A RARE AMERICAN SILVER TWO-HANDLED CUP AND COVER, CHARLES LE ROUX, NEW YORK, CIRCA 1720

the lower body and cover with applied strapwork, the top of one handle engraved with block initials A/J*M, both sides with a contemporary crest and a coat-of-arms in a baroque cartouche within a circle.

James and Mary Alexander, to their son
William Alexander (1726-1783), Earl of Stirling, m. 1747 Sarah, daughter of Philip Livingston; by descent to
A. Douglas Russell, Maryland, sold
Sloan's & Kenyon, Bethesda, MD, May 31, 2003, lot 93

American Sampler, 2002.

Silver Studies The Journal of The Silver Society, no. 16, 2004, illus. p. 79

minor dings & scratches, overall good condition, nice heavy weight
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

James and Mary Alexander married in 1721. He had a merchant business, but was primarily active as an attorney and government official in New York and New Jersey, serving as Surveyor General of New Jersey, and Attorney General of New York.  On his early death, Mary Alexander oversaw the merchant business in New York, becoming one of the better known purveyors in the city before her death in 1760.

Their son William was known as "Lord Stirling," although the House of Lords rejected his claim to the earldom of that name.  He married well and lived in grand style on an estate in New Jersey. With the Revolution, he was an important general and trusted aide to George Washington, who visited him and gave Stirling's daughter away at her wedding.  Lord Stirling died in 1783, shortly before the war's end.    

Only a handful of Colonial American silver "grace cups" survive. A similar two-handled cup by Charles Le Roux, with the cypher probably of Frederick de Peyster, is in the Mabel Brady Garvan Collection at Yale University (Buhler & Hood 1970 no. 612).