Lot 179
THE CALEB WRIGHT DESK SEAL
A LATE 19TH CENTURY BLOODSTONE AND CHALCEDONY DESK SEAL
Auction: 16 September 2025 from 10:00 BST
Description
The polished domed handle to a fluted gold collar, the oval chalcedony matrix engraved with a unicorn holding an axe crest
Dimensions
11.2cm overall, 2.6cm x 2.1cm (matrix)
Provenance
The Matrix Collection
Footnote
Caleb Wright Esq. M.P. (1810-1898)
Of Lower Oak, Tyldesley, Lancashire, came from humble origins, one of thirteen children he started work in the cotton mills at the age of eleven. By 1841 he was a manager and by 1844 had built his own mill. In 1876, the year he was granted his right to bear arms, he was instrumental in the erection of a swimming bath, against much opposition. Elected local M.P. in 1885, Wright was a Gladstonian Liberal, supporting Home Rule for Ireland and votes for Women.