A BOX of old glass plate photographic negatives, which show past North Yorkshire fishing communities, is attracting international interest ahead of an auction on Friday.

The plates have been revealed to be a “spectacular treasure trove,” of images, documenting life in fishing communities from Cornwall to North Yorkshire in the late Victorian and Edwardian periods.

One of the auctioneers who will be present in Driffield tomorrow, Andy Spicer, said: “The pictures are simply sensational.

“The trawlers and fishing smacks that appear in many of the photographs enable us to date the collection of almost a hundred plates to the period 1885-1914.

“The technical quality of the photography is wonderful but even more extraordinary is what he was photographing and the way he was photographing it.”

The glass plates were bought on a whim by an East Yorkshire man in a junkshop in Camberwell more than 40 years ago.

One of the photographs depicts three trawlers moored in a tranquil Scarborough Harbour.

The ship on the right in the picture is the local trawler Seal which would be one of 19 fishing vessels sunk in the North Sea by a German U-boat in two infamous days in September 1916.

Mr Spicer went on to say: “The photographs are a wonderful find, without a doubt the most remarkable collection from this period that we have ever seen in the saleroom.

“We have been fielding enquiries from as far away as South Africa.”

The full catalogue is available online at: https://bit.ly/32qdcV8

The auction will be held at the Exchange Saleroom in Driffield tomorrow from 10am.

It will be webcast live online at: thesaleroom.com