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329 ROYAL: A GEORGE IV SILVER-GILT BOWL, EDWARD FARRELL, LONDON, 1824 chased with panels containing the arms of James I and his emblems and the date 1610 below a Gothic inscription, all on matted or granulated grounds, spreading foot with stylised leaves 16cm diameter, 524gr (16oz) The inscription reads: Shew not thy valientnesse in wine; for wine hath destroyed many. Can a man take fire in his bosome, and his clothes not bee burned? can one goe upon hote coles, and his feet not bee burned? Provenance: H.R.H. Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (1763-1827); Christie’s, London, Duke of York sale, 19 March 1827, lots 79-82; unknown; Sotheby’s, London, 17 October 1975, lot 452 This bowl is one from a set of thirty-four such vessels belonging George IV’s brother, Prince Frederick the Duke of York, each with a differing inscription. The Duke amassed an enormous collection of plate, much of it through the auspices of the maverick retailer, Kensington Lewis (c.1790-1854). Although Prince Frederick took his official duties seriously, his extravagant lifestyle and gambling debts forced his executors to take the rare step of holding the exceptional Royal sale at Christie’s in 1827. The Prince’s collection included a number of Farrell’s extraordinary and somewhat eccentric designs. Kensington Lewis had encouraged Farrell to gain inspiration from early silver, leading the chaser and silversmith to become one of the earliest proponents of historicist silver. These particular bowls were based upon a rare 17th century type of English fruitwood drinking bowl: for a similar bowl, dated 1610, see O. Evan-Thomas, Domestic Utensils of Wood, London 1932, plate 14.
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Literature: A. Phillips and J. Sloane, Exhibition catalogue, Antiquity Revisited: English and French Silver-Gilt from the Collection of Audrey Love, London, 1997.
330 A VICTORIAN NATURALISTIC SILVER SALT CELLAR, BENJAMIN SMITH, LONDON, 1839 cast and chased as a peony bloom, gilt interior 8.5cm long, 215gr (6oz)
£1500-2500
£700-1000
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