Keep Calm and Carry On

Despite the 1939 wartime slogan being a popular motif for mugs, tee-shirts and fridge magnets, originals are very rare to come by.

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The annual Art & Antiques Fair, Olympia is running June 27 - July 3, and will be selling an original "Keep Calm and Carry On" poster at its auction.

Given the decision of the UK to leave the European Union, the sale of an original "Keep Calm and Carry On" during the Art & Antiques Fair, Olympia has particular relevance today. Despite the 1939 wartime slogan being a popular motif for mugs, tee-shirts and fridge magnets, originals are very rare to come by, most having been reduced to pulp for recycling during a time when raw materials were scarce.

The surviving poster, measuring 75 x 51 cm (30 x 20 inches), was discovered 16 years ago in a box owned by the manager of Barter Books in Alnwick, Northumberland, England. It will go on sale for a starting price of £21,250 (approx. RM115,549) at the Manning Fine Art stand.

The Art & Antiques Fair, Olympia, UK's largest arts and antiques fair is held at London's Kensington Olympia Exhibition Centre. 2016 marks the event's 44th birthday, which welcomes over 30,000 visitors each year. Items dating from antiquity to the present day are showcased by over 160 specialist dealers from around the world.

This year, as well as the 1939 poster, highlights include the Sculptural Objects Functional Art and Design Fair dedicated to three-dimensional art and design, the HALI showcase of textile designers, and a new feature promoting emerging galleries and dealers who have been running for seven years or less.

The fair's sister event, the Winter Arts and Antiques Fair, Olympia, takes place October 31 - November 6, 2016.

Less historical, but no less significant to the world is the chair JK Rowling sat in when she wrote Harry Potter into our world.