MARK OF EDWARD FELINE, LONDON, 1749

Details

A GEORGE II SILVER BOWL OR 'MOUTH BASIN' FROM THE WARRINGTON PLATE
MARK OF EDWARD FELINE, LONDON, 1749
Plain circular on foot-rim with everted rim engraved with a band of rococo scrolling foliage, shells and flowers interspersed with a coat-of-arms and earl's coronet and a monogram GW beneath an earl's coronet, marked underneath and engraved with scratchweight 16-18
7 1/8 in. (18 cm.) diameter
16 oz. 16 dwt. (523 gr.)
The arms are those of Booth, for George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington (1675-1758), of Dunham Massey, Cheshire.

Provenance

George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington (1675-1758), of Dunham Massey, Cheshire, by descent to his daughter,
Lady Mary Booth (1704-1772), wife of Harry Grey, 4th Earl of Stamford (1715-1768), by descent to their son,
George Harry Grey, 5th Earl of Stamford (1737-1819) and his wife Lady Henrietta Bentinck (1727-1837), by descent to,
Catherine, Lady Grey (d.1925) her son Sir John Foley-Grey 8th Bt. (1893-1938),
Catherine, Lady Grey and Sir John Foley-Grey; Christie's, London, 20 April 1921, lot 156 (set of six) to Webster.
Roger Grey (1896-1976), 10th Earl of Stamford or Mr. Frank Booth, 6 May 1921.
Sir Arthur Booth K.B.E. ; Christie's, London, 22 March 1948, lot 129, a set of four (£1,500 to Aff).
Neville Hamwee, Esq.; Christie's, London, 18 May 1966, lot 61.
With Daniel Packer, London, 29 December 2004.

Literature

George, 2nd Earl of Warrington, The Particulars of my Plate and its Weights, ms., 1750, folio 15.
J. E. Hayward, 'The Earl of Warrington's Plate', Apollo, July 1978, pp. 32-39 (this form).
J. Rothwell, 'A plethora of plates': The re-assembly of the Warrington silver at Dunham Massey, Cheshire', Apollo, April 2001, p. 34, fig. 10 (this form).
J. Lomax and J. Rothwell, Country House Silver from Dunham Massey, London, 2006, pp. 107, 113, n. 45 and p. 181.

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

Recorded in the Earl's manuscript inventory as 'Bason to wash my Mouth', James Lomax and James Rothwell note that the distinct use of these bowls as part of the toilet service appears to be otherwise unexampled. See Lomax and Rothwell, op. cit., p. 113. More often this form would be used for flowers, dessert, as finger bowls or for feeding infants. The 20 April 1921 sale of the Warrington Plate at Christie's, London, lists twelve small silver bowls divided into two lots, lots 156 and lot 157. Lot 156, which included the present lot, comprised 'Six Small Bowls, engraved around the lips with scrollwork, and the monogram, arms and coronet of George Booth- Second Earl of Warrington' by Edward Feline, all dated 1749, and sold to 'Webster' for £365. An entry found in Lord Stamford's Diary records that in the days following the landmark sale of the Warrington plate, he met a Mr. Frank Booth 'distant relation of the Warringtons who walked into Willson's shop to ask whether he had any family plate... We arranged to get the 6 small bowls (really hand basins) engraved around the lip with the Warrington arms & monogram which were bought by Webster, & Mr. Booth took 4 of these while I am taking 2' (Lomax and Rothwell, p. 113). Presently, two of the bowls (engraved with scratch weights 16=11 and 16=15) are now in the collection of Dunham Massey. A third bowl (scratch weight 16=14) is in the collection of the City Museum and Art Gallery, Birmingham (M71).

The following lot in the 1921 sale included six slightly smaller bowls of similar form but engraved only with the monogram and coronet of George Booth. Lot 157 included three bowls by David Willaume, 1742, two by James Shruder, 1742, and another by Feline, 1747. Written annotations in the auctioneer's book record the Shruder and Feline attributions and dates. Reproductions of the Warrington 'Mouth Basin' were made by Goldsmith's and Silversmith's Co. in the 1930s. A set of twelve 1932 bowls were sold Christie's, New York, 21 October 1993, lot 378.

A pair of 1738 large salvers engraved with the arms of the 2nd Earl of Warrington, by Peter Archambo, were sold in the landmark sale The Collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller: English and European Furniture, Ceramics and Decorations, Christie's, New York, 9 May 2018, lot 175.

More from Bayreuth: A Connoisseur's Collection of English Silver and Gold Boxes

View All