Only known picture of Queen Consort’s great-great-grandmother found on eBay
The only known photograph of the Queen Consort’s great-great-grandmother has been discovered by an amateur historian who then sent the image to Camilla.
Adam Simpson-York received a personal reply from the Queen Consort, who thanked him for the portrait of Edrica Faulkner and added in a letter: "It is the first time I have ever seen her picture, I must say she looks a bit sad in it."
Mr Simpson-York runs a Facebook page, Medals Going Home, on which he reunites families with their ancestors’ war medals and other memorabilia.
The 37-year-old spends hours scouring eBay and other sites looking for items. He then carries out research, with the hope of finding living relatives to give them to.
On Jan 3, he spotted a picture that caught his eye on the auction site, buying it an hour later for £9.95.
Mr Simpson-York, of Ipswich, Suffolk, said he did not initially know there was a royal connection.
However, when he saw the photo had the name Edrica Faulkner on it, a Google search revealed the link to Camilla, who was born Camilla Rosemary Shand in July 1947.
He said: "This is most definitely the best item yet that I have rehomed - I'm not sure I'll be able to top rehoming an item to Queen Consort Camilla. But it just goes to show you that it's amazing what you can find on eBay.
"I loved the personal touch to her reply. It's a great feeling to know she took the time to look at it and it's even more exciting that she'd never seen it before.
"Hopefully it was a nice surprise for her. I imagine there is a royal archive that it would go into.
"As soon as I realised who it was, I bought it with the intention of sending it to her. It's what I do.”
Camilla's parents were the British Army officer-turned-businessman Major Bruce Shand and his wife The Hon Rosalind Cubitt, daughter of Roland Cubitt, 3rd Baron Ashcombe.
Edrica Faulkner is the Queen Consort's great-great-grandmother on her father's side and lived between 1822 and 1890.
Little is known about her life, other than she was the daughter of an itinerant painter. She married Hugh Morton Shand in 1857 and they had three sons, including Alexander Faulkner Shand, Camilla's great-grandfather.
