Elsa, (# 1846 on the family tree), widow of Jim Cobbold, one of the Trust’s great and early benefactors, died in August this year aged 89. Her family recently donated a Henry Davy painting of Helmingham Hall (1849) and an oil of a Dutch Brigantine (1835) by Louisa Emily Hanbury née Cobbold (1804-1889).
One of Elsa’s last acts of kindness was to insist on meeting the cost of shipping those two pictures and a Family Bible across the Atlantic into the care of the Trust. It was typical of her generous nature and was simply a continuation of the selfless hospitality shown to me when I visited them in California in 2006. Elsa and Jim had two fine sons, Michael and Robert, and I want to share with you an account of Elsa’s last few days sent me by Michael.
We took her out to dinner, a Japanese dinner which had become her favourite. She was happy, smiled a lot and even asked for a glass of wine which she had not done for years. In the next few days she seemed calmer. One evening as I was saying goodnight, I kissed her on the forehead and said that I hoped she would sleep well, be comfortable and as happy as she could be. She opened her eyes and said, “I think I could be happy in heaven.”
A few days later after I had spent the day with her, I got a call in the evening and learned she had passed away. When I got there, the staff told me that after dinner she had been talking to them about heaven and thanking them for their care. When they came in to check on her later, she had passed. She passed with a smile on her face. It seems that she died having found peace.
It has been a privilege to know Jim and Elsa and an even greater privilege to have been entrusted with some of their most treasured possessions.
Anthony Cobbold
October 2014.
