EXCEPTIONAL BATTLE OF ARNHEM MEDALS FETCH £54,560 AT DIX NOONAN WEBB

Medals and an iconic Paratroopers Red Beret that belonged to Colonel B. W. Briggs who was instrumental in securing the northern end of Arnhem Bridge with Lieutenant-Colonel J. Frost’s 2nd Battalion Parachute Regiment on the first night of Operation Market Garden sold for £54,560 at Dix Noonan Webb in their online/ live auction of Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria on Thursday, July 16, 2020. Bought by a private collector, they were estimated to fetch £36,000 - 44,000 [lot 17].

Mark Quayle, Medal Specialist and Associate Director, Dix Noonan Webb commented after the sale; “The price is reflective of an exceptional group of medals awarded to one of Arnhem’s bravest.”

Briggs’ wireless conversation with Frost was pivotal to the action: 
Captain Briggs: The position is untenable. Can I have your permission to withdraw?
Lieutenant-Colonel Frost: If it is untenable you may withdraw to your original position.
Captain Briggs: Everything is comfortable. I am now going in with bayonets and grenades.

Bottom of Form
Colonel Bernard Briggs was a founder member of the Parachute Regiment, he served with them in North Africa, Sicily and Italy before joining 1st Parachute Brigade H.Q. as Staff Captain prior to Operation Market Garden. Fighting to the very end among a dwindling core of defenders, Briggs was finally taken prisoner and, while being transported east, was witness to, and a survivor of, the massacre at Brummen. He was sent to permanent camp Oflag VII-B
(Eichstatt, Bavaria) and later route-marched to Stalag VII-A at Moosburg, the camp being liberated by U.S. Forces on 29 April 1945. He went on to serve in Korea and Hong Kong, eventually retiring in 1961.



Elsewhere, the Notable Small Army Gold Medal and M.G.S. pair awarded to Captain, later General, Sir John Michell of the Royal Artillery, remembered by the officers of the modern Royal Regiment of Artillery as ‘The Man who Burned Down the White House’ in 1814, sold for £34,720 against an estimate of £24,000-28,000. It was bought by a Private Collector [lot 68].

Also of note was the rare and significant Sea Harrier pilot’s South Atlantic Medal awarded to Lieutenant Commander R. V. Frederiksen, Fleet Air Arm, Royal Navy, who was mentioned in despatches for his services with 800 Naval Air Squadron during the Falklands War, which sold for £22,320. Launching from H.M.S. Hermes early on 1 May 1982, the opening day of British operations on the Islands, he led the surprise raid on Goose Green airfield, destroying or damaging at least three Argentine planes. It was also bought by Private Collector [lot 599].

***Please note that these prices include Buyers Premium (24%)***

FORTHCOMING SALES AT DNW
THURSDAY, AUGUST 20 – THE JACK WEBB COLLECTION OF MEDALS AND MILITARIA
THURSDAY, AUGUST 27 – BRITISH TOKENS, TICKETS AND PASSES
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 – THE CHISLEHURST COLLECTION
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15 – JEWELLERY, WATCHES, ANTIQUITIES AND OBJECTS OF VERTU
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16 – COINS & HISTORICAL MEDALS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17 - ORDERS, DECORATIONS, MEDALS AND MILITARIA
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14 – INDIAN COINS AND HISTORICAL MEDALS
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28 – BRITISH, IRISH AND WORLD BANKNOTES
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 – COINS AND HISTORICAL MEDALS

Free online bidding is available is www.dnw.co.uk
For more information, please call 020 7016 1700

DNW are on Social Media
Instagram @dixnoonanwebb
Facebook: dixnoonanwebb
Twitter @dixnoonanwebb

NOTES TO EDITORS:
Dix Noonan Webb – a brief history
In 1991, its first year of trading, the company held three medal auctions and sold 1,200 lots for a total hammer price of £553,000. Two years later it opened a coin department which also auctions commemorative medals and tokens and in 2015 DNW added jewellery to its sales calendar. In 2018, it set up a standalone banknotes department and expanded into premises next door. In the same year, DNW achieved a total hammer price of £11,676,580 and the total number of lots across all departments was 20,273. To date the company has sold in excess of 300,000 lots totalling £155 million.

For further press information and images please contact:
Rachel Aked
Tel: 07790732448
Email: Rachel@rachelaked.co.uk
July 2020