Lot 53: Lai Fong (Chinese, 19th. Century)

The four-masted barque 'Achnashie' under full sail
signed 'Lai Fong', inscribed 'Calcutta' and dated 1897 (lower right)
oil on canvas
61 x 89cm. (24 x 35in.)

"Achnashie" was a large steel four-masted barque built for Thom & Cameron of Glasgow by R. Duncan & Co. at Port Glasgow in 1892. Registered at 2,476 tons gross (2,334 net), she measured 294 feet in length with a 45 1/2 foot beam and began life as a general cargo carrier with a reputation for dependability rather than speed. After fifteen years in British registry, she was sold to A.D. Bordes et Fils for £10,500 in 1907, this being the highest price paid for any secondhand British sailing vessel that year and reflected her excellent condition and future potential. Renamed "Chanaral" by her new French owners, she went to work amongst their extensive fleet of so-called 'Nitrate clippers' until sunk by a German submarine when heading into Falmouth 60 miles southwest of the Bishop Rock on 22nd April 1916.