Smoking Room paneling from OIympic where is it

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Dan Cherry

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Mar 3, 2000
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Nathan,
I was actually surprised to see a photo of the original "Plymouth Harbor" painting at all. When I had purchased Titanic Voices back in '98, I saw the painting photo for the first time. Wilkinson's son, as the caption goes, researched his father's estate and photos to come up with the "Plymouth Harbor" recreation for the 1997 movie "Titanic"...
 
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Iain Stuart Yardley

Member
Mar 28, 2002
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I hunted around on the 'net trying to find out more about Wilkinson's paintings and found this on www.art-gallery.co.u k:

Titanic Book (Title Not Known) by Norman Wilkinson / Grant Richards, dated 1910.

Does this mean there were paintings in existence of the Titanic before she was even launched or have I got it completely wrong per usual?

Cheers,

Boz
 
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Atle Ellefsen

Guest
A part of the à la carte restaurant on the Celebrity Cruises' 90,000 GRT "Millenium" (delivered summer 2000 from Chantiers De L'Atlantique, St. Nazaire) is panelled with original Olympic interior. I can not say if it is from the smoking room, but it has been authenticated. The name of the restaurant is the "Olympic Restaurant" and there is a small museum type display at the entrance with photos and history of the ship. To my recollection, the panels were purchased from a pub or restaurant in England. For more info those interested could contact Celebrity Cruises.

Cheers,
Atle.
 
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Daniel Klistorner

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Dec 7, 2000
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As I said before, I don't know how the name "Approach to the New World" came about, but Olympic's painting was called simply "New York Harbour". Titanic Voices have both the Titanic and Olympic paintings in colour!

Daniel.
 
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Eric Sauder

Member
Nov 12, 2000
403
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Hello Alte:

None of the Smoking Room paneling from Olympic is on board the "Millenium," only a portion of the a la carte Restaurant.

"To my recollection, the panels were purchased from a pub or restaurant in England."

It actually was purchased from the Nortons, a very nice older couple who lived in Southport, England. It was originally installed in their flat back in the mid-1930s by the previous owner, the Mayoress of Southport, who bought the paneling at the dispersal sale of the ship's fittings. When the Nortons purchased the flat, the provenance had changed slightly, and they were told that the woodwork was from a German battleship! Hmmm....

Wherever it was from, the Nortons knew it was exactly what they were looking for. Only later did one of their sons find out the paneling was actually from Olympic.

"...but it has been authenticated."

Indeed it has. Ken Marschall and I first found the paneling back in the late 1980s while on a research trip to England.

I had a look at the site Alte suggested. I couldn't stop laughing when I read it loudly proclaiming that "the 1940s-style RMS Olympic Restaurant is the picture of grandeur and elegance." 1940s, huh?

Eric Sauder
 
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Atle Ellefsen

Guest
Eric, David

Thanks for filling me in with this interesting info. Quite a story, this panelling. I visited the Millennium when she was new, I felt a strange awe just being there, knowing that this was a piece of the real thing.

Best regards

Atle.
 
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Iain Stuart Yardley

Member
Mar 28, 2002
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Afternoon David,

The painting above is of "New York Harbour"? I think I can just make out the Statue of Liberty. Also, there is an artists' impression and a photograph of paintings in the Smoking Room in Leo Marriott's Titanic.

Cheers,

Boz
 
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Eric Sauder

Member
Nov 12, 2000
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Tarn:

There are little bits and pieces of second class here and there, but no quantity that I know of in any one place. There are a few large pieces around. Some of the windows from the second-class Smoking Room were sold in 1991. (They can be seen in the photo on the bottom of page 64 in Titanic: An Illustrated History or the bottom photo on page 178 of The Discovery of the Titanic.) I've got five or six pieces of paneling from the aft port corner of the same room. Unfortunately, it is only the upper half. The wainscoting did not come with it, and what is left only stands about four feet or so.

Eric Sauder
 
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Eric Sauder

Member
Nov 12, 2000
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One more thing. There are three or four carved overhead brackets from just outside the elevators. The problem is that these brackets were identical in first and second class, and I don't recall if they are marked in any way with their original location.

Eric Sauder
 
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Scott R. Andrews

Guest
Now, that's interesting. The reflections in Daniel's second photo made me go back and take another look at the first one. Sure enough, it's apparent from both photos that this painting was covered by glass. That's rather odd. I thought that this painting and it's companion piece on the Titanic were done in oils like many of Wilkinson's other works. This would seem to go against conventional wisdom when framing oil paintings. I'd be interested in hearing an expert opinion on this. Could one of you guys who corresponds with Ken Marschall please fly this one by him?

Thanks,

Scott Andrews
 
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Eric Sauder

Member
Nov 12, 2000
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Tarn:

I found my notes about the brackets I mentioned above, and they are from the first-class elevators.

Eric Sauder
 
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