Property from the Collection of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone
A presentation silver-gilt and rock crystal presse-papier, Cartier, 1967
Lot Closed
June 9, 04:55 PM GMT
Estimate
7,000 - 9,000 GBP
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Read more.Lot Details
Description
The rough-cut rock crystal base supporting the realistically modelled Concorde plane, signed 'Cartier Paris', in Cartier box with a gilt-tooled inscription to the lid; 'MONSIEUR LE SECRETAIRE D'ETAT STONEHOUSE'
10cm, 4in. long
PROVENANCE
John Stonehouse (1925–1988)
The first official presentation of the Anglo-French supersonic airplane took place on Monday the 11th December 1967 at the Sud Aviation factory near Toulouse. Concorde was not in full service until 1971, yet this pivotal moment in aviation history and entente cordiale cooperation was commemorated by the presentation of three gold and rock-crystal models of Concorde by Cartier to Jean Chamant the French Transport Minister, Tony Benn the British Minister of Technology and John Stonehouse in his function as Minister of State for Technology. Stonehouse is still chiefly remembered for other reasons, which in 1974 culminated with the faking his own death on a beach in Miami, whilst in fact fleeing to Australia with his mistress. When Margaret Thatcher found out in 1979 that Stonehouse, a former postmaster general and minister, had been a paid Czech spy since 1962, he had already been convicted of fraud, theft, forgery and wasting police time.