Boning up on ox roast history ready for Jubilee
Richard Cutcher • Published 22 Apr 2012 10:00
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AN OX bone, more than 200-years-old, and from the first Windsor ox roast to celebrate a monarch's jubilee, is on display.
A small box, made from the bone taken from the ox roast held to celebrate King George III's Golden Jubilee in Bachelors' Acre, on October 25, 1809, is part of the Windsor and Royal Borough Museum's Royal Occasions exhibition.
Plans for this summer's Jubilee roast, on Monday June 4, are well advanced with 1,000 people expected to attend the event.
Margaret Kirby, service manager for heritage and the arts at the Royal Borough, said: "We are really keen that we are able to do something that will make a strong contribution in
this Jubilee year and we are pleased that there is a connection with the ox roast.
"It is so nice we will be having another this year and hopefully this piece of history brings it all to life. We hope there will be someone in Windsor who would like to fashion a bone from this summer's ox."
The bone box is accompanied by a note from John Banister, a butcher and the Mayor of Windsor in 1820. It is believed Mr Banister oversaw the cooking and carving of the ox 203 years ago.
Hester Davenport, a senior volunteer at Friends of the Royal Borough Museum, said: "What is lovely about this box is that it shows traditions never totally change.
"There will be people who remember the ox roast for The Queen's Golden Jubilee and even her Silver Jubilee which she attended in 1977. I have always loved that little box."
An illuminated diorama in a glass case, commissioned by the Royal Borough in 1959, accompanies the collection and features the main characters who attended the roast in 1809 including Queen Charlotte, Edward Duke of Kent and Princess Augusta, all made from wool and wire. King George III, who was 71-years-old and seriously ill, was unable to attend.
Mrs Davenport added: "When The Queen opened the museum in December she was particularly interested in the diorama. They are the most beautiful creations and so complex."
The Royal Occasions exhibition is on the ground floor of the museum, in the Guildhall, High Street, Windsor, and will be on display until June 22.
This article appeared in Local Berkshire 20 Apr 12
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