A VICTORIAN AESTHETIC MOVEMENT SILVER TRAY

MARK OF WALTER AND JOHN BARNARD, LONDON, 1878

Details

A VICTORIAN AESTHETIC MOVEMENT SILVER TRAY
MARK OF WALTER AND JOHN BARNARD, LONDON, 1878
In the Chinese manner, shaped oblong with reeded and bamboo borders, the handles imitating lacquer, engraved in the centre with sparrows and insects in flight above a lily-pad strewn pond, with orange blossom branch and wild flowers, engraved with crest and motto on one side, the other with inscription, marked underneath
21 ¾ in. (55 cm.) wide
69 oz. 19 dwt. (2,176 gr.)
The crest is that of Ethelston.
The inscription reads 'Presented to Edmund Ethetston [sic.] Esqr. by the Tenantry of the Hinton and Wickstead Estates and other friends on the attainment of his majority, 5th November 1878' and records the gift of the tray to Edmund Ethelston (1857-1922) of Hinton Hall, Shropshire, on his 21st birthday.

Brought to you by

Giles Forster

gforster@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2146

Lot Essay

The Aesthetic Movement in Britain (1860–1900) aimed to escape the ugliness and materialism of the Industrial Age, by focusing instead on producing art that was beautiful rather than having a deeper meaning – 'Art for Art's sake'. The artists and designers in this 'cult of beauty' found inspiration in history but also in items of Japanese or Chinese origin, designing objects that would redefined the domestic world of the British middle-classes.

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