ROYAL. A PAIR OF GEORGE I SILVER TWO-HANDLED CUPS AND COVERS, NICHOLAS CLAUSEN AND ABRAHAM BUTEUX, LONDON, 1719 |

the lower bodies and domed covers applied with strapwork in alternating designs, with scroll handles and pedestal bases, each engraved with the Royal Arms and supports of George I, one cover with the Royal Badge, the undersides with engraved scratch weights '30=19' and '30=12' '32=41/2'

As a set of twelve, King George I (1660-1727) then by descent; Ernest Augustus Duke of Cumberland and King of Hanover and then by descent in the Hanoverian Royal family in Hanover and Austria

sold by The Duke of Brunswick (most probably) via Samuel and Max Glückselig of Vienna to Crichton Brothers (1923)

Dispersed in pairs (1925)

with J. Pierpont Morgan

The descendants of J. Pierpont Morgan, Sotheby's, New York, 23 April 1993, lot 508

A Private English Collection

Crichton Brothers, Old English Silver from the Duke of Cumberland's Collection, London, 1924.

E. Alfred Jones, Burlington Magazine, 'The Duke of Cumberland's English Plate,' January 1924, pp.41-42, illus. of one, item C. A.G. Grimwade, The Queen's Silver, London, 1953, p. 6-7, ill. p. 63, no. 7

Michael Clayton, The Collector's Dictionary of the Silver and Gold of Great Britain and North America, (second edition), p.138

Susan Hare, editor, Paul De Lamerie: The Work of England's Master Silversmith (1688-1751), Goldsmiths' Hall, London, 1990, p.10

Hallmarks clear to each underside, one Buteux and the other Clausen. Both covers fully marked for Clausen, one struck a little weaker then the other. Both are worn and poor in colour, would benefit form professional cleaning. The applied strap-work is rubbed in places but still fairly crisp. Original engraving is also crisp. One cover fits a little tighter to the body than the other. Nice heavy gauge and otherwise good condition.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

These two cups and covers are from a set of twelve bearing the marks of Nicholas Clausen and Abraham Buteux for George I (Clayton, op. cit. p.138) and later forming part of the collection of Ernst Augustus, Duke of Cumberland. The identical royal arms engraved on these cups can also be found on a larger group or work marked by Clausen over the surrounding years. Also included are a set of eight silver-gilt trencher salts, 1718 (sold Christie's, New York, 18 April 1989, lot 573, formerly the collection of J.P. Morgan); a set of four silver-gilt footed salvers, 1719 (three sold from The Estate of Edith Kane Baker, Sotheby's, New York, 28 October, lots 615 and 616; one sold from The Collection of Bryan Jenks, Christie's, London, 16 June 1965, lot 20); and a pair of silver-gilt double salts, 1721, in the royal collection, Windsor Castle. There also appears mention of a number of dinner plates, 1718 and 1721 (six sold Christie's, London, 28 March 1962), some of which are at Windsor castle, although the number appears  to be unspecified. Nicholas Clausen is first recorded in London in the parish of St. Martin in the Fields when he is listed in the 1709 Naturalization Act with two witnesses, Godfried Wittich and Sven Holst, suggesting a Swedish rather than German origin. He was made free of the Haberdashers' Company by redemption on 1 July 1709 as 'Niecolaus Clauson' before entering his first mark at Goldsmiths' Hall that year when his address was given as Orange Street, near Leicester Fields, an area dominated by established immigrant Huguenot craftsmen. His most spectacular work is the Russian Imperial throne in the State Hermitage, St. Petersburg. This was reported in The Gentleman's Magazine, 31 July 1732 as 'a magnificent Silver Chair of State, adorn'd with an Imperial Crown, and a Spread Eagle, etc., gilt with Gold, made here for the Throne of the Empress of Russia, was finish'd this month. The Work cost near as much as the Metal, which weigh'd 1900 Ounces'.

Of the twelve cups and covers, all bear Clausen's mark apart from one cup in this present pair with Bueaux's mark. As a fellow 'stranger, this is not the only instance of these two goldsmith's collaboration: Susan Hare noted in the 1726 trial of Robert Dingley, a merchant goldsmith and jeweller, how a large consignment destined for Russia totalling 18,600oz., 'was made up of 314oz. of silver by Nicholas Clausen, 53oz. by Peze Pilleau, 95oz. by Issac Ribouleau, 568.05oz. by Simon Pantin, 70oz. by Augustine Courtauld, 300oz. by Joseph Barbutt, 700oz. by Abraham Buteaux . . . .'

Of the twelve cups that were originally commissioned, at least eight can still be accounted for since they were sold in pairs by Crichton Brothers over several years during the mid-1920s. The present pair were sold by the descendants of J.P. Morgan (Sotheby's, New York, 23 April 1993, lot 508) who it is thought to have purchased four of the cups. The pair in this lot were given by J.P Morgan to Charles F. Whigham before descending to Sir Robert Wigan (sic), who served as A.D.C. to George V. They are now in a private English collection having been purchased from The Albert Collection, recently dispersed.

A further pair was purchased from Crichton's by Lord Bicester before being sold at Christie's, London, 27 June 1956, lot 84 for £2300. They were purchased by Peter Wilding and formed part of the Wilding Bequest (1969) at the British Museum. A fourth pair is in Her Majesty The Queen's Collection (probably formerly owned by Queen Mary), see Grimwade, The Queen's Silver, London, 1953, pg. 63, no. 7.

Lumley stated in January 1976 that a pair was owned by Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor but these have not been traced. A final pair, however, was sold, The Property of a Private New York Collector, at Sotheby's, New York, 15 December 1981, lot 280.