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Lot Essay
The arms are those of Castle impaling Frome in a lozenge, as borne by Catherine, widow of William Castle Esq., Stationer to His Majesty the King (d. 1761). Born Catherine Frome of Salisbury, she died in London on June 8, 1793.
This caddy is an early example of the amusing tea-crate caddy design popular in the late 1760s and early 1770s. Realistically modeled after Chinese wood tea crates, most caddies of this design--whether cube-form or drum-form--bear the mark of Aaron Lestourgeon. The workman's ledgers of Parker & Wakelin document that Lestourgeon supplied Parker & Wakelin with this type of caddy. In 1768, Parker & Wakelin ordered "two square tea tubs" for their client, banker Richard Cox. The records show that the assembly of the "tubs" was made by outworker silversmiths Ansill & Gilbert, but that Lestourgeon fitted them with locks and decorated the caddies, charging Parker & Wakelin for "graving of Characters." Since Lestourgeon first registered his own mark in 1767, it is possible that he was working directly for Parker & Wakelin in his early years. (See Helen Clifford, "The Organization of an Eighteenth century Goldsmith's Business," The International Silver & Jewellery Fair, February 1990, for the details of Richard Cox's order).
This caddy is an early example of the amusing tea-crate caddy design popular in the late 1760s and early 1770s. Realistically modeled after Chinese wood tea crates, most caddies of this design--whether cube-form or drum-form--bear the mark of Aaron Lestourgeon. The workman's ledgers of Parker & Wakelin document that Lestourgeon supplied Parker & Wakelin with this type of caddy. In 1768, Parker & Wakelin ordered "two square tea tubs" for their client, banker Richard Cox. The records show that the assembly of the "tubs" was made by outworker silversmiths Ansill & Gilbert, but that Lestourgeon fitted them with locks and decorated the caddies, charging Parker & Wakelin for "graving of Characters." Since Lestourgeon first registered his own mark in 1767, it is possible that he was working directly for Parker & Wakelin in his early years. (See Helen Clifford, "The Organization of an Eighteenth century Goldsmith's Business," The International Silver & Jewellery Fair, February 1990, for the details of Richard Cox's order).