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#ashes urn

4 incidents tagged

⭐Serious

Florence Morphy and Ivo Bligh — Cricket's Great Love Story, 1882-83

England (Bligh's XI) v Australia

1884-02-09

When the Hon Ivo Bligh's England party arrived at Rupertswood near Sunbury for Christmas 1882, the captain was introduced to Florence Rose Morphy, music teacher and companion to Lady Janet Clarke, mistress of the house. The Ashes urn that emerged from the festivities was presented partly by Florence; within a year she and Bligh were engaged, and on 9 February 1884 they were married at Rupertswood. The Ashes therefore originate not just from a Sporting Times joke but from one of cricket's only real love stories.

#florence-morphy#ivo-bligh#ashes-urn
⭐Serious

Bligh's 'Quest to Recover the Ashes' — 1882-83 Tour

England v Australia

1882-12-30

Six weeks after the Sporting Times mock obituary, the Hon Ivo Bligh sailed for Australia at the head of a private English team with the explicit, half-joking goal of bringing 'the Ashes' home. England lost the first Test at Melbourne, won the next two at Melbourne and Sydney to take the official series 2-1, and at the end of the tour Bligh was presented with a small terracotta urn that, decades later, became the most famous trophy in cricket.

#ivo-bligh#the-ashes#1882-83
⭐Serious

The Ashes Urn — Rupertswood Presentation, 1882-83

England v Australia

1882-12-25

Sometime over Christmas and Easter 1882-83, at the Rupertswood estate of Sir William Clarke at Sunbury, near Melbourne, the Hon Ivo Bligh was presented with a small terracotta urn 10.5 cm high that was said to contain the ashes of a burnt bail. The presentation, initially a private joke during a country-house cricket match, eventually produced the most famous trophy in the sport.

#ashes-urn#rupertswood#florence-morphy
🔥Mild

Bail or Veil? — The Mystery of the Ashes Urn's Contents

England (Bligh's XI) v Australia

1882-12-25

What is actually inside the Ashes urn? For over a century the standard answer was 'a burnt cricket bail', but in 1998 the 8th Earl of Darnley's daughter-in-law claimed the contents were the burnt remains of a lady's veil, possibly belonging to Florence Morphy or Lady Janet Clarke. MCC, which has had the urn since 1927, has never officially confirmed either version. After a 2006-07 examination an MCC official said it was '95 per cent certain' the contents were a bail — leaving 5 per cent of cricket's most famous mystery still open.

#ashes-urn#bail#veil