Lot 112
£5,796
Silver, Coins & Objets de Vertu
Auction: 13 September 2022 from 11:00 BST
Paul de Lamerie, London 1725, each of circular outline with a moulded border, engraved with armorial and crest to border, the reverse engraved with numbers 14 and 34 and with scratch weights 20:18 and 20:15 respectively
Provenance:
The Estate of Ray Slater Blakeman; Christie's, New York, 15 October 1985, lot 313 and 314
with Sandra Lipton, London, May 1989.
Sotheby’s Auction, 17th November 2010, Fine Furniture, Tapestries, Silver, Ceramics, Clocks and Rugs, Lot 15
Heraldry:
The arms are those of Mildmay quartering Fairfax with Schomberg in pretence for Benjamin Mildmay, 19th Baron FitzWalter and 1st Earl FitzWalter.
Note:
Benjamin Mildmay, Baron and later Earl FitzWalter (1672-1756)
The rapid social ascendancy of the 1st Earl of FitzWalter is an example of the nature of Georgian wealth and is visible in his commissions and the alterations to his stately home, Moulsham Hall in Essex.
In 1724, at the age of 51, Mildmay married the widowed Lady Frederica Susanna, daughter of the 3rd Duke of Schomberg, who was famed for his role in the Battle of the Boyne. This consequently gave Mildmay access to Schomberg House, on Pall Mall, and therefore also to the heart of London society. Soon after, in 1728 he inherited the Barony of FitzWalter from his elder brother, who had died without issue, and then in 1730 he was given the title of Viscount Hardwich, in the county of Essex, and Earl FitzWalter; all in a mere six years.
Moulsham Hall in Essex, formed part of the estate he inherited from his late brother. The hall was originally built in 1540 by Thomas Mildmay, and it would remain in the family for over 300 years. Indeed, it was esteemed enough to host Elizabeth I for four days on her annual progress in 1579, before being refashioned in 1591 into a grader Tudor home.
In 1728 as soon as Mildmay inherited the property, he, along with the architect Giacomo Leoni, transformed the house into a Neo-Classical mansion in the Palladian style. Together they were extremely methodical about keeping records for each purchase and transaction. These records are now archival material held with Essex record office, and they show the wealth and investment for both the exterior and interior of the house.
Mildmay himself had established a successful government career, from 1720-28, he was Commissioner of the Excise and was later promoted to Treasurer of the Household in 1737. The fusion of his career, his inheritance and his marriage meant that Mildmay was able to commission only the best and most fashionable craftsmen of the time.
In 1725, he ordered ‘12 Dishes & 3 Dozen of plates’ from the well-respected Huguenot silversmith Paul de Lamerie, as detailed in the Essex Record office. It is most likely that these plates, dated 1725, were commissioned to mark his marriage with the engraved armorials enforcing this. The Essex Record Office hold invaluable account details and show that a further service of dinner plates was commissioned in 1737 and this is most likely linked to his appointment as Treasurer of the Household as he had an entitlement of 1000oz of plate for his own use from the Jewel House.
Furnishing one’s abode with plate was the ultimate Georgian display of wealth, contemporary peers of Mildmay also chose to display their wealth by investing in plate. George Anson (1697-1762), 1st Baron Anson, the famous Admiral who circumnavigated the globe in four years also invested in a silver service and also chose Paul de Lamerie to craft his wares. Lyon & Turnbull offered one serving dish from his service in March of 2022, Lot 130, achieving £7,800.
De Lamerie was born in the Netherlands to Huguenot parents, but the family fled religious persecution on the continent and settled in England. He became a freeman of the Goldsmith's Company, London and registered his mark in 1712. The continent was to continue to inspire his work, from the 1730s he was regarded as one of the most famous silversmiths of his age due to his craftsmanship and this was aided by his business acumen. With most work based on commissions, these important connections helped his reputation, becoming known as the King’s silversmith for the numerous commissions for the Royal Households.
Other key clients included Catherine the Great, who commissioned a wine cistern in 1726, still housed in the Hermitage, (pg 77, Paul de Lamerie, At the Sign of the Golden Ball, An Exhibition of the Work of England's Master Silversmith) and the Walpole salver for Robert Walpole. A remarkably finely engraved salver with the design of the Second Exchequer Seal of George I, housed at the Victoria and Albert Museum (M.9-1956). Although working mainly on commissions, his shop based at 40 Gerrard Street from 1738 stocked further delights for the eye to behold.
Mildmay died without issue, leaving the house and contents with no viable heir. The house was later occupied by defensive forces fearing an invasion during the Napoleonic Wars and eventually demolished, but the furnishings are unaccounted for. Whenever items do appear at auction, there is always much anticipation. Twelve similar plates, also marked for 1725, are currently housed in the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Massachusetts (acquisition number 1955.405).