The "new" Wimbledon. by F.H Ayers. Antique tennis racket almost 100 years old plus older white tennis ball Made in England The business and factory of F.H. Ayres (Frederick Henry) was situated at Aldergate, London. From the early 1860's the firm built a reputation for its high quality sports goods, boards games and is renowned for their well-crafted rocking horses that they produced until about 1940. Ayres also produced a wide array of toys, parlour and garden games popular of the period including croquet, billiards and chess. Around the 1880's they became great rivals with another large games manufacturer, John Jaques. This meant there were frequent lawsuits being filed in both directions for infringements of patents and copyrights. Towards the end of the 19th century Ayres were probably the leading manufacturer of sports and games equipment in Britain. In 1929 the company were a Listed Exhibitor at the British Industries Fair. They were listed as Manufacturers of Requisites for Tennis, Cricket, Croquet, Golf, Football, Hockey, Badminton, Bowls, Archery, Polo, Racquets, Fives, Skittles, Ski, Toboggans, Sledges, Billiards, Bagatelle, Indoor Games, Gymnastic Apparatus, Fencing, Boxing, Rocking Horses. They were eventually bought out by Slazenger in the 40's. Very nice frame shape with decoratively wrapped shoulders. Leather grip and the butt cap has an A from Ayers. The racket is very well made and a nice collectable. Great decorative item. Photo not included in the auction. Will be carefully packed and shipped. We use recycled materials as packaging to reduce waste. Shipments for multiple items can be combined if the shape is similar, please pay and we will recalculate the shipping cost. Excess shipping payment will be returned to your bank account