Decorator’s Windsor Castle fire medal to be auctioned
Posted: Tuesday, May 28th, 2024
A gold medallion awarded to a painter and decorator who rescued some of the Queen's belongings during the Windsor Castle fire is set to be auctioned, according to BBC. When the blaze broke out, Peter O'Mara had been working at the castle in November 1992. A letter of thanks from the late Queen to Mr O'Mara will also be sold at Surrey-based John Nicholson's auction house on 12 June. Mr O'Mara was given the medal in 1997 to commemorate the castle's restoration. The devastating fire caused millions of pounds of damage, marking the end of a year famously labelled by Queen Elizabeth II as her "annus horribilis", a Latin phrase meaning "horrible year". Mr O’Mara, a dedicated decorator from Camberley, was on duty for contractors Cousins Ltd, working on renovations at the castle when the alarm went off in the Queen’s private chapel. It took nine hours to get the fire under control, with contractors helping firefighters and Royal Household staff salvage everything they could. Mr O'Mara returned to Windsor Castle soon after the blaze, with Cousins Ltd securing the contract to carry out a £36.5m, five-year repair project. The medal and associated material are estimated to fetch about £600.
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