A 124-year-old trophy awarded to the best canal boat horse has been saved from the furnace and once again was competed for at a recent event.
The West Bromwich Horse Show, Canal Boat Horse Class, trophy was saved by Staffordshire engineer and boat builder, Roger Fuller, who spotted it for sale on eBay.
“It appeared I was the only correspondent who wasn’t interested in melting it down for scrap,” he said.
The solid silver trophy was first awarded at the West Bromwich Horse Show at Dartmouth Park back in 1920, with hundreds of canal boat horses competing in several classes.
It was last competed-for and presented in 1939.
In July this year it was once again given to the Best Turned-out Boat Horse and Tackle, and won by Elizabeth Ray of Norbury and her horse Flower, both nine.
Mr Fuller hopes the trophy will be competed for annually, and called for owners to join the contest for what could become known as the Audlem Cup.
