Lot 168
A VERY LARGE SCRATCH BUILT MODEL OF 'THE GREAT MICHAEL', GEORGE SCAMMELL OF GRANTON (SCOTTISH 1927-2010)
CIRCA 1986
Auction: Day One | Wednesday 19 August from 10am | Lots 1 - 198
Description
the handmade model with a large carved pine hull, masts, hand knotted rigging and painted sails, mounted on an ebonised stand with a small presentation plaque ‘The Great Michael, Built by George Scammell 1984-85-86’
Dimensions
188cm high, 150cm wide, 68cm deep
Footnote
The Great Michael was the largest ship built by King James IV of Scotland, finished in 1512. The construction was too large for the existing ports of Leith or Fife, so a new yard was built at the deeper waters of Newhaven.
George Scammell was the son of a Granton trawlerman and created a large array of ship models over almost 50 years, becoming one of Scotland's most prolific self taught model-ship builders. They were built in his two-bedroom flat in Granton Terrace and ranged from small-scale versions to eight-foot replicas of Leith's most historic vessels. He was in his 30s when he began crafting the models and he had a huge passion for 14th and 15th century galleons, eventually building every one of the Scottish fleet which numbered more than 30. Known locally as the ‘Captain’, for his perennial habit of wearing a cap and love of watching the boats near his home, he continued to be a well-known and colourful figure of the community who took a keen interest in the preservation of his beloved Granton and Leith. His models have passed into private collections and those of public organisations, including Scottish museums and libraries.
Scammell is known to have produced at least three large scale versions of the Great Michael, built of pier timbers from Hound Point on the Firth of Forth. A photograph of 1964, from the archive of the collections of Edinburgh Libraries, Museums and Galleries, shows Scammell standing with Dr Marshall and the Rev. Elizabeth Wardlaw next to his earlier model of the Great Michael. This example was temporarily in Trinity House (Maritime Museum), another version which used to be held in the Newhaven Community Fishing Museum is now displayed at Ocean Terminal on the Leith Shore. The present model is believed to be the largest and has been consigned from a private home in Leith.