One of Harrogate’s most famous shops is to host an Egyptology exhibition that highlights its links to Tutankhamun.

Ogden of Harrogate‘s Egyptomania exhibition, which opens on Thursday, celebrates 130 years of the family jewellers and the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb.

James R Ogden, who founded the business in 1893, travelled widely to obtain jewels and the exhibition features his artefacts and letters.

When Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamun’s tomb, he invited Ogden to the Valley of the Kings to value and weigh the gold, including Tutankhamun’s coffin.

The Harrogate jeweller was one of the first people in over 3,000 years to enter the tomb.

JR Ogden, who founded the family jewellers.

Ogden of Harrogate, which is based on James Street, is now run by JR Ogden’s great, great grandsons Robert and Ben Ogden.

Robert Ogden said:

“The history of our business is our cornerstone and we have recently been cataloguing our archive, where we have a vast collection of JR Ogden’s memorabilia, including a remarkable collection of 10,000 lantern slides of his travels to Tutankhamun’s tomb, and artefacts from his expeditions to Ur, Babylon, Palestine, Syria, and Assyria.

“There are also hundreds of letters that are fascinating glimpses of the key characters of that time, and their explorations.”

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JR Ogden knew Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon, Max Mallowan (Agatha Christie’s second husband) and worked particularly closely with the archaeologists Leonard and Katharine Woolley.

Some of these artefacts and letters will be on display for the first time.

The exhibition also includes previously unseen letters of Katharine Woolley, a pioneering female archaeologist, that are of particular interest, as on her death she asked that all her personal documents be destroyed.

Yvonne Nightingale, general manager at Ogden of Harrogate, with some letters from the exhibition. Pic: Lorne Campbell. Guzelian

Ogden made many replicas of the artefacts found at Tutankhamun and Ur and donated them to the British Museum.

The exhibition provides an insight into the social and political context in which archaeology was practiced at that time. JR Ogden collected hundreds of newspaper clippings about archaeological digs, some of which will also be on display.

Egyptology runs at Ogden of Harrogate on James Street, Harrogate, from September 7 to 21.

Historic Harrogate family business to open for Heritage Open Days

One of Harrogate’s most historic family businesses is to offer tours during this year’s Heritage Open Days.

The annual open days, which take place from September 8 to 17, give people the chance to visit historic and cultural sites for free.

Harrogate Civic Society, which organises events in and around Harrogate, is finalising its list for 2023 but is already advertising more than 20.

Among the highlights are visits to jewellers and watch-makers Ogden of Harrogate, which has been a feature of James Street since 1893. Visitors have included Winston Churchill, the Roosevelts and King George VI.

Tours hosted by two of the fifth-generation family members will reveal artefacts relating to the business and family history, plus its in-house workshop and the firm’s 1937 replica of the imperial state crown.

Visitors will also learn about James Roberts Ogden’s interest in archaeology and his work with Howard Carter to test and replicate ancient objects found in the 1922 discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb.

The Ripon gazebo

This year’s Heritage Open Days also includes new heritage walks led by experts in Pannal, Ripley and Valley Gardens, along with tours of the belltower at St Wilfrid’s on Duchy Road in Harrogate, Stonefall Cemetery and the Harrogate Club.

Outside Harrogate, there is the chance to explore How Stean Gorge in Nidderdale, stroll in the surroundings of Ripon’s 18th century gazebo and have a backstage tour of Pateley Playhouse.

Events are free but many have to be booked. Further details and a searchable list of events is available here.

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To celebrate Charles III’s coronation, the Stray Ferret and Ogden of Harrogate are holding a competition for children to design two crowns fit for the royal occasion.

The lucky winners will have their dazzling crowns displayed in Ogden of Harrogate’s shop window – showcased alongside Ogden’s very own Imperial State Crown.

We’re inviting school pupils of all ages to get creative. Two winners will be selected: one of primary school age and one of secondary school age.

We will be posting photos of entries regularly across on our social media channels during the competition – so, the more the merrier.

The Ogden Crown: 

Traditional luxury jeweller, Ogden of Harrogate, was founded in 1893 by James Ogden.

The company established its royal connections nearly a century ago, after Prince George, son of George V and Queen Mary, became a frequent customer of the St James’s store in London.

In celebration of George VI’s Coronation in 1937, Ogden of Harrogate’s team hand-crafted two replicas of the Imperial State Crown.

One of Ogden of Harrogate’s replica crowns.

The jewels on the crown mirror those in the Royal crown, including the Cullinan 2 diamond – a cut from the largest diamond ever discovered.

The Ogden crowns boast exact replicas of the diamonds, ruby’s, pearls, emeralds, and sapphires found in the Imperial State Crown.

Robert Ogden, director of Ogden of Harrogate, said:

“It is a treat to have the crown out.

“It is only on display during Royal occasions”.

How to Enter:

To enter: please submit a photo of your crown drawing, painting or creation to our website here.

The competition will run from March 27 until April 21.

The crowns will be on display in the Harrogate store from 28 April until 13 May.

Will you be crowned a winner…?

The Stray Ferret Business Awards saw 11 finalists, and one very lucky prize winner, crowned the winners of their categories.

The winners shared their reactions in the LCF LAW Winner’s Lounge.

