Hathor approaches HowHill on 30 May 2015 for her
rededication service. How
Hill House (visible above)
was built for the designer
of Hathor’s interior,
Edward BoardmanCLASSIC BOAT AUGUST 2016 23One of only eight wherries still
afloat, Hathor is as extraordinary
a sight as ever, inside and out
WORDS AND PHOTOS RICHARD JOHNSTONE-BRYDEN
BUILT
LIKE AN
EGYPTIAN
T
he completion of the 56ft (17m) pleasure
wherry Hathor’s restoration last summer
represented a significant milestone in Broadland
history. For the first time since the 1950s, all
eight of Norfolk’s surviving wherries are back in
commission on their native waters, thereby setting up the
tantalising prospect of being able to see them sail together
at some point in the future. It also marked the conclusion
of the Wherry Yacht Charter Charitable Trust’s
(WYCCT) £1.4 million project to rebuild its Wroxham
base and restore its wherries Olive, Norada and Hathor.
Commissioned by sisters Ethel and Helen Colman,
Hathor’s name, beautiful interior and distinctive features
were inspired by a tragic chapter within the family’s
history in the late 19th century. The sisters were
daughters of the businessman and politician Jeremiah
James Colman [of mustard fame]. In June 1896, their