In the 1963 sale catalogue it is suggested that, although without armorials or crest,. the date of this bell suggests that it forms part of the plate amassed by John Brownlow, created Viscount Tyrconnel in 1718. In that year, he and his new wife were installed at Belton House and evidently ordered a substantial "laying-down" of plate, much of it bought unhallmarked to avoid paying the newly-established duty of 6d per ounce. The well-known Brownlow punchbowl by Paul de Lamerie falls into this category (it is struck with Lamerie's maker's mark only) as well as a completely unmarked cup and cover with identical decoration to the punchbowl still at Belton.

Of Lord Tyrconnel, Gervais Jackson-Stops has commented: "if [his] professional activities as a politician were scarcely remembered beyond his own lifetime, we know him today as the first member of his family to be recognized as a collector" (The Treasure Houses of Britain, exhibition catalogue, Washington, D.C., 1985, no. 166). He was a courtier and friend of Frederick, Prince of Wales and was famous for his love of pomp and show. He and his family appear in a group painted by Philippe Mercier about 1725 which remains at Belton.