The Fen Skater

"Wicken Frost"- Fen Skater

Limited Edition of 250 illuminated ghosts. Release 21st December.

William Foster earned his nickname honestly - through countless frozen dawns spent practicing his skating at Wicken Fen, his figure a solitary blue-grey shadow against the white ice. Born around 1815 to a fenland farming family, William worked as a farm labourer during the warmer months, but winter transformed him. When the drains and waterways froze solid, he became something close to poetry in motion, his long powerful strokes eating up miles of ice while other skaters struggled to keep pace. He won a handful of local prizes in the 1830s and early 1840s, but never quite achieved the legendary status of the champions who would dominate the sport's golden age in the decades following. Still, for those who witnessed William in his prime - gliding through the winter dawn with frost sparkling in his wake - he remained the finest skater they'd ever seen, even if the record books forgot him.

What made William truly indispensable to the fen community, however, wasn't his skating prowess but his intimate knowledge of the frozen waterways and his absolute discretion. Farm labourers and small tradesmen had no access to proper banks, and hiding coins under floorboards or in chimneys made them vulnerable to fire and theft. William offered a unique service: for a small fee, he would securely hide your valuables in waterproof containers within the frozen banks of the fens' countless drains and channels, marking the locations with a system only he understood. He could access these hiding spots year-round by boat in summer or skates in winter, and his legendary honesty meant that anything you entrusted to William would be waiting for you when you needed it - whether in a month or a decade.

Less discussed, though widely understood, was William's willingness to store items of more questionable provenance. The same waterproof hideaways that protected a widow's life savings could equally well conceal the proceeds of a market-day theft or smuggled goods awaiting distribution. William asked no questions, kept perfect records in his remarkably sharp memory, and charged premium rates for items that might interest the authorities. His skating provided perfect cover for these activities - who would question the eccentric champion making his daily rounds of the frozen fens? The ceramic ghost's blue captures the ice he mastered and the cold water concealing his secrets, while the white represents the frost that gave him his name and the pure talent that almost - but never quite - made him legendary. The light within glows like the lanterns William carried on his pre-dawn skating sessions, still searching the winter ice for that perfect, championship-winning performance that eluded him in life.

BASE LAMP INCLUDED - 16 colours available at the touch of a button with remote control, controlling colour and solid/fade or flashing modes.

The wooden lamp holder is equipped with a USB cable with a button switch and can be connected to computers, mobile phone charger, or to the mains via an adaptor (not supplied) etc. 2.8 x 2.8 inch/ 70 x 70 mm wooden base