Platinum Jubilee Horn to be presented to Ripon

Authorisation was given by councillors last September, as reported in the Gazette, after a proposal by Leader of the Council Andrew Williams to replace a fragile horn dating back to 1690.

Coun Williams said: “This will be a permanent reminder of our Jubilee celebrations this week which promise to be the most comprehensive anywhere in North Yorkshire.”

He added: “I had the idea that it would be nice to do something that marked the Queen’s Jubilee as a permanent marker.

“The horn is the symbol of the city and it seemed a good idea to bring the two together.”

The horn will be presented to Mayor of Ripon Coun Sid Hawke by Honorary Freeman of the city and former Hornblower John Richmond BEM in the Market Place on Saturday at 8.45pm.

The horn was made by Duncan Grimmond, a local craftsman who has made several horns for the council over the last four decades.

Mark Sidwell, Musical Director of Ripon City Band advised Duncan in the process of making the horn, which is believed to be from an African Buffalo and has silver mountings including the Jubilee hallmark.

The inscription reads Presented by Ripon City Council to the City of Ripon on the occasion of HM Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee – June 2022.

Coun Williams added that Ripon already had a tribute to a past monarch: “When Queen Victoria celebrated her Diamond Jubilee, the city erected the Clock Tower as a permanent reminder.

“It is incredibly important that Ripon and the whole country marks this Jubilee.

“The Queen has given tremendous service to the country for what is now all but seven decades and we do need to mark that appropriately.”

The Ripon Hornblower is a custom that dates back as far as Saxon times when King Alfred gave the ancient city a horn as a symbol of its Royal Charter, suggesting a Wakeman’ to guard over it through the night.

The tradition has continued to this day, although is now shared by four hornblowers.