A previously undiscovered photo album belonging to Clare Sheridan, the cousin of Winston Churchill once suspected of being a Soviet spy, has sold for more than £8,000 at auction.
The album, which contains over 80 rare photographs from her secret trip to Soviet Russia in 1920, was found during a routine valuation by auctioneer Andrew Stowe of Bristol’s Auctioneum.
The discovery caused excitement among historians and collectors, with five bidders from “both sides of the Atlantic” vying for the piece. It ultimately sold for £6,600, reaching £8,250 with fees.
“It’s a wonderful result for this special and controversial piece of history,” Stowe said, describing the moment he found the album as a “eureka” discovery. “It’s quite a special moment—things like that don’t happen every day.”
Clare Sheridan, a sculptor and writer, became entangled in political controversy after traveling to Russia in 1920. Following an affair with Soviet diplomat Lev Kamenev in London, she was invited to Moscow under the pretense of sculpting Soviet leaders such as Lenin and Trotsky.
However, her activities in Russia went beyond art, according to Stowe. “It was quite a promiscuous trip, and she was quite a character—a strong, independent, and powerful young woman who knew exactly what she wanted in life,” he said.
The album includes a series of rare, annotated photographs, among them the first known image of Bolshevik revolutionary Mikhail Borodin. It also documents Sheridan’s journey from the Isle of Wight to Norway and eventually into the Kremlin.
Some of the images appear to be casual travel photos, but they provide a unique and personal perspective on a significant historical period. “One of the pictures early in the book shows Clare Sheridan with Lev Kamenev. They’re sat on the grass on the Isle of Wight as any young couple would,” Stowe noted.
The British government at the time viewed her Soviet connections with suspicion, leading to speculation that she was a Russian spy. Although she was never officially charged, her relationships with key Bolshevik figures made her a controversial figure in British society.
Among the most sentimental pieces in the collection is a signed photograph of Winston Churchill, dedicated to Sheridan’s daughter. The connection between the two cousins was often strained, given her political affiliations and rebellious lifestyle.
The sale of the album highlights the enduring fascination with Sheridan’s life and the complex history of early Soviet-British relations. “The intense bidding just goes to show that there is still plenty of interest in her story,” Stowe said.