Employee Development Award – sponsored by Jones Myers Family Law Solicitors

Winner: Grantley Hall

Grantley Hall is a luxury 5-star hotel and wellness retreat near Ripon.

Grantley was crowned the winner of the Employee Development Award.

In the LCF Law Winner’s Lounge, the Grantley team said:

“To be recognised for our employee development makes us immensely proud and is a great accolade to each and every member of our team.

“It’s our responsibility to develop our team and give them the skills that they need. This is great recognition for us”.

Digital Marketing Award – sponsored by Next Chapter

Winner: Ogden of Harrogate

Traditional jewellers, Ogden of Harrogate, took first place in the Digital Marketing Award.

The Ogden’s team with Clare Frisby and Daniel Swepson of Next Chapter (R)

In the LCF Law Winner’s Lounge Ogden of Harrogate’s directors said:

“We are absolutely delighted to win the Digital Marketing Award. It was extraordinary to be stood on that stage.

“We are a bricks and mortar business, but it was the tech and sales team that brought this to life. We are very grateful to all the staff getting behind the campaign”.

Sustainable Business Award – sponsored by the York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub

Large Business Winner: EnviroVent

EnviroVent is a Harrogate designer and manufacturer of sustainable ventilation systems.

The company’s efforts towards becoming Net-Zero merited first place.

Clare Frisby (L) with EnviroVent and James Farrar, of York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (R)

The EnviroVent team told the Stray Ferret in the LCF Law Winners Lounge:

“To be recognised by the local business community is probably one of the biggest accolade’s you could ever have.

“It is a bit of a cliché, but sustainability is not a destination, it is a journey”.

Small Business Winner: Resurrected Bites

Resurrected Bites is a food waste organisation, operating in Knaresborough and Harrogate.

Resurrect Bites was crowned the winner of the small business award for its sustainable endeavours.

Clare Frisby (L) with Michelle Hayes of Resurrected Bites, and James Farrar (R) of York and North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership

Michelle Hayes, Founder of Resurrected Bites, said in the LCF Law Winners Lounge:

“I just can’t believe we won, I really can’t. It is incredible – thank you so much.

“I am extremely passionate about the environment, so it is incredible to have won this award.

The Stray Ferret would like to thank everyone who entered the awards and everyone who attended our event.

Thank you to all our sponsors, including all the businesses supporting our individual categories, and our lead sponsor, Prosperis.

Keep an eye on our site and social media over the coming days to see more news and photographs from the awards ceremony.

The Stray Ferret Business Award for Best Digital Marketing Campaign is sponsored by Next Chapter.

Next Chapter not only leads brands to exponential growth and success, but brands itself as “the agency for disruptors and challengers”.

The Stray Ferret Digital Marketing Campaign Award recognises campaigns run solely on digital channels.

The Finalists:

Coach Gyms

Coach Gyms, located on Hornbeam Park, opened just a little over a year ago.

Coach Gyms dazzled the judges with its submission. To kick start the opening, they designed a promotion to attract gym members before they opened the doors.

Its digital pre-launch offer, that ran on Facebook and Instagram, earned the gym 1,500 sign ups before the gym even opened. The ad had a 35% conversion rate (lead to sign up) and surpassed all forecasts.

Stuart Perrin, chief executive and founder of Coach Gyms said:

“We’re over the moon to be finalists in the Digital Marketing Award!

“To say Coach Gyms Harrogate has only been open for one year, it’s great to see how far we have come as a team. Winning this award would mean the world to us”.

Ogden of Harrogate

Ogden of Harrogate’s submission for the award was a digital campaign that was designed to engage its loyal customers .

The campaign was an interactive, virtual advent calendar that enabled the jeweller to bring its annual Christmas catalogue online.

Each day, a personalised email was sent to subscribers, with an animated image featuring the corresponding door, opening onto a wonderful collection of jewellery.

Customers could register for the catalogue and join a prize draw to win £1000 to spend at Ogdens.

Robert Ogden, Director of Ogden of Harrogate, said:

“The main impetus behind the campaign was to engage with our longstanding clients in a digital way, but one that was reminiscent of the traditional Christmas Catalogue style that we have used for many years.

“The total number of pieces we were able to showcase through the 24 daily collections was around the same as for a printed catalogue, but the digital format allowed for deeper descriptions and the ability to connect with adjacent collections.  It is certainly something that we will consider doing again.”

Mumbler

Mumbler was founded by a Harrogate mum and has grown into an award-winning network of local parenting websites .

Mumbler partnered with Cry Babies interactive dolls that are designed to engage children’s emotions and empathy.

The dolls were sent to Mumbler parents who took videos and photos of their children playing with them.

The parents then wrote honest and knowledgeable reviews, that were collated into blogs.

Sally Haslewood, founder of Mumbler, said:

“The timing of the Cry Babies campaign was perfect; it gave us the opportunity to really help make life easier for our followers in the run up to Christmas.

“We knew that we’d done a great job on the campaign- the results spoke for themselves. Being recognised for this award is the cherry on top! It’s wonderful to be a finalist and I’m incredibly grateful for this opportunity”.

The Stray Ferret Business Award event sponsor is Prosperis. To find more and to purchase tickets for the big night, click here.