HMS Hastings Figurehead Mounted on a Circular Base.
This model was made to commemorate the centenary of the shipbuilders C. W. Kellock & Co. in 1920. Plaques to the base read: ‘Model of the Figurehead of HMS Hastings, last of the Wooden Walls of old England. The original being in the Liverpool Shipping Saleroom of C.W. Kellock & Co', '1920 Kellocks Centenary 1920' and 'With the Compliments of C.W. Kellock & Co, London and Liverpool'.
The original figurehead is now displayed at the Merseyside Maritime Museum. HMS Hastings was a 74-gun third rate Royal Navy ship of the line. She was built in Calcutta for the Honourable East India Company. The Royal Navy purchased her in 1819 and sold her in 1886.
Warren Hastings (1732 - 1818) was a British colonial administrator. He joined the East India Company in 1750, as a clerk, with his first posting being Calcutta. He rose quickly, learning the local languages and was outspoken against British trading abuses in Calcutta. He resigned in 1764 and settled back in Britian. He returned to India in 1769, as deputy ruler of Madras and then as Governor of Calcutta in 1772. From 1772 until 1785 he served as the first Governor-General of Bengal. In 1773 the Presidencies of Madras and Bombay were brought under the control of Calcutta. Hastings and Robert Clive were known as the architects of British India.
The finely cast pewter bust with no losses, but with high surface wear. The ebonised wooden base with a small loss to the lower rim and high wear throughout. The Kellock plaque with gaps between it and the wooden base (photo 6).
Approximate weight is 782 grams.
Approximate dimensions are 18 cm height and 8.5 cm base diameter.