Shanghai detective's rare photos and silver fetch thousands at auction in Lichfield

Albert Aiers' archive totals £7,110

A COLLECTION of silver and rare photographs depicting life and death in Shanghai during the early 1900s made thousands of pounds at auction in Lichfield.

The archive of around 600 images was brought back from China by a Birmingham man who abandoned a safe job as a postie to become a detective 6,000 miles away.

Albert Henry Aiers joined Shanghai Municipal Police aged 18 in 1902 and worked his way up over 37 years before retiring with the honorary rank of Assistant Commissioner on January 30 1939.

The Shanghai Municipal Police governed the settlement from 1854 to 1943.

During his tenure, Albert – or Bert, as he was known – battled opium gangs, robbers and violent civil unrest and, latterly, witnessed the Sino-Japanese Hostilities of 1937.

Around 600 photographs capturing these pivotal moments in Shanghai’s history made £5,300 with Richard Winterton Auctioneers at The Lichfield Auction Centre, Wood End Lane, Fradley Park, on Monday, February 17.

Subjects included riots, floods, prisoners, police officers, military personnel, ‘singsong girls’, Louza Police Station, British, French and Australian warships, walking races, horse races, funerals, Buddhist monks, pagodas, bridges, rivers and hills.

An album from 1937 containing 144 photographs showed shell damage and devastation from the Sino-Japanese Hostilities, warships and rural scenes.

The sale also featured silver items presented to Bert during his career, including an engraved trophy cup and Chinese shield, plus a Chinese silver-handled walking cane which belonged to his brother Thomas, who also served on the force.

The entire collection of photographs and silver totalled £7,110 under the hammer on February 17.

Auctioneer Richard Winterton said: “What a life Albert Aiers lived! Incredible to enrol in the Shanghai Police thousands of miles from home at just 18 years old.

“To then end up in dangerous investigations and murderous situations with robbers and opium gangs… if it was adventure he craved, he surely received it.

“The photographs really brought to life the dangerous streets of Shanghai in the early 1900s.

"The items of silver brought an extra dimension to this impressive collection, which generated a well-deserved total at auction.”

For general enquiries or to arrange a valuation, telephone 01543 251081 or email office@richardwinterton.co.uk.