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Lot Essay
The restoration of Charles II as King of England in 1660 saw an explosion in the demand for wrought silver as the taxes which had been levied by Oliver Cromwell, to pay for his armies, were lifted leaving taxpayers with greater disposable income. This led to a demand for silver to replace the plate which had been damaged or melted down during the Commonwealth, as well as a demand for more exuberant objects to replace the somewhat austere plate, which typified the middle of the 17th century. Silversmiths of the day, both English and later the Huguenots who settled in England, having fled persecution in France and arrived in England via the Low Countries, were happy to meet this demand for objects in the latest continental fashions.
Among the unique forms which evolved during this renaissance of English silversmithing were garnitures of silver or silver-gilt vases, known in contemporary inventories as 'furnishing vases' and often referred to as ginger jars, after the Chinese or Dutch porcelain examples whose form they followed. While the earliest example of a silver 'ginger jar' is dated 1658, the height of their fashion came during the 1670s and 1680s when elaborate suites, consisting typically of baluster and tapering examples in differing sizes were displayed on furniture and mantelpieces or on wall sconces in the same manner as Chinese porcelain.
Among the unique forms which evolved during this renaissance of English silversmithing were garnitures of silver or silver-gilt vases, known in contemporary inventories as 'furnishing vases' and often referred to as ginger jars, after the Chinese or Dutch porcelain examples whose form they followed. While the earliest example of a silver 'ginger jar' is dated 1658, the height of their fashion came during the 1670s and 1680s when elaborate suites, consisting typically of baluster and tapering examples in differing sizes were displayed on furniture and mantelpieces or on wall sconces in the same manner as Chinese porcelain.