrote on the back something like "here be treasure mappe" to really throw folk off the scent). There were obvious questions about the authenticity from some quarters...but to be honest...when you are dealing with pirates and treasure maps, the authenticity doesn't really bother me. I phoned the auctioneers and made enquiries...they could certainly confirm that the box and the mirror had timber from around the 16th / 17th century, but that the bible itself dated from after Kidd's death..though the assertion was that Kidd's family had owned it in later years. You can see loads of images and the full listing here.

My mission was clear...bid on the questionable Pirate memorabilia, bring it home to Greenock - a town many refute he is associated with - and get it on permanent display in The Dutch Gable House...a building he never visited on account of being dead. So it was I booked my auctioneers slot for the Saturday morning bid. I was one of those mysterious "phone bidders", represented by shadowy suited figures, that always swoop in at the last minute to clinch the item.

Magic Torch aren't a business, we're a charity run by volunteers, but we do make a few sheckles here and there selling books, doing work for other councils or doing talks / storytelling. So we had a close look at the Torch cashbook and agreed how far we were prepared to go. The item was listed from £800 - £1200. This was not for the faint hearted.

Ten fifteen Saturday morning - my representative called. Lot 27 was just coming up. Bidding opened higher than the list price and our agreed maximum bid. Damn. I had planned for this though, and had scraped together a few more pounds of investment. The next bid wiped that out too. Pfff. My representative asked "Will you be making a bid or do you just want to listen now?"..."Ehm...listen please?" I said. And listen I did as the price soared over the £3000 mark...way beyond what I could have pulled together even by raiding the childrens savings accounts...that ship had sailed. A different mysterious phone bidder swooped in at the last minute. It was probably well know Pirate enthusiast Vic Reeves, or worse, Dundee City Council, who frequently celebrate their connection with Kidd...

You can't win em all. Well done to whoever did win, I hope you find a bit of treasure map in the mirror and wind up on a Tintin style adventure that eventually goes horribly wrong...maybe something involving an octopus? To cheer myself up, I'm away to buy a Fiji Mermaid...