THE CADDIES AND HANDLES WITH MARK OF PAUL STORR, LONDON, 1795

Details

A SET OF THREE GEORGE III SILVER TEA CADDIES IN SILVER-MOUNTED EBONY CASE
THE CADDIES AND HANDLES WITH MARK OF PAUL STORR, LONDON, 1795
Comprising a pair caddies and another smaller, each plain oblong and with cut corners and hinged domed covers with hinged ring handles, later engraved on covers with the initials AR within the Garter motto and with earl's coronet above, the ebony veneered and silver-mounted case on four claw-and-ball feet, the hinged domed cover with ball finial, with reeded mounts, ram's mask drop-ring handles and oval lock plate, the interior lined in green velvet, marked on caddies, caddy covers and handles
the caddies: two 5 1/2 in. (14 cm.) long, one 5 1/8 in. (13 cm.); the case 12 in. (30.5 cm.) long
40 oz. 5 dwt. (1,252 gr.) weighable silver

Provenance

Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery (1847-1929), of Mentmore, co. Buckingham and Dalmeny House, co. Linlithgow, Prime Minister of Great Britain.
A Gentleman; Christie's, London, 15 July 1998, lot 170.

Literature

A. Stevens, K. Richenburg and G. Walkling, The Story of British Tea Chests and Caddies, Woodbridge, 2022, p. 313, fig. 17.30.

Special notice

This lot has been imported from outside of the UK for sale and placed under the Temporary Admission regime. Import VAT is payable at 5% on the hammer price. VAT at 20% will be added to the buyer’s premium but will not be shown separately on our invoice.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Harry Williams-Bulkeley International Head of Silver Department

hwilliams-bulkeley@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2666

Lot Essay

ARCHIBALD PHILIP PRIMROSE, 5TH EARL OF ROSEBERY
Lord Rosebery was only twenty-one when he succeeded his grandfather to the earldom. His father Lord Dalmeny had died when Rosebery was three years of age. Educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford the Earl would become known as a great political orator and an outstanding sportsman, both for his skills on the shooting field and as the owner of many successful race horses. He was also a writer and a historian. Both he and his wife Hannah de Rothschild, whom he married in 1878, were great connoisseurs of art and prodigious collectors of works of art, much of which was displayed at their Buckinghamsire seat Mentmore Towers.

Politically the Earl was a Liberal albeit with imperialist views often at odds with prime minister Gladstone. During his long career he held the posts of Under Secretary for Home Affairs, Lord Privy Seal, and Foreign Secretary. Following Gladstone's retirement in 1894, Queen Victoria personally called on Rosebery to request he become prime minister, however, this caused a party crisis resulting in his resignation just one year later to lead a more imperialist division of the Liberal Party. He retired from politics in 1905. His historical monographs include works on William Pitt published in 1891 and Napoleon: The Last Phase, published in 1900. He died in 1929.

Archibald, 5th Earl of Rosebery (1847-1929). © Look and Learn / Bridgeman Images

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