Oscar Wilde with his fellow students in the Cloisters of Magdalen College during 1876. (Dominic Winter Auctioneers via SWNS)
By Lauren Beavis
A previously unseen photo of Oscar Wilde as a student at Oxford has been found.
The picture of the playwright among his fellow students in the Cloisters of Magdalen College during 1876 was discovered in a Victorian photo album.
Wilde arrived as an undergraduate in 1874 and graduated four years later — by which time he had swiftly become one of Oxford's most recognizable figures.
Oscar Wilde (red circle) with his fellow students in the Cloisters of Magdalen College during 1876. (Dominic Winter Auctioneers via SWNS)
The newly uncovered image is part of a collection set to go to auction at Cirencester-based auction house Dominic Winter Auctioneers today (May 20).
The auctioneers expect the photo album — which features 90 miscellaneous photographs including a "remarkable" photograph of Sir Winston Churchill (1874–1965) riding a horse — to fetch between £3,000 to £5,000 (more than $4,000 to more than $6,000).
The "unusual" photograph of Churchill, who was normally captured on photograph in formal poses and settings, is estimated to fetch £1,000–£1,500 (more than $1,300 to more than $2,000).
Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965) riding a horse. (Dominic Winter Auctioneers via SWNS)
An auctioneer at Dominic Winter said: "It represents a rare opportunity for collectors to acquire a signed image of Churchill in an unusually informal and sporting moment."
The sale also includes a poignant photographic work relating to the Kennedy family, preserved directly from the personal estate of celebrated British portrait photographer Marcus Adams (1875–1959).