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Helen MacRae Suffragette gallantry medal auctioned | Helen MacRae Suffragette gallantry medal auctioned |
(about 11 hours later) | |
A medal awarded to recognise the bravery of a suffragette who served a jail term and went on hunger strike has sold for £12,300. | |
Helen MacRae's Suffragette gallantry medal went under the hammer in Suffolk, with a £6,000 starting price. | |
Lockdales Auctioneers, of Martlesham, said the medal was "incredibly rare". | Lockdales Auctioneers, of Martlesham, said the medal was "incredibly rare". |
Ms MacRae, from Edenbridge, Kent, helped to organise the first Women's Social and Political Union meeting in East Grinstead, West Sussex, in 1911. | Ms MacRae, from Edenbridge, Kent, helped to organise the first Women's Social and Political Union meeting in East Grinstead, West Sussex, in 1911. |
She smashed windows in Whitehall in 1910 and was imprisoned for four months. | She smashed windows in Whitehall in 1910 and was imprisoned for four months. |
During a second four-month jail term, she went on hunger strike and had to be force fed. | During a second four-month jail term, she went on hunger strike and had to be force fed. |
The front of her medal is inscribed "For Valour" and the reverse reads "Fed by Force 1/3/12". | The front of her medal is inscribed "For Valour" and the reverse reads "Fed by Force 1/3/12". |
Auction manager James Sadler said before the sale: "This is an incredibly rare medal. I've never seen one before." | |
Later, he said the medal went for £12,300 including buyer's premium to a phone bidder - described as a female professional who is a collector of Suffragette memorabilia. | |
A collection of postcards that belonged to Ms MacRae is also being auctioned on Sunday. | |
They include images of suffragettes in a horse-drawn carriage, a Women's Suffrage Mobile Caravan with suffragette Muriel Matters, and one of Emily Davison who was killed at Epsom Racecourse in Surrey in June 1913. | They include images of suffragettes in a horse-drawn carriage, a Women's Suffrage Mobile Caravan with suffragette Muriel Matters, and one of Emily Davison who was killed at Epsom Racecourse in Surrey in June 1913. |