An early George III silver tea urn, London circa 1760 by Charles Wright and Thomas Whipham

An early George III silver tea urn, London circa 1760 by Charles Wright and Thomas Whipham

of ovoid form raised upon a pierced square base with four claw feet, with a gadrooned edge. The body with twin handles modelled as leafy branches. The tap with a leaf calyx junction terminating in a dolphin spout, with turned ivory spigot. The detachable high waisted and domed lid surmounted by a wrythen finial. Engraved to the front with a foliate cartouche with a crest of a dragon’s head erased, ducally gorged. The lid engraved with the same crest. Later engraved to the base and the lid with initials BC in flourished cursive script below a Baron’s coronet. The body sections apparently unmarked, part-marked to the lid bezel and with later Dutch standard marks (post-1953).

Height – 48 cm / 19 inches

Weight – 2048 grams / 65.84 ozt

The crest is for Cutler or Hamingston or Younge

There initials are certainly 19^th century in style, where they are two 19^th century Baron’s with the initials BC: Brownlow Cust, 1^st Baron Brownlow (1744 - 1807), created Baron 1776 and Bernard John Seymour Coleridge, 2nd Baron Coleridge, QC (1851 - 1927) inherited the title 1894.

Thomas Whipham, son of William Whipham of Layton was apprenticed to Thomas Farren on the 3rd June 1728, free 7th June 1737. Charles Wright son of Thomas Wright of Sheffield was apprenticed to Whipham on the 3rd June 1747 and free 3rd July 1754 and they became partners on the 24th Oct 1757. Wright would have registered a mark alone in the missing 1758-1773 Largeworker’s Register, given that his mark is found upon the flagon and communion cup and cover of the Eton Chapel of Ease for 1768 and that Wright & Whipham articles are found marked until 1767, we can presume the partnership to have disbanded by 1768. Thomas Whipham was a Warden of Goldsmiths Hall 1765-7, Prime Warden in 1771 and dies in 1785. Charles Wright was a Warden of Goldsmiths Hall 1783-5, resigned in 1790 and dies in 1815.

Provenance: sold Christie’s 16 June 2005, lot 784 (£1300 hammer)