This month’s Silver auction is Roseberys' largest to date, with over 330 lots of British, European, Latin American, Ottoman, Chinese, Scandinavian, Russian and American silver and gold. The sale has been carefully curated to bring to market a wide selection of holloware and flatware spanning four decades from the early 18th century to the present day. Roseberys looks forward to providing buyers with an opportunity to purchase rare, unusual, novelty and decorative examples of silver with interesting historical connections and origins.
Highlights of this sale include a pair of limited edition 9ct gold brandy goblets, both handmade by Jack Spencer and decorated around the bases with theatrical characters in relief (Lot 3). The goblets were commissioned by the Bromley-based jewellers E.W. Payne to commemorate the opening of the Churchill Theatre in Bromley and the centenary of Sir William Churchill's birth. They carry an estimate of £12,000-£18,000 and follow Lot 2, an Edwardian 9ct gold wine goblet by Edward Barnard & Sons with an estimate of £2,000-£3,000
LOT 3: A pair of limited edition 9ct gold brandy goblet
Georgian silverware is well-represented in this sale and the offering includes examples by some of the most important names in British silversmithing.Notable among these is Lot 154, a pair of George III sauce tureens by Andrew Fogelberg & Stephen Gilbert (estimate £1,500-£2,500)Fogelberg is perhaps best known as master to Paul Storr, who, having benefitted from the Swedish-born Fogelberg’s tutelage, went on to become one of the most celebrated silversmiths of the late Georgian period. Fogelberg’s works are renowned for their elegant classicism and quality of craftsmanship. Other important Georgian makers whose works feature in this sale include George Hindmarsh, Peter & William Bateman, Henry Chawner and Robert Hennell.
Those with a nose for silverware with interesting associations will find several lots of interest in this sale, including Lot 16, a 19th century Tiffany & Co. ‘Japonesque’ silver christening knife and fork engraved with the name ‘Cornelia Martin’. Beautifully decorated with bamboo leaves and a butterfly to their handles, the name and date engraved upon them indicates that they likely belonged to the American-born heiress and so-called ‘dollar princess’, Cornelia, Countess of Craven (1877-1961).
Lot 1, a 19th century French silver entrée dish by the French master goldsmith, Gustave Keller, has equally illustrious connections. The dish is applied with the Demidov coat of arms, and research suggests that it likely belonged to Elim Pavlovich Demidov, 2nd Prince of San Donato (1868-1943) and the Russian Empire's last ambassador to Greece. Two apparently identical entrée dishes were sold at Christie’s in 2018 (see lot footnote), also believed to have belonged to Elim Pavlovich Demidov. This example carries an attractive estimate of £600-800.
LOT 1: A 19th century French silver entrée dish. Gustave Keller. Paris, late 19th century.
A department favourite in this sale is Lot 23, an unusual example of 19th century Mexican silver in the form of an incense burner or ‘pebetero’. Assayed in the city of San Luis Potosi, the piece is engraved with the name ‘Diaz de Leon’, which may relate to a previous owner, or perhaps the assay master or silversmith behind the piece. Silverware from San Luis Potosi is rarely seen at auction in the UK, but it is an interesting source, not least because the city sprang up in 1592 as a result of the lucrative mining of the upper Peruvian (now Bolivian) silver and gold mines at Potosi.
LOT 23: A 19th century Mexican silver 'pebetero' or incense burner.
Other notable lots in this sale include an early 20th century Russian cloisonné enamelled silver beaker by the renowned firm of Ovchinnikov (Lot 21), a set of four ‘Galleon’ menu card holders by Omar Ramsden (Lot 17), a George II silver tankard by Humphrey Payne (Lot 6), and an Ottoman silver ewer and basin (Lot 36).
LOT 17: A set of four 'Galleon' menu card holders. Omar Ramsden, London, 1925 & 1927
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