Murder mementoes fetch £1420 at Norfolk auction

Four Staffordshire pottery mementoes of a grisly Victorian double murder sold at auction for a total of £1,420.

19th century Staffordshire model of Stanfield Hall. Picture: Kim Latimer - Credit: Archant

Thousands of people travelled to witness the hanging of double murderer James Bloomfield Rush in 1849.

Rush, a farmer at Potash Farm, near Wymondham, was found guilty of the murder of his landlord Isaac Jermy, and his son, also called Isaac, who lived at nearby Stanfield Hall.

The case had all the ingredients of a dark Victorian melodrama, including the fact that it was evidence given by Rush's mistress, Emily Sandford, that helped to convict him.

The 'flatback' figures of Rush and Emily sold for £350 each, and models of Potash Farm and Stanfield Hall sold for £360 each, at Keys Fine Art Auctioneers' summer Fine Sale in Aylsham yesterday. Spokesman Andy Newman said the sales were pretty much in line with their estimates.

The three day sale ends tomorrow. More details at www.keysauctions.co.uk