FINEST 1822 GEORGE IV ENGLISH STERLING COVERED ENTRÉES Start Price USD 6,400.00 Current Price USD 6,400.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, July 22, 2008 End Time Friday, August 01, 2008 Location USA See more about 'FINEST 1822 GEORGE IV ENGLISH STERLING COVERED ENTRÉES' Description FINEST 1822 GEORGE IV ENGLISH STERLING COVERED ENTRÉES Presented is a superb, really museum quality pair of English sterling silver covered entrée or vegetable dishes made by William Eley II or perhaps William Eaton. These pieces are very large and heavy. One of the heaviest pairs I have ever seen. Check out catalogs from Sotheby's and Christie's, covered entrée/vegetable dishes very rarely come this heavy let alone any heavier. The excellent quality decoration is classical George III/George IV English Regency period. The handles are removable so that the covers can be used as bowls or entrée dishes as well. Each dish has beautiful deeply sculpted shell corners surrounded by flourishing acanthus leaves. A similar design of leaves is repeated at the center of each side. The ornate handles also have a shell at the top accented by leaves and flowers. The covers are monogrammed TH on one side and MAS on the other side. Above the letters MAS is a crest featuring a crown below a pair of wings with a torch in the center. On the bases the inside of one of the longer sides is also monogrammed TH. All three pieces of each dish (the cover, the base, and the handle) are hallmarked. The cover and base are fully hallmarked with the lion passant for sterling silver, the leopard's head for London, the duty mark of King George IV's head, and the date letter "g" for the year 1822. The maker's mark is WE probably for William Eley II, but possibly William Eaton. Arthur Grimmwade notes on page 502 of his book London Goldsmiths and Their Marks: although William Eley II did not register a mark of his own until 1824, he was clearly using his father's mark from at least 1814 onward. The signature for William Eley I's 10th registered mark is actually that of his son William Eley II. Both father and son were top-quality makers and highly patronized by many wealthy London families, both royalty and merchants. The handle is hallmarked with George III's head, the lion passant for sterling silver, and the maker's mark IC over WR for Joseph Craddock and William Reid. I believe the handle is entirely original as the decoration clearly matches. It was not at all uncommon during Georgian times for a silversmith to contract out certain portions of a piece to be made by another silversmith. I believe William Eley contracted Craddock and Reid to make the handles. They fit absolutely perfectly and also bear Georgian hallmarks. The dishes have some minor surface wear commensurate with light use, but otherwise their condition is truly excellent. The handles rotate into place and fit very tightly on the covers. The covers fit securely into the bases. There are no dents, no dings, no monogram removals, no breaks, no repairs, and no problems of any kind. Each dish measures 12 1/2 inches by 9 1/2 inches and has a total height of 5 1/4 inches. The combined weight is 4710 grams, 165 ounces, or 151 troy ounces. Please see our other examples of fine and rare silver in our eBay Store "Antiques by Bubbleking" or click this link.  Please scroll down or click here to see photographs of this item , or for information regarding the following: For the American bidder, for the international bidder, payment methods accepted, about our photographs, and our contact information. Good luck and bid with confidence. For the American Bidder Shipping including insurance will be $25.00. 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