Sporting Oil Old Badge Hen & Champion Holley Brothers Racing Pigeons
Attributed to J. Brown – Old Badge Hen & Holley Brothers British Racing Pigeons Oil Painting
Rare British Sporting Folk Art Trophy Portrait with Painted Pedigree and Racing Record. Oil on Board | Early 20th Century, circa 1930 | Whitley Bay 1909 & Banff–Trehafod Racing Inscriptions
Highlights
• Attributed to J. Brown, British Naive / Folk Sporting School
• Rare double racing-pigeon trophy and pedigree portrait
• Left-hand pigeon specifically named “OLD BADGE HEN”
• Old Badge Hen commemorated as dam and grand-dam of successful racing pigeons
• Painted pedigree records “1st Perth / Club & Fed.”
• Further breeding-performance inscriptions appear to record Chester, Buxton and Craven Arms results
• Companion blue-bar cock associated with the painted heading “MESSRS HOLLEY BRO. BUTE”
• A Bute Homing Pigeon Society is independently documented as having been instituted in 1895
• No documentary evidence presently establishes that the Holley Brothers themselves were members of that society or residents of Bute
• Cock’s racing record includes “1st Whitley Bay 09”, interpreted as a 1909 victory
• Further recorded race points include Tynemouth, Perth and Banff
• “Wired 6.45 Day of Race” apparently records telegraphic reporting of racing information
• Important long-distance inscription refers to a flight “BANFF TO TREHFOD”, apparently Trehafod in South Wales
• Final inscriptions appear to include “1st Club” and “1st 5/- Pool”
• Extensive original painted racing, pedigree and breeding inscriptions
• Private London-based pigeon fancier collection provenance
• Curated Auctions, London, 6 December 2024, Lot 370
• Privately loaned and exhibited at the Famous Lord Hill Museum, Shropshire
• Supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution
Introduction
A remarkable early 20th-century British racing-pigeon trophy portrait attributed to J. Brown, depicting two distinguished birds surrounded by an unusually extensive painted record of pedigree and competitive achievement.
The chequered hen at left is explicitly identified as “OLD BADGE HEN”. Her inscriptions commemorate her principally as an important breeding or stock hen whose offspring and subsequent descendants achieved notable racing results.
The prominent blue-bar cock at right is associated with the enigmatic painted heading “MESSRS HOLLEY BRO. BUTE” and an extensive competitive record incorporating Whitley Bay, Tynemouth, Perth and Banff, together with Club and pool achievements and an important reference to a long-distance flight from Banff to “TREHFOD”, apparently Trehafod in the Rhondda Valley of South Wales.
Executed in oil on board, the work combines the functions of sporting portrait, trophy, pedigree and permanent racing record, making it an unusually evocative visual document of the historic British pigeon fancy.
Catalogue Details
Artist: Attributed to J. Brown
School: British Naive / Folk Sporting School
Title: Old Badge Hen & Holley Brothers Racing Pigeons
Date: Early 20th century, circa 1930
Medium: Oil on board
Signature: Unsigned
Subject: Racing pigeons / British sporting art / folk art / pigeon racing
Painting dimensions: approximately 44 × 41 cm / 17.3 × 16.1 inches
Framed dimensions: approximately 57 × 52 × 2.5 cm / 22.4 × 20.5 × 1 inch
Frame: Substantial carved period wooden frame
Catalogue Note
Racing-pigeon portraits occupy a distinctive position within British sporting and folk art. Successful racers and important breeding birds could be commemorated through commissioned portraits recording their physical characteristics alongside names, pedigree relationships, ownership and competitive achievements.
The present painting is particularly interesting because the two birds represent complementary aspects of the pigeon fancy: Old Badge Hen is celebrated through the performance of her descendants, while the cock is accompanied by what amounts to a painted competitive résumé.
In pigeon-racing terminology, a “dam” is a bird’s mother and a “grand-dam” its grandmother. “Club & Fed.” denotes Club and Federation competition, while names such as Perth, Whitley Bay, Tynemouth and Banff are consistent with race or liberation points from which pigeons were released to race back to their individual home lofts.
Old Badge Hen
The left-hand pigeon is explicitly named:
“OLD BADGE HEN”
Her accompanying inscription includes:
“DAM OF 1ST PERTH”
“CLUB & FED. GRAND DAM”
The wording identifies Old Badge Hen as an important breeding bird. She appears to be recorded as the dam of a pigeon achieving first from Perth at Club and Federation level and subsequently as the grand-dam of further successful racers.
Close examination of the difficult lower lettering suggests that it may preserve three separate results:
“1ST CHES[TER]”
“3RD BUXTON”
“2ND CRAVEN ARMS”
This interpretation accords with the conventional racing-pigeon formula of placing followed by race point, although portions of the historic lettering remain indistinct and the reading is therefore presented cautiously.
The inscription effectively functions as a condensed performance pedigree, demonstrating the sporting reputation of Old Badge Hen through more than one generation of descendants.
The Holley Brothers Cock
The right-hand cock is accompanied by:
“MESSRS HOLLEY BRO. BUTE”
The word “BUTE” is particularly intriguing.
Independent historical evidence establishes that a Bute Homing Pigeon Society was instituted in 1895 on the Isle of Bute. Period county directories identify J. Rae as president and A. M'Tavish as secretary, treasurer and race secretary.
This establishes a genuine contemporary pigeon-racing context for the word “Bute”. It does not, however, establish that the Holley Brothers were members of that society or that “BUTE” in this particular painting identifies their residence.
The inscription itself does not visibly include the word “of”. Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD® therefore retains the wording exactly as painted rather than converting it into the unsupported formulation “Holley Brothers of Bute”.
The word could represent a geographical association, racing or loft designation, provenance or breeding reference, or potentially another identification whose meaning has subsequently been lost.
The cock’s competitive record includes:
“1ST WHITLEY BAY 09”
“1ST POOL”
“2ND TYNMTH”
“5TH PERTH”
“1st Whitley Bay 09” is interpreted as a first-place result from Whitley Bay in 1909, while “TYNMTH” is understood as Tynemouth.
A further notation adjoining the Perth result appears to contain “/10”. When considered alongside the explicit “09” following Whitley Bay, this may denote 1910, potentially preserving a chronological sequence of performances across the 1909 and 1910 seasons.
“Wired 6.45 Day of Race”
Another particularly evocative passage reads:
“WIRED 6.45 DAY OF RACE”
Within the historical context of early 20th-century pigeon racing, “wired” is consistent with the telegraphic communication of a bird’s arrival or racing information.
The inscription therefore appears to preserve the fact that an arrival or result was communicated by telegraph at 6.45 on the day of the race.
This reading is considerably more consistent with period racing practice than the earlier interpretation that an adjoining “10” represented ten pigeons being recorded.
Banff to Trehafod
Perhaps the most historically intriguing passage contains:
“… BIRD TO FLY BANFF TO TREHFOD”
“Trehfod” is very probably a variant or abbreviated rendering of Trehafod, in the Rhondda Valley of South Wales.
If correctly identified, the wording records a substantial long-distance flight from Banff in northern Scotland to Trehafod in South Wales.
This is also why “BUTE” should not presently be treated automatically as the Holley Brothers’ home. The Banff-to-Trehafod wording provides a separate and potentially significant South Wales geographical association within the same racing record.
The ordinal preceding “BIRD TO FLY” remains difficult to distinguish conclusively and is therefore not expanded into an unsupported assertion that the pigeon was definitively the first or second bird to accomplish the flight.
A neighbouring passage appears to read either:
“ALL STAGES TO BANFF”
or:
“ALL STAGED TO BANFF”
and may refer to the bird’s progression through racing stages or distances culminating in the Banff event, although its precise contemporary meaning remains under investigation.
The concluding inscriptions appear to include:
“1ST CLUB”
“1ST 5/- POOL”
The latter is consistent with pre-decimal British monetary notation, 5/- representing five shillings, and apparently records victory in a five-shilling racing pool.
Taken together, these inscriptions transform the work from a conventional animal portrait into what is effectively a painted pedigree and race-performance archive, preserving breeding relationships, race points, placings, dates, monetary pool achievements and long-distance racing history.
The Artist
The painting is attributed to J. Brown, an artist associated with a distinctive group of British racing-pigeon portraits from the early decades of the 20th century.
Works associated with Brown are characterised by clearly defined birds, individualised plumage, simplified landscape settings and extensive painted inscriptions documenting sporting achievements.
The present work is unsigned. Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD® therefore conservatively catalogues it as Attributed to J. Brown, based upon stylistic and comparative assessment rather than presenting authorship as definitively established.
Dating
Although the inscription records a Whitley Bay achievement in 1909, and another notation may refer to 1910, these are racing dates rather than necessarily the execution date of the painting.
The accumulated racing and multi-generational breeding information suggests that the work was conceived retrospectively after the achievements commemorated upon it had become established.
On current stylistic and comparative evidence, the painting is catalogued as early 20th century, circa 1930.
Provenance
Private London-based pigeon fancier collection.
Curated Auctions, London, Luxury Interiors: Including Exceptional Silver & Works of Art, 6 December 2024, Lot 370.
Acquired by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD® in 2024.
Curated, researched and catalogued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.
Exhibition History
Privately loaned by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD® and exhibited at the Famous Lord Hill Museum, Shropshire.
Dimensions
Painting: approximately 44 × 41 cm / 17.3 × 16.1 inches.
Overall framed dimensions: approximately 57 × 52 × 2.5 cm / 22.4 × 20.5 × 1 inch.
Condition Report
The painting is presented in good, honest condition consistent with its age and historic character.
There is age-related craquelure and surface variation, together with scattered marks and spotting. A visible vertical area of staining or discolouration is present towards the left side of the painted surface.
The substantial carved wooden frame displays age-related wear, scuffs, minor losses and evidence of historic repair and retouching.
Please examine the accompanying photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the condition report.
Shipping
Worldwide shipping is available.
Owing to the substantial dimensions and weight of the framed portrait, it will be professionally packaged using appropriate protective materials and dispatched fully insured.
International buyers are welcome. Please contact us for a destination-specific delivery quotation or to discuss any particular shipping requirements.
Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution
The artwork will be supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution issued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®, recording the artwork’s catalogue details, attribution, provenance as stated, and details of the sale. This document accompanies the work as part of its ongoing ownership and provenance record.
Attribution and Research
The historical observations, provenance research, attribution analysis and contextual commentary presented within this catalogue entry represent the professional opinion of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®. They are offered in good faith as informed scholarly assessments based upon the available evidence, comparative research, published reference material and our experience within the international fine art market.
These observations should be understood as professional opinions rather than definitive statements of fact or guarantees of authorship, attribution, date, origin, provenance or historical interpretation. As with all historic works of art, future documentary discoveries, technical examination, conservation analysis or advances in academic research may refine, expand or revise current interpretations.
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